Penn-North Carolina: In-Game Updates

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CHAPEL HILL, N.C.--Welcome to the Dean Dome, it's David Bernstein here for Penn's opener against North Carolina. The atmosphere is unreal--the 22,000-capacity stadium is nearly full. Tyler Hansbrough and Marcus Ginyard are out for the Tar Heels, and Penn will be without Andreas Schreiber, Aron Cohen and Darren Smith.

Final: UNC 86, Penn 71

First of all, our apologies for the lack of second-half updates, the internet in the Dean Dome and my old PC were not mixing.

But as you can see, UNC maintained the pace it had to end the half, and never really gave Penn a chance. Freshman Tyler Zeller and the UNC frontcourt burned Penn, and when that failed, the Tar Heels simply ran it down the Quakers' throats. Tyler Bernardini kept the Red and Blue in it, shooting lights-out and racking up 26 points.

Penn cut the lead to 10 with four minutes to go, but the Tar Heels' defense clamped down its perimeter defense. It was the closest Penn has been in its three-game series with UNC, but there was still a sense of dissatisfaction after the game--if a few more shots had fallen, and if a few passes were just a little bit crisper, it could have been a down-to-the-wire affair.

First Half Stats

Penn: Bernardini--12 points on three 3-pointers; Egee--eight points on two 3-pointers; Eggleston--six rebounds to go with two points and two assists.

UNC: Ellington--10 points and four assists; Thompson--10 points and five rebounds (two offensive); Davis--eight points and eight rebounds in just 11 minutes.

End First Half, UNC 48, Penn 33

Sorry, loyal Buzz readers, but the internet hit a rough patch here in the press section. UNC really clamped down to end the half, pounding it inside in its half-court offense, and scoring in transition the rest of the time. Penn scored the last points of the half after Bernardini fed Gaines in transition. Gaines hit the layup as he was fouled, but missed the free throw.

First-half stats will be posted when they arrive.

3:37 First Half, UNC 37, Penn 29

Penn barely breaks the Tar Heels trap, but it leads to a nice Egee dish to Bernardini inside. He's hacked, and his free throws are the first of the game for Penn--he hits one of two. Remy Cofield replaces Bernardini.

4:03 First Half, UNC 37, Penn 28

Egee comes out firing, and swishes a three from the corner. The Quakers are absolutely shooting the lights out right now.

UNC responds with an offensive board, and a Thompson bucket inside. Gaines is called for a push-off on Penn's next possession, a VERY questionable call that inspires Miller to put Votel and Belcore back into the game. But they can't stop Danny Green, who lays in a pretty finger roll on a drive to the hoop.

5:39 First Half, UNC 33, Penn 25

Mark it down--6:54 to go and Glen Miller's jacket is off. The coach is incensed after Bernardini is called for a charge. Seemed like a bad call from behind the basket.

The next possession, Ed Davis throws down a put-back jam, firing up the crowd. On the next UNC possession, Ellington hits a three from the right corner over the hands of Gaines, who's a little late getting there. Miller calls a timeout.

7:12 First Half, UNC 27, Penn 25

Rosen creates a nice opportunity for Bernardini, who nails yet another trifecta. Meanwhile, UNC coach Roy Williams is staying with what's working--pounding it inside. Deon Thompson is finishing strong, but right now the UNC student section (conveniently located one foot behind us) is a little deflated.

9:10 First Half, UNC 23, Penn 22

Miller is really going deep early, with freshman Mike Howlett coming into the game, and promptly bricking a jumper. Drew hits the front end of a one and one, and Bernardini nails a three from the top of the key after a UNC offensive foul.

10:17 First Half, UNC 22, Penn 19

The Quakers continue to set good screens on offense, setting up good looks. Egee just drained a three to cut the lead to one. But right after, Zeller is hammered by Votel, and he hits them both.

And the subsequent UNC press befuddles Penn, as Belcore steps out of bounds under pressure.

11:25 First Half, UNC 20, Penn 16

Coach Glen Miller deserves some credit for getting his team ready for this one--the Quakers are playing nice transition D and staying in it. Votel has hit a couple of buckets after a sloppy turnover to Ellington, and Gaines just hit a jumper off of a nasty move, spinning away from defender Larry Drew and draining the shot.

The Tar Heels are starting to work it inside more, and they're seeing some success. Quite simply, their bigs seem like giants in their, dwarfing the likes of Votel and Eggleston. Freshmen Rob Belcore and Larry Loughery stepped onto the court for their Red and Blue debuts, and Penn is really hanging in there right now.

15:05 First Half, UNC 9, Penn 7

Well look who it is. UNC guard Bobby Frasor gets into the game despite rumblings that he was going to miss the contest with his ACL injury. Meanwhile, Penn forward Brennan Votel puts in a bucket on an in-bounds play, and after a UNC bucket, Kevin Egee gets up and lays one in in transition.

15:56 First Half, UNC 7, Penn 3

Penn has worked mostly in a zone to start the game, a sort of trap zone. But the Quakers look slightly overmatched, having committed three fouls within the first three minutes of the game. Penn is fortunate that the Tar Heels' shots aren't falling.

After taking a 3-2 lead on a Bernardini jumper, Ellington comes out and drains a trey, and then slams one home in transition.

The Red and Blue are taking some questionable shots, but one early take-away: Rosen is truly running the offense. Talk about a memorable college debut, but let's see if he can help create some offense here.

Tonight's Starting Lineups:

Penn

G Tyler Bernardini

G Harrison Gaines

G Zack Rosen

F Jack Eggleston

F Cameron Lewis

UNC:

F Tyler Zeller

G/F Danny Green

F Deon Thompson

G Wayne Ellington

G Ty Lawson