By AARON BEARD AP Basketball Writer
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — Caleb Wilson had 22 points while frontcourt mate Henri Veesaar added a double-double to help No. 22 North Carolina beat Notre Dame 91-69 on Wednesday night.
The 7-foot Veesaar had 15 points and 12 rebounds for the Tar Heels (15-4, 3-3 Atlantic Coast Conference), who had lost three of four amid an abrupt defensive downturn — notably against shots from behind the arc.
The Tar Heels didn’t have any trouble this time, with the Fighting Irish (10-9, 1-5) struggling since losing leading scorer Markus Burton to left-ankle surgery in early December. North Carolina got off to a fast start from outside and kept firing, making a season-high 13 3-pointers while shooting 50.8% overall to send the Irish to a fifth straight loss.
The Tar Heels led 42-33 at halftime, then rolled out of the break with 10 unanswered points to blow the game open — powered by Veesaar’s immediate jumper, a 3-pointer and a layup during the spurt.
Wilson was strong out of the gate while working more in the post, with the star freshman finishing 8 for 11 from the field to go with seven rebounds and five assists.
Sir Mohammed scored 14 points, while Jalen Haralson added 13 to lead Notre Dame, which shot 36%. The Fighting Irish did manage to shoot well from outside early, but Notre Dame went just 2 of 13 on 3s after halftime and finished the game at 8 for 25 (32%).
That was notable considering UNC’s struggles stopping the 3 since the start of ACC play. Entering Wednesday’s game, the Tar Heels had allowed five ACC opponents to make 70 of 156 3-pointers (44.9%) for an average of 14 made 3s per game.
Up next
Notre Dame: The Fighting Irish host Boston College on Saturday.
UNC: The Tar Heels visit No. 14 Virginia on Saturday.