LIU falls to No. 2-seeded North Carolina
Julian Boyd #42 of the Long Island Blackbirds lays on the court in the second half while taking on the North Carolina Tar Heels during the second round of the 2011 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Time Warner Cable Arena. (March 18, 2011) Credit: Getty Images
CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Long Island University entered its first NCAA Tournament game since 1997 riding the nation's longest winning streak at 13.
The Blackbirds also claimed 13 road victories, yet another national benchmark.
At no time during the streak or the road success, however, did North Carolina show up on the schedule.
LIU looked like a team that knows how to win in challenging circumstances during a 12-0 run that tied the score five minutes before halftime, but keeping pace with UNC proved too tall a task in a 102-87 loss Friday night at Time Warner Cable Arena.
The Tar Heels (27-7), the No. 2 seed in the East Regional and playing 21/2 hours from home, responded to LIU's run with a 27-9 spurt on either side of the halftime break to effectively end the dream season of the 15th-seeded Blackbirds (27-6).
"I really think our kids played their hearts out," LIU coach Jim Ferry said. "I thought we played extremely hard, extremely physical. We really tried to grind this game out against a very talented and big North Carolina team.
"We normally don't foul this much -- we make significantly more free throws than our opponents attempt -- but with their size and athleticism and how physical the game got, it led us to foul."
LIU was determined enough but simply wasn't tall enough or talented enough against a UNC team beginning its path toward what it hopes will be a sixth NCAA championship. The Tar Heels attempted 42 free throws to 25 for LIU and held a 54-39 rebounding edge.
The Blackbirds had their moments, to be sure. Sophomore Jamal Olasewere (15 points) took it straight to the Tar Heels' trees on multiple occasions, including a spectacular drive for a three-point play that sparked the 12-0 run to tie it at 33. Former high school teammate C.J. Garner (16 points) continued the spurt with back-to-back fast-break baskets, a breakneck pace repeated during a 9-0 LIU rush in the second half.
Sophomore Julian Boyd did a little of everything with 18 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and two steals.
The Tar Heels, however, had more moments. For every successful drive by the 6-7 Olasewere -- the tallest Blackbird to play -- into John Henson (6-10), Henson made three plays at the rim. Henson established a career high with his 20th point in the midst of UNC's 20 points in the final five minutes of the first half that produced a 53-42 lead.
Henson finished with 28 points and Tyler Zeller -- two inches taller than Henson -- picked up where Henson left off with 25 of his career-high 32 points in the second half.
Despite the loss, the Blackbirds acquitted themselves better than most No. 15 seeds, and they could find themselves back here next year -- perhaps with a better seed. Seniors Kyle Johnson (eight points) and David Hicks (six points) each played his final college game, but the team's three leading scorers on the night are sophomores.
"It's tough to know the season is over, but I'm happy we went out on a good note," Boyd said. "I felt we played hard. Most 15 or 16 seeds get blown out by 30 or 40, but I felt like we competed."
