The North Carolina Tar Heels had no answer for SMU guard Boopie Miller on Saturday afternoon as the Chicago native, as well as hot three-point shooting from the Mustangs, delivered in a 97-83 win over UNC.
The guard poured in a game-high 27 points and the Mustangs made 14-of 27 from the three-point line while shooting 60 percent from the field as a team. Going into this game, UNC was holding opponents to just 36 percent from the field, but the Mustangs' offense caught fire and pulled away in the second half.
The 97 points were the most UNC has given up this season as they ranked 18th in the country, allowing just 63.7 points per game this season so far.
It was the first loss of the conference season for the Tar Heels , dropping them to 1-1 in ACC play and 13-2 overall on the season.
North Carolina shot 48 percent from the field as a team but SMU's zone defense really gave the Tar Heels some fits throughout the game. That included holding star freshman Caleb Wilson to just 13 points with five in the second half.
After SMU built a lead in the first half, North Carolina used a 10-2 run to cut the lead to 29-28. They then took their first lead since 4-2 when Henri Veesaar hit a three to give them a 31-29 lead. But SMU kept answering back and the two teams were tied at 39 going into the break.
It was clear in the first half that SMU was red-hot shooting the ball and that continued in the second half. They shot 50 percent from the field in the second half and after UNC kept it close, the Mustangs pulled away late. They outscored UNC 58-44 in that second half to cruise to the impressive victory.
Seth Trimble scored 22 points to lead the Tar Heels and Jarin Stevenson had 16 off the bench.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Boopie Miller, SMU too much for Tar Heels
