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Ven-Allen Lubin anchors balanced scoring attack, leads UNC to big win over Miami Saturday
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- Ven-Allen Lubin anchors balanced scoring attack, leads UNC to big win over Miami Saturday
I can't stress enough how badly the North Carolina Tar Heels needed to win Saturday's ACC basketball matchup, as they welcomed the Miami (FL) Hurricanes to town for an early-afternoon matchup.
UNC entered Saturday's game with consecutive wins against Syracuse, NC State, Virginia and Florida State , climbing back into the NCAA Tournament bubble . The one opponent standing between a season-long, 5-game winning streak for North Carolina was Miami, sitting at the ACC's cellar with just six wins overall.
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When the final buzzer sounded inside the Dean Dome, the Tar Heels walked off their home court with a well-rounded, 92-73 victory in which six players reached double-figures.
Leading UNC in the scoring department was starting center Ven-Allen Lubin , who knocked down 9-of-10 shots for 19 points, his highest total since transferring from Vanderbilt. Drake Powell scored 16 points, RJ Davis added 13 and Jae'Lyn Withers totaled 11 in the starting lineup, while Ian Jackson poured in 11 points and Seth Trimble contributed 10 – both off the bench.
"Everybody's talented to make shots on this team," Lubin said during postgame interviews. "Whenever the ball finds you at the right moment, we expect them to make the shots – and just to be able to move the ball, trust them to make those shots and find the right guys. It's really helping us to have these double-digit games, which is really just credit to all of us and trusting each other, continue to move the ball and just finding an offensive flow."
For Lubin in particular, Saturday was just a microcosm of his increased production over the last four games. Lubin has double-digit scoring outputs in each of his last four games: 19 today, 10 at Florida State Monday, 14 vs. Virginia on February 22, plus 13 against NC State on February 19.
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There's no doubt Lubin is playing his best basketball of the season, which can be attributed to many areas. For Lubin, though, he credited his increased production to someone outside the UNC basketball program.
"Really just all Glory to God," Lubin said. "I think just my faith in him and knowing that, continue to have faith in his plans for me this season and just for the far future. Really just installing peace in me and just being comfortable to go out there and play."
If Lubin continues to play at his lights-out pace, North Carolina becomes even more dangerous with March Madness approaching.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Ven-Allen Lubin leads six Tar Heels in double-figures with 19 points
