SYRACUSE, N.Y. _ For much of this year, North Carolina's season has been marked by injuries and missed shots.
The injuries are still happening. UNC freshman Armando Bacot suffered an ankle injury on Saturday against Syracuse and did not play in the second half.
But the shots were falling. Cole Anthony scored 25 points, which included seven 3-pointers, and the Tar Heels beat the Orange, 92-79, at the Carrier Dome.
"You have to pressure him on his shot," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. "We just didn't get to him."
Anthony also had seven assists and two turnovers. It was his best offensive performance since scoring 34 points against Notre Dame in the Tar Heels' season opener.
Junior forward Garrison Brooks finished with his 11th double-double of the season. He led the Tar Heels with 26 points and 14 rebounds.
The Tar Heels (12-17, 5-13 ACC) have won two consecutive games after snapping a seven-game losing streak.
"I'm so ecstatic for our kids," UNC coach Roy Williams said. "We made shots and everything looked a lot better."
Syracuse (16-13, 9-9) played well offensively in the second half. Buddy Boeheim scored 22 points, and Elijah Huges had 19 points. But the Orange just couldn't stop the Tar Heels.
When the shots started to fall, the Tar Heels picked apart Syracuse's zone defense.
The Tar Heels entered Saturday's game on a high note after securing their fourth ACC win _ an 85-79 victory over N.C. State _ on Tuesday. The win snapped a seven-game losing streak, and the Tar Heels hoped that it would carry over into their game with Syracuse.
Apparently, it did. The Tar Heels trailed the Orange 15-13 with a little more than 12 minutes left. But they went on a 20-2 run over the next seven minutes to take a 16-point lead with 5:16 left in the first half.
During that stretch, the Tar Heels locked up on defense and forced the Orange to miss a number of shots and created some turnovers.
But Jim Boeheim called a timeout and, a short time later, the Orange rallied. Syracuse went on an 11-0 run over the next three minutes to cut it to a five-point lead with 2:37 left.
Buddy Boeheim, who was coming off an ankle injury, got hot. The 6-5, 195-pound sophomore scored 15 points in the first half on 6-of-9 shooting.
At halftime, UNC led 40-35.
But in the second half, it was all UNC. The Tar Heels came out on fire. They made 6 of 7 3-pointers in the first six minutes and took a 64-48 lead. Anthony hit three of those 3-pointers, and UNC senior Brandon Robinson had two.
"I had good looks and I was able to convert them," Anthony said, before senior Shea Rush interjected.
"When you're in the presence of the GOAT (greatest of all time), you play well," Rush said, referring to New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who attended the game.
Although Syracuse never really went away, the Orange never got closer than 11 points. Anthony was just too good.
The Tar Heels picked apart Syracuse's zone defense the entire game. They shot 51.6% from the floor. The hot shooting was a carryover from UNC's game against N.C. State. It was the first time all season that UNC scored 40 or more points in four consecutive halves.
It was the third time this season UNC has scored 90 points or more in a game, and first time on the road.
A few celebrities showed up to the Carrier Dome to watch Saturday's game. Along with Brady, who is expected to enter free agency, Patriots' wide receiver Julian Edelman was at the game. When Brady was introduced and shown on the big screen, the fans in the arena booed.
"Tonight Show" host Jimmy Fallon was also there. He was a crowd favorite, and at some point during the second half, he directed the band.
