Nightmare season continues for Tar Heels

Posted 6:33AM on Thursday 24th January 2002 ( 23 years ago )

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - A together team is one that can win on the road. That tag belongs to North Carolina State these days. The Wolfpack won their fifth straight road game for the first time since the 1974 national championship team, rolling arch-rival North Carolina 77-59 on Wednesday night. ``Smarts,'' senior guard Archie Miller said when asked what separates this team from last year's squad that went 13-16. ``We have a lot of savvy and a lot of guys who make each other better. ``Guys are excited. Guys want to come to practice now, they're not looking over their shoulders,'' Miller added. ``Right now we've got a lot of good chemistry and a lot of good vibes in the locker room.'' This one came down to guard play as Miller and Anthony Grundy controlled things from the start as the Wolfpack (15-4) turned it over just seven times to move into sole possession of third place in the Atlantic Coast Conference at 5-2. ``We didn't want to make any early predictions but we knew we had a great team,'' Grundy said of the Wolfpack's best ACC start since the 1988-89 season. Grundy led the way with 21 points and eight rebounds, while Miller added a season-high 20 points to hand the Tar Heels (5-11, 1-5) their sixth straight loss in January. Miller sank two 3-pointers early in the second half after North Carolina had closed to within seven and six points. ``They were just open shots and I made them,'' Miller said. ``I haven't been making them recently, but they went down this time.'' It was the Wolfpack's most lopsided win over their arch-rival since Feb. 14, 1962, an 85-57 win in Dean Smith's first season. ``I didn't want this any worse than I want any other game this year,'' Miller said. ``It's do-or-die time now. Me and Anthony, this is our last shot and we've got to give everything we have. It was good for our people, good for our program to get this win.'' Meanwhile, the Tar Heels fell six games under .500 for the first time in their 93-year history, setting a record single-season record with their sixth home loss. North Carolina played without starters Jason Capel (concussion) and Jackie Manuel (stress fracture), but once again the Tar Heels ran into a team that was quicker, better defensively and secured the basketball. Kris Lang rebounded from a 6-for-21 game in a 32-point loss to Connecticut over the weekend to lead North Carolina with 27 points, matching his career high. But the senior center didn't get much help from his teammates. The last time the Wolfpack beat the Tar Heels was here in February 1998 when North Carolina was No. 1 and their fans were ready. Thousands dressed in red and white made the 30-mile trip down Interstate 40 and drowned out the Tar Heel faithful during portions of the second half with N.C. State chants. ``They had good reason to be loud,'' North Carolina coach Matt Doherty said. Capel, sitting at the end of the North Carolina bench, just leaned back in his chair and listened helplessly. ``It would have been nice to have had someone to complement (Lang), but we do not,'' Doherty said. ``We had a game scheduled at 9 o'clock. Jason was hurt and that's part of it. If Jason played that does not mean that we would be guaranteed a win.'' North Carolina trimmed a 12-point halftime deficit to 47-40 early in the second half, but Miller responded with a 3-pointer. Less than two minutes later after the Tar Heels were within six, Miller hit another long-range shot that took the steam out of any rally. A reverse layup by Julius Hodge with 5:15 left put N.C. State up 67-51 as the Wolfpack was on their way to snapping a seven-game skid against the slumping Tar Heels. The Wolfpack ran their road record to 5-1, matching the number of road wins the 1990-91 team had, which was the last time N.C. State made the NCAA tournament. ``Me and Anthony are doing our jobs,'' Miller said. ``Our jobs are to perform and lead. You can't ever waver. You can't flinch because those young guys we have feed off of us.''

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