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Davis scores 21 points as No. 4 North Carolina beats Louisville 86-70 for 7th straight win

AP
Jan 18, 2024

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) RJ Davis scored 21 points and No. 4 North Carolina beat Louisville 86-70 for its seventh straight victory Wednesday night, the Tar Heels’ longest winning streak in five seasons.

Armando Bacot had 19 points, former Louisville player Jae’Lyn Withers set season highs with 15 points and 10 rebounds off the bench, and Cormac Ryan scored 14 for North Carolina (14-3, 6-0 Atlantic Coast Conference).

Under third-year coach Hubert Davis, the Tar Heels are off to their best ACC start in eight years.

And they want more. RJ Davis thinks 40 minutes of dominance should be the goal.

“It’s the next step for us to be great,” he said.

Skyy Clark scored 16 points, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield had 15 and reserve Tre White added 12 for Louisville (6-11, 1-5), which has lost five of six. Even shooting 64% in the second half wasn’t enough for the Cardinals.

“I want these guys to know what it feels like to come into a North Carolina and actually win a game,” coach Kenny Payne said.

RJ Davis, who also had six assists, and Ryan both made four 3-pointers, putting the Tar Heels on their way to winning five consecutive ACC games by double-digit margins for the first time in 16 years.

But there was an uncomfortable stir in the crowd when Louisville scored seven straight points to pull to 53-45. It was 55-50 as the Cardinals hit nine of their first 10 second-half shots from the field.

“We definitely relaxed a little bit and looked up and it was a five-point game,” RJ Davis said.

Withers, in his first season with the Tar Heels, drove for a baseline basket to cap a 7-0 spurt as the lead grew back to 65-52. Then he converted a three-point play on the next possession.

“He was more than pretty good,” Hubert Davis said. “We just don’t win this game without (Withers).”

As disturbed as Hubert Davis was with his team’s defense early in the second half, a positive developed from that.

“I loved how we reacted and we responded,” he said.

North Carolina broke out to leads of 15-4 and 26-9 and was up 46-29 at halftime.

“It’s our preparation and our mindset,” Ryan said. “We understand we can’t take anybody lightly, especially in league play no matter who it is.”

But unlike Saturday’s romp over Syracuse, the Tar Heels had more work to do.

“They wait for you to make mistakes and they burn you,” Payne said.

After losing 22 consecutive true road games, Louisville was trying to win two in a row following last week’s upset at Miami.

BIG PICTURE

Louisville: The Cardinals committed nine first-half turnovers and fell to 0-3 against AP Top 25 opponents this season. ... Louisville has four games in a row with at least eight 3-pointers, but still has the fewest (105) among ACC teams.

North Carolina: Carrying their highest ranking since holding the No. 1 spot in November 2022, the Tar Heels stayed alone in first place in the ACC. They improved to 8-0 at home this season.

UP NEXT

Louisville: Saturday at Wake Forest

North Carolina: Saturday at Boston College.

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1st Half
LOU
Cardinals
29
UNC
Tar Heels
46

Time		Play	Score
20:00		Jump ball. Armando Bacot vs. Hercy Miller (RJ Davis gains possession)
19:38		Harrison Ingram misses three point jump shot
19:36		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield defensive rebound
19:11		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield misses two point layup
19:09		Harrison Ingram defensive rebound
19:05	+2	Armando Bacot makes two point dunk (Harrison Ingram assists)	0-2
18:40	+2	Danilo Jovanovich makes two point jump shot	2-2
18:31		Cormac Ryan misses two point layup
18:29		Mike James defensive rebound
18:29		Harrison Ingram personal foul
18:12		Hercy Miller turnover (lost ball) (RJ Davis steals)
18:04	+2	Armando Bacot makes two point layup (Harrison Ingram assists)	2-4
17:43		Mike James misses two point layup
17:41		Mike James offensive rebound
17:38		Mike James misses two point layup
17:36		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield offensive rebound
17:32	+2	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes two point layup	4-4
17:23	+2	Harrison Ingram makes two point jump shot	4-6
17:10		Danilo Jovanovich misses three point jump shot
17:08		Armando Bacot defensive rebound
17:00	+3	Cormac Ryan makes three point jump shot (Armando Bacot assists)	4-9
16:35		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield misses three point jump shot
16:33		Tar Heels defensive rebound
16:14		Harrison Ingram misses two point jump shot
16:12		Mike James defensive rebound
16:05		Armando Bacot personal foul
16:00		Tre White misses three point jump shot
15:58		Tar Heels defensive rebound
15:58		TV timeout
15:41	+3	Cormac Ryan makes three point jump shot (Elliot Cadeau assists)	4-12
15:20		Skyy Clark misses two point layup
15:18		RJ Davis defensive rebound
15:05	+3	RJ Davis makes three point jump shot (Harrison Ingram assists)	4-15
15:03		Cardinals 30 second timeout
14:41		Seth Trimble blocks Ty-Laur Johnson's two point jump shot
14:39		Cormac Ryan defensive rebound
14:38		Ty-Laur Johnson personal foul
14:15		Seth Trimble misses three point jump shot
14:13		Cardinals defensive rebound
14:01	+2	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes two point layup	6-15
13:42	+2	Armando Bacot makes two point hook shot	6-17
13:18		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield misses two point jump shot
13:16		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
13:09	+2	RJ Davis makes two point layup	6-19
12:52		Ty-Laur Johnson misses two point jump shot
12:50		Armando Bacot defensive rebound
12:42	+2	Armando Bacot makes two point layup (RJ Davis assists)	6-21
12:19	+2	Tre White makes two point jump shot	8-21
12:06	+2	Jae'Lyn Withers makes two point layup (Armando Bacot assists)	8-23
11:50	+3	Curtis Williams makes three point jump shot (Ty-Laur Johnson assists)	11-23
11:35	+3	RJ Davis makes three point jump shot (Armando Bacot assists)	11-26
11:13		Ty-Laur Johnson misses three point jump shot
11:11		RJ Davis defensive rebound
11:01		RJ Davis turnover (bad pass) (Mike James steals)
10:49		Armando Bacot blocks Mike James's two point layup
10:47		RJ Davis defensive rebound
10:45		Seth Trimble misses two point layup
10:43		Ty-Laur Johnson defensive rebound
10:43		Ty-Laur Johnson turnover (lost ball) (Armando Bacot steals)
10:42		RJ Davis misses three point jump shot
10:42		Cardinals defensive rebound
10:42		TV timeout
10:35		Curtis Williams turnover (lost ball) (Elliot Cadeau steals)
10:32		Tre White shooting foul (Jae'Lyn Withers draws the foul)
10:32		Jae'Lyn Withers misses regular free throw 1 of 2
10:32	+1	Jae'Lyn Withers makes regular free throw 2 of 2	11-27
10:10		Jalen Washington personal foul (Kaleb Glenn draws the foul)
10:09		Ty-Laur Johnson turnover (bad pass) (Elliot Cadeau steals)
9:58		Paxson Wojcik misses three point jump shot
9:56		Curtis Williams defensive rebound
9:52		Curtis Williams misses three point jump shot
9:50		Elliot Cadeau defensive rebound
9:40		Jalen Washington misses two point jump shot
9:38		Curtis Williams defensive rebound
9:29		Skyy Clark misses two point layup
9:27		Kaleb Glenn offensive rebound
9:22		Kaleb Glenn misses two point layup
9:20		Jalen Washington defensive rebound
9:20		Elliot Cadeau turnover (bad pass)
9:01	+2	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes two point layup	13-27
8:54		Harrison Ingram misses two point jump shot
8:52		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield defensive rebound
8:47		Tre White turnover (lost ball)
8:29		Paxson Wojcik misses three point jump shot
8:27		Tar Heels offensive rebound
8:12		Elliot Cadeau misses two point layup
8:10		Harrison Ingram offensive rebound
8:07		Harrison Ingram misses two point layup
8:05		Cardinals defensive rebound
7:54	+2	Tre White makes two point jump shot	15-27
7:33		Kaleb Glenn shooting foul (Paxson Wojcik draws the foul)
7:33		TV timeout
7:33	+1	Paxson Wojcik makes regular free throw 1 of 2	15-28
7:33	+1	Paxson Wojcik makes regular free throw 2 of 2	15-29
7:11	+2	Mike James makes two point jump shot	17-29
6:57		Elliot Cadeau turnover (lost ball) (Zan Payne steals)
6:50		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield offensive foul
6:50		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield turnover (offensive foul)
6:39		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield personal foul (Armando Bacot draws the foul)
6:34	+3	Cormac Ryan makes three point jump shot (RJ Davis assists)	17-32
6:19	+2	Skyy Clark makes two point jump shot	19-32
6:07		Armando Bacot misses two point jump shot
6:05		Tre White defensive rebound
5:57		Elliot Cadeau shooting foul (Mike James draws the foul)
5:57	+1	Mike James makes regular free throw 1 of 2	20-32
5:57	+1	Mike James makes regular free throw 2 of 2	21-32
5:25		Tar Heels turnover (shot clock violation)
5:12		Skyy Clark turnover (bad pass) (Elliot Cadeau steals)
5:04	+2	Elliot Cadeau makes two point dunk	21-34
4:42		Harrison Ingram shooting foul (Tre White draws the foul)
4:42	+1	Tre White makes regular free throw 1 of 2	22-34
4:42		Tre White misses regular free throw 2 of 2
4:42		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
4:27	+2	RJ Davis makes two point jump shot (Armando Bacot assists)	22-36
4:15		Tre White misses three point jump shot
4:13		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
4:07		Kaleb Glenn personal foul (Armando Bacot draws the foul)
4:07		TV timeout
3:56	+3	Cormac Ryan makes three point jump shot (Armando Bacot assists)	22-39
3:34		Armando Bacot blocks Mike James's two point jump shot
3:32		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
3:24		Armando Bacot misses two point layup
3:22		Kaleb Glenn defensive rebound
3:11	+2	Curtis Williams makes two point jump shot	24-39
3:05		Skyy Clark personal foul (RJ Davis draws the foul)
3:05	+1	RJ Davis makes regular free throw 1 of 2	24-40
3:05	+1	RJ Davis makes regular free throw 2 of 2	24-41
2:46		Kaleb Glenn turnover (RJ Davis steals)
2:42		Seth Trimble turnover (lost ball)
2:26		Tre White misses three point jump shot
2:24		RJ Davis defensive rebound
2:11		Cormac Ryan misses three point jump shot
2:09		Skyy Clark defensive rebound
1:59		Mike James misses two point layup
1:57		Mike James offensive rebound
1:54	+2	Mike James makes two point layup	26-41
1:38	+2	Armando Bacot makes two point layup (RJ Davis assists)	26-43
1:38		Kaleb Glenn shooting foul (Armando Bacot draws the foul)
1:38	+1	Armando Bacot makes regular free throw 1 of 1	26-44
1:22		Curtis Williams misses three point jump shot
1:20		Seth Trimble defensive rebound
1:12		Cormac Ryan misses three point jump shot
1:10		Skyy Clark defensive rebound
1:06		Skyy Clark turnover (bad pass) (Jae'Lyn Withers steals)
0:58	+2	Jae'Lyn Withers makes two point layup	26-46
0:39		Cormac Ryan personal foul
0:32	+3	Skyy Clark makes three point jump shot	29-46
0:24		Tar Heels 30 second timeout
0:02		RJ Davis misses three point jump shot
0:00		Jae'Lyn Withers offensive rebound
0:00		End of period

2nd Half
LOU
Cardinals
41
UNC
Tar Heels
40

Time		Play	Score
19:45		Mike James offensive foul
19:45		Mike James turnover (offensive foul)
19:29		RJ Davis misses two point jump shot
19:27		Skyy Clark defensive rebound
19:18	+2	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes two point dunk (Skyy Clark assists)	31-46
18:57		Armando Bacot turnover (lost ball) (Skyy Clark steals)
18:53		Skyy Clark turnover (lost ball)
18:33		Armando Bacot misses two point jump shot
18:31		Mike James defensive rebound
18:16	+2	Kaleb Glenn makes two point jump shot (Skyy Clark assists)	33-46
17:55	+3	Harrison Ingram makes three point jump shot (Elliot Cadeau assists)	33-49
17:36		Mike James misses two point jump shot
17:34		Armando Bacot defensive rebound
17:23	+2	Harrison Ingram makes two point layup	33-51
17:04	+2	Tre White makes two point jump shot	35-51
16:44		Elliot Cadeau misses three point jump shot
16:42		Elliot Cadeau offensive rebound
16:37		Harrison Ingram misses three point jump shot
16:35		Hercy Miller defensive rebound
16:11	+3	Skyy Clark makes three point jump shot	38-51
15:50		TV timeout
15:42		Kaleb Glenn shooting foul
15:42	+1	Armando Bacot makes regular free throw 1 of 2	38-52
15:42	+1	Armando Bacot makes regular free throw 2 of 2	38-53
15:21		Cormac Ryan personal foul
15:21		Cardinals 30 second timeout
15:21		TV timeout
15:15	+3	Tre White makes three point jump shot (Mike James assists)	41-53
14:54		Tre White shooting foul
14:54		Harrison Ingram misses regular free throw 1 of 2
14:54		Harrison Ingram misses regular free throw 2 of 2
14:54		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield defensive rebound
14:35	+2	Tre White makes two point jump shot (Curtis Williams assists)	43-53
14:22		Cormac Ryan misses three point jump shot
14:20		Seth Trimble offensive rebound
14:16		Seth Trimble misses two point layup
14:14		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield defensive rebound
14:04	+2	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes two point jump shot (Ty-Laur Johnson assists)	45-53
13:51		Armando Bacot turnover (bad pass) (Ty-Laur Johnson steals)
13:44		Cormac Ryan personal foul
13:42		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield offensive foul
13:42		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield turnover (offensive foul)
13:22	+2	Jae'Lyn Withers makes two point layup (RJ Davis assists)	45-55
13:07		RJ Davis shooting foul
13:07		Ty-Laur Johnson misses regular free throw 1 of 3
13:07	+1	Ty-Laur Johnson makes regular free throw 2 of 3	46-55
13:07	+1	Ty-Laur Johnson makes regular free throw 3 of 3	47-55
12:51		Cormac Ryan misses two point layup
12:49		Armando Bacot offensive rebound
12:44		Armando Bacot misses two point layup
12:42		Curtis Williams defensive rebound
12:36	+3	Mike James makes three point jump shot (Ty-Laur Johnson assists)	50-55
12:23		Ty-Laur Johnson shooting foul
12:23	+1	RJ Davis makes regular free throw 1 of 3	50-56
12:23	+1	RJ Davis makes regular free throw 2 of 3	50-57
12:23	+1	RJ Davis makes regular free throw 3 of 3	50-58
12:02	+2	Ty-Laur Johnson makes two point jump shot	52-58
12:02		Cormac Ryan shooting foul
12:02		Ty-Laur Johnson misses regular free throw 1 of 1
12:02		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
11:50		Ty-Laur Johnson shooting foul
11:50		TV timeout
11:50	+1	Jae'Lyn Withers makes regular free throw 1 of 2	52-59
11:50		Jae'Lyn Withers misses regular free throw 2 of 2
11:50		Kaleb Glenn defensive rebound
11:29		Ty-Laur Johnson misses three point jump shot
11:27		RJ Davis defensive rebound
11:12		RJ Davis misses two point jump shot
11:09		Tar Heels offensive rebound
11:00		Jae'Lyn Withers turnover (lost ball)
10:38		Skyy Clark misses two point jump shot
10:36		Jalen Washington defensive rebound
10:22	+3	RJ Davis makes three point jump shot	52-62
10:14		Cardinals 30 second timeout
10:14		TV timeout
10:01		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield turnover (out of bounds)
9:44		Harrison Ingram misses two point jump shot
9:42		Jae'Lyn Withers offensive rebound
9:37		Tre White shooting foul
9:37		Elliot Cadeau misses regular free throw 1 of 2
9:37	+1	Elliot Cadeau makes regular free throw 2 of 2	52-63
9:17		Ty-Laur Johnson misses two point layup
9:15		Cardinals offensive rebound
9:11		Armando Bacot blocks Mike James's two point layup
9:09		Tar Heels defensive rebound
8:53		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield personal foul
8:53		Armando Bacot misses regular free throw 1 of 1
8:53		Armando Bacot offensive rebound
8:38	+2	Jae'Lyn Withers makes two point dunk (Elliot Cadeau assists)	52-65
8:20	+3	Skyy Clark makes three point jump shot (Ty-Laur Johnson assists)	55-65
8:02	+2	Jae'Lyn Withers makes two point jump shot (RJ Davis assists)	55-67
8:02		Kaleb Glenn shooting foul
8:02	+1	Jae'Lyn Withers makes regular free throw 1 of 1	55-68
7:47	+2	Skyy Clark makes two point layup	57-68
7:41		TV timeout
7:33	+2	Armando Bacot makes two point dunk (Harrison Ingram assists)	57-70
7:15	+2	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes two point layup (Skyy Clark assists)	59-70
6:50		Seth Trimble turnover (traveling)
6:32	+3	Skyy Clark makes three point jump shot	62-70
6:11		Tre White shooting foul
6:11	+1	Jae'Lyn Withers makes regular free throw 1 of 2	62-71
6:11	+1	Jae'Lyn Withers makes regular free throw 2 of 2	62-72
5:56		Armando Bacot shooting foul
5:56	+1	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes regular free throw 1 of 2	63-72
5:56		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield misses regular free throw 2 of 2
5:56		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
5:31		RJ Davis misses three point jump shot
5:29		Harrison Ingram offensive rebound
5:24		Harrison Ingram misses two point layup
5:22		Harrison Ingram offensive rebound
5:05		Jae'Lyn Withers misses two point layup
5:03		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield defensive rebound
4:54		Armando Bacot shooting foul
4:54		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield misses regular free throw 1 of 2
4:54		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield misses regular free throw 2 of 2
4:54		Armando Bacot defensive rebound
4:33		Brandon Huntley-Hatfield blocks RJ Davis's two point layup
4:31		RJ Davis offensive rebound
4:22	+2	Armando Bacot makes two point layup	63-74
4:16		Skyy Clark misses three point jump shot
4:14		Armando Bacot defensive rebound
4:03	+2	Elliot Cadeau makes two point layup	63-76
3:37		Ty-Laur Johnson misses two point jump shot
3:35		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
3:19	+3	RJ Davis makes three point jump shot (Harrison Ingram assists)	63-79
3:08		Cardinals 60 second timeout
3:02		Skyy Clark misses two point layup
3:00		Jae'Lyn Withers defensive rebound
2:33		Ty-Laur Johnson shooting foul
2:33	+1	Armando Bacot makes regular free throw 1 of 2	63-80
2:33	+1	Armando Bacot makes regular free throw 2 of 2	63-81
2:27		RJ Davis personal foul
2:27		Skyy Clark misses regular free throw 1 of 1
2:27		Cormac Ryan defensive rebound
1:51		Tar Heels turnover (shot clock violation)
1:44	+2	Brandon Huntley-Hatfield makes two point jump shot	65-81
1:14	+2	Cormac Ryan makes two point jump shot	65-83
1:04	+3	Curtis Williams makes three point jump shot (Skyy Clark assists)	68-83
0:37	+3	Harrison Ingram makes three point jump shot (RJ Davis assists)	68-86
0:24		Skyy Clark misses two point layup
0:22		Zan Payne offensive rebound
0:20	+2	Zan Payne makes two point layup	70-86
0:00		End of period

+ 2

Zan Payne makes two point layup