CHICAGO (AP) – Brice Johnson had 18 points on 8-for-10 shooting and nine rebounds, and No. 24 North Carolina used its stout defense to hold off No. 12 Ohio State for an 82-74 victory Saturday.
Marcus Paige added 16 points for the Tar Heels (8-3), and Kennedy Meeks finished with eight points, 13 rebounds and two blocked shots. Meeks and Johnson led North Carolina to a 53-40 rebounding advantage.
Marc Loving made five 3-pointers and scored 19 points for Ohio State (9-2), which had won four in a row. Sam Thompson scored 17, and D’Angelo Russell had 11 points and eight rebounds.
But the Buckeyes shot 35 percent. They were averaging 84.2 points and shooting 53.7 percent coming into the day.