NO. 1 NORTH CAROLINA 90, VALPARAISO 58
Coach Roy Williams told center Tyler Hansbrough it was the worst 3-point attempt he had ever seen.
With North Carolina adjusting to roster changes Sunday night, Tyler Hansbrough clanged a 3-pointer that made Williams so angry that he hit the scorer's table with his fist.
The Tar Heels made other mistakes, too. But when Valparaiso seemed poised to take advantage of the foolishness, top-ranked North Carolina put together eight minutes of nearly flawless basketball to cruise to a 90-58 win at the Smith Center.
"It surprises this team, how good we can be," said Marcus Ginyard, who moved to backup point guard because of two injuries.
North Carolina (13-0) was playing without backup guards Bobby Frasor and Quentin Thomas. Frasor has a torn knee ligament and is out for the season; Thomas sprained his left ankle Friday.
Injuries weren't the only problem in the backcourt. Shooting guard Wayne Ellington (a season-low five points) and point guard Tywon Lawson (six points) struggled to score.
But forward Danny Green tied a career high with 20 points. He made three 3-pointers in 3 minutes, 15 seconds after Valparaiso clawed back from a 17-point deficit to tie the score at 37 early in the second half.
"You look at the results tonight, I think we adjusted pretty well," Green said.
Tyler Hansbrough had his typically stellar game with 23 points and 13 rebounds, and didn't miss a field goal attempt other than the 3-point shot that infuriated Williams.
Forward Deon Thompson blocked a career-high five shots and scored 11 points, and North Carolina's defense limited usually hot-shooting Valparaiso (10-3) to two 3-pointers in the second half.
North Carolina's changes aren't finished yet. Williams installed a zone defense in practice last week to protect Tywon Lawson should he get into foul trouble.
Williams did the same thing for Raymond Felton on the 2004-05 NCAA championship team. But North Carolina's basic, fast-breaking principles remain unchanged.
"We're not going to start walking the ball up and playing 50-point games," Williams said. "That would drive me ... crazy."
Until the players get used to the team's new composition, they might do some other things that drive Williams crazy. But if they recover as well as they did Sunday, their Final Four hopes should remain intact.
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