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Social media reacts to Tar Heels getting big win over Virginia

Aidan Jensen
·4 min read

Anytime the Virginia men’s basketball team steps on the court, fans know whoever it plays is going to be an ugly game.

The North Carolina Tar Heels spent their Saturday in Charlottesville, Va. Many wondered if they’d be UVA’s next victim, succumbing to the Cavaliers’ pace that’s slower than Davis Ortiz trying to round the bases.

UNC didn’t play great offensively, highlighted by leading RJ Davis shooting a season-worst 1-of-14 from the field, but locked UVA down defensively in a crucial, 54-44 victory that moved it into sole place of first place in the ACC.

Cormac Ryan played offensive hero for North Carolina (21-6, 13-3), leading his team with 18 points on six made 3-pointers. Armando Bacot dealt with first-half foul trouble, but still registered a double-double in his sixth-consecutive contest.

The Cavaliers (20-8, 11-6) climbed back into Saturday’s rivarly tilt late, closing their deficit to 47-42 with just under two minutes to go, but Harrison Ingram drained his next shot to give the Tar Heels (21-6, 13-3) a much-needed cushion. Just like the first half in which it shot 5-for-30 from the field, UVA went cold late and sealed the UNC victory.

Odds didn’t favor North Carolina, which plays at a Lightning McQueen-fast pace, as it hadn’t won at UVA since Feb. 25, 2012. Saturday was going to be a game that determined how good the Tar Heels were – could it not only win in a tough, road environment, but weather long stretches of snail-like pace?

The Cavaliers aren’t going to score many points, due to their pace of play, but Saturday was super-encouraging for a UNC program that had been struggling defensively in recent weeks.

With the Duke loss, North Carolina is in sole position of first place in the ACC with two weeks left in the regular season. Let’s see how social reached to the huge victory:

Story originally appeared on Tarheels Wire