There may have never been a more convenient set of circumstances for State to take down its archrival UNC-Chapel Hill at home. The Tar Heels had just dropped out of the top-25, had gone winless on the road against ACC opponents, its best player was fighting injury and Roy William’s team had lost three straight.

But standout performances from forward Deon Thompson and point guard Larry Drew II and a second half collapse from the Wolfpack resulted in a 77-63 drubbing at the hands of the Heels.

The Pack fell to 141-75 all-time against the Tar Heels and has lost its last seven.

The plotline was similar to the women’s basketball game featuring both schools Monday night at Reynolds Coliseum. The Tar Heels rode one player – in this case, Thompson, who finished with 20 points ‘- to victory while State collapsed down the stretch. The Tar Heels scored at will in the second half and jumped out to a 17-point lead while the Pack couldn’t muster any semblance of momentum.

‘ Junior point guard Javier Gonzalez finished with 19 points and center Tracy Smith totaled 20, but they didn’t receive any support from the rest of the starting roster. Key shooters Dennis Horner, Farnold Degand and Scott Wood combined for just nine points on 5-24 shooting.

‘ Smith said his team, which shot 29 percent in the second half, has plenty to improve upon.

‘ ‘We need to get into the gym and work on our shots, so when I do get double-teamed I can kick it out and they can knock down some shots,’ Smith said.

‘ The Pack played catch-up for the first ten minutes before Carolina went on a 16-8 scoring run. The Tar Heels’ free throw shooting was shaky and they went 13-22 from the charity stripe, but State couldn’t recover crucial rebounds. UNC converted on back-to-back second chances.

‘ ‘The boards were the key. Even when we did stop them, they got the offensive rebound,’ Lowe said. ‘We just wanted to be solid and not give them anything easy, but the dribble penetration hurt us and the offensive rebounds. ‘

‘ Though State was struggling, Gonzalez looked calm and in control. He sank three consecutive threes and tightened the score to 37-33 going into the half.

‘ ‘I was just trying to be aggressive,’ Gonzales said. ‘I saw the team was in a slump and I was trying to be aggressive and score.’

‘ After going 0-3 from the perimeter in the first half, Scott Wood got state within one just after the teams returned.

‘ Gonzalez charged right back and continued to bolster his point total. He gave the Pack the lead for the first time since the five minute mark when he went to the line and sank two of three free throws to make it 38-37. He then converted another three-pointer and tipped in a Wood shot.

That was when the Pack fell back on its heels. Lowe said his team was guilty of being too hasty in pushing the ball up the floor.

‘ ‘We tried to create things that were not there,’ Lowe said. ‘We got a little caught up in the atmosphere and try to go too fast and that was the time where we turned it over.’

‘ The Tar Heels sped up the play and surged back after State went scoreless through 9:06 minutes. Carolina doubled its coverage on Gonzalez and Wood remained snake-bitten from the perimeter during the Heels’ 13-0 run. Carolina’s Will Graves tied the score at 43 with just over 13 minutes to play and the visitors jumped out to an eight-point lead before the Pack finally converted.

‘ ‘We matched their intensity for about 28 minutes or so and then we went on a 8 minutes stretch where we couldn’t throw the ball into the ocean,’ Wood said. They made a run and we couldn’t fight it off.’

After having two drives blocked, Smith finally broke through, but State remained cold while Carolina couldn’t miss.

‘ Gonzalez said other players needed to step up for the Pack to have a chance in the game.

‘We didn’t get stops, we weren’t hitting shots and they hit a run and it cost us the game,’ Gonzales said. ‘Everyone has to be playing with maximum effort every single time we come out. That little let down when someone comes off of the bench is a boost for the other team.’

Horner got on the score sheet with two threes after missing three straight. But it was too little, too late as a late Graves three-pointer added insult to injury and State fell to 13-8 (2-5 ACC.) Carolina won its second ACC game and first in an opponent’s arena. The Tar Heels prevailed over Ohio State Nov. 19 at a neutral site.

The Pack is back in action Saturday against North Carolina Central at 2 p.m.