CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — NC State men’s basketball fell 79-70 at No. 9 North Carolina, blowing a double-digit second-half lead.

NC State (17-12, 9-9 ACC) started strong in a hostile environment, playing a phenomenal first half. Despite growing its lead to 10 after halftime, the Pack quickly sunk into an offensive slump. The Pack went over 10 minutes without making a basket, and UNC (23-6, 15-3 ACC) seized momentum, the lead and ultimately the win.

“I thought we got the best of them in the first half,” said head coach Kevin Keatts. “Obviously they did a really good in the second half getting the best of us.”

In the first half, the Wolfpack wasted little time getting settled into the game. Quickly trading blows with UNC, NC State hit shots in the paint and beyond the arc to keep pace. After getting buckets in the paint, graduate guard DJ Horne and junior guard Jayden Taylor cashed in on back-to-back 3s to give the Pack a 14-13 lead.

Both teams continued to trade blows with neither side creating separation. Despite the Tar Heels building a 26-20 lead, it did not last long as Horne and Taylor continued to find success and brought the score to 30-28 in favor of UNC with less than seven minutes in the half.

Eventually, the Pack’s game plan of using 3s to combat the Heels’ offensive attack broke through as two more 3-pointers cut the score to 36-34 UNC. Horne forced the fifth Tarheel turnover of the half, which the Wolfpack used to cash in on another 3 to grab a one-point lead.

With just under four minutes left in the half, UNC only pieced together a free throw for the remainder of the half, while the Pack made its run. As the game went to the half, the Pack rode a 12-1 run to secure a strong 45-37 halftime lead.

“I think we were just all connected, all five guys who stepped on the court, whoever it was was connected,” Horne said. “We were moving the ball and popping and were just making shots.”

In the second half, the Pack appeared ready to pick up where it left off as it cashed in an early jumper to give it its largest lead of the game at 10 points. However, that was soon not the case as the UNC offensive attack came to life. Immediately responding with a 3, the Heels gradually began to chip away at the Pack lead.

The Heels rode a 14-2 run which saw action from within and outside the arc. This push allowed UNC to retake the lead at the 15:40 mark on a 3 from guard RJ Davis. The Pack did not lead the remainder of the game as Davis, who had a slow first half, got going in the second half.

With the score at 51-49, UNC played intense defense to stifle the Pack. The Wolfpack had chances to respond as its defense helped prevent the Heels from immediately pulling away. Apart from making multiple trips to the free throw line over the next seven minutes, it was not enough as UNC began to get the shots it wanted.

“I mean we were getting frustrated when the ball is not going on in the basket,” Horne said. “… We were just kinda telling ourself during that time to just keep playing solid defense so they don’t you know run away with it.”

By the 8:52 mark, what was once a 10-point lead turned into a double-digit deficit for NC State. Badly in need of an answer, the Pack finally broke through with a 3 from Taylor. Leading the team, he finished the game with 22 points, including five triples. However, UNC quickly responded with a 3, creating its largest lead of the day at 69-56.

The deficit remained at 10 for the next several minutes as foul trouble and turnovers helped prevent any ground from being made. As the game started to move into the last seven minutes, NC State began to rally behind its two guards as Horne finally broke through for his first shot from the field on the half.

The Pack put together a 7-2 run over the next couple of minutes to cut the deficit to 73-68. However, that was the closest the Pack got as UNC closed the game strong and topped the red-and-white 79-70.

It was a game of two halves for NC State. In the first, everything went perfectly on the offensive side of the ball. At halftime, the Pack was shooting 57% from the field, including seven 3s. However, the Pack’s offense looked completely different in the second half, only shooting 22%. This allowed the Tar Heels to take advantage of the Wolfpack’s mistakes and reclaim the lead.

“It’s a good team on their home floor, and you know we did some good things; we just got to try to figure out how to build on it and move onto our next game,” Keatts said. “We might be the only team in America that’s ever played Carolina on Saturday and Duke on Monday.”

The Pack will return home for Senior Night on Monday, March 4, as it will take on the No. 10 Duke Blue Devils. Tip is slated for 7 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN.