ATLANTA _ When North Carolina gets going, it's hard to stop the Tar Heels.
That was evident Tuesday night against Georgia Tech (11-10, 3-5 ACC) at the McCamish Pavillion in Atlanta, after the Tar Heels opened the second half on a 25-5 run to take a 27-point lead with about 13 minutes left in the game.
That was all they needed, and the ninth-ranked Tar Heels (16-4, 6-1) beat the Yellow Jackets 77-54. Graduate senior wing Cam Johnson had a team-high 22 points on 8 of 10 shooting. He was 4 of 6 from 3. Freshman point guard Coby White had 19 points and eight assists, and the Tar Heels picked up their fourth consecutive win of the season. They are also 4-0 in ACC road games.
For the third consecutive game, the Tar Heels shot better than 45 percent from 3, finishing 48 percent on Tuesday.
However, it came at a price.
UNC freshman wing Leaky Black went down with a leg injury late in the second half and had to be carried off the court into the locker room. The versatile freshman is one of the Tar Heels best defensive players. He has played every position, and averages 11 minutes per game.
The game started slow, with both teams shooting a combined 2 of 14 from the floor. The two teams jockeyed for the lead during the first six minutes of the game. But the Tar Heels took the lead for good after Johnson hit a 3-pointer in transition to put them up 9-7 with 13:49 left in the first half.
The Yellow Jackets' zone defense slowed the game down and made it difficult for the Tar Heels to get transition buckets. The Tar Heels had eight first-half turnovers. But the Tar Heels also played well defensively.
The Yellow Jackets missed their first nine 3-pointers, and started the game 1 of 10 from behind the 3-point line.
After Georgia Tech cut UNC's lead to five points, UNC reserve wing Brandon Robinson knocked down a 3-pointer from the top of the key to give the Tar Heels a 29-21 lead with less than two minutes left in the first half.
At halftime, UNC led 31-24.
The Tar Heels opened the second half on a 10-2 run in the first two minutes, which included two deep 3-pointers from Johnson, and a fast break dunk. But they didn't stop there. They took advantage of the Yellow Jackets' poor shooting and turnovers, and continued on a 25-5 run.
By that time the Tar Heels' lead had increased to 27 points with 13 minutes left in the game, and there was nothing the Yellow Jackets could do.
Black came down awkwardly late in the second half while trying to defend a layup. He lay on the floor for a few minutes, until he had to be carried off the floor by trainers and teammates into the locker room. He seemed to be favoring his left leg, which he did not put any pressure on.
