The North Carolina Tar Heels used superior size and depth to overwhelm #16 Wagner in the First Round of The NCAA Tournament in Charlotte.
Armondo Bacot notched a double-double of 20 points and 15 rebounds and Charlotte native Jae’lyn Withers scored 16 points and had 10 boards in the victory.
“It means a lot to have my best game as a Tar Heel in front of family and friends,” Withers said.
“This is my first tournament game after not making the tournament last year so it felt good to contribute and we are planning to stay for a while.
They next face Michigan State on Saturday, at a time to be determined.
The 9-seeded Spartans dismantled No. 8 Mississippi State earlier in the day, 69-51.
It sets up a rematch of the 2009 national championship game, won by the Heels.
There are two games Thursday night at the Spectrum.
The first between (7) Texas and (10) Colorado State, then (2) Tennessee will face (15) Saint Peter’s.
Maybe the visit will bring UNC some luck. The last time the team practiced in JCSU’s gym in 2008, they made the Final Four.
Of course, North Carolina’s not going to need much luck to make it to Phoenix this year.
The Tar Heels enter the tournament as a No. 1 seed.
North Carolina will play No. 16 Wagner on Thursday at 2:45 p.m.
