JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Reserve George Lynch scored 20 of his 24 points in the second half last night, helping ninth-ranked North Carolina erase a 13-point deficit and take a 98-87 victory over Jacksonville.
Lynch, a 6-foot-7 junior, was benched for poor play against Florida State but enjoyed a perfect shooting half last night, hitting eight field goals and four free throws without a miss.
He scored eight of his points during an 18-0 run that gave North Carolina a 68-61 lead while Jacksonville went 6 minutes, 11 seconds without a point.
Seven-foot sophomore Eric Montross added 21 points and 12 rebounds and Hubert Davis, who also didn't start, added 20 points as the Tar Heels bounced back from Sunday's Atlantic Coast Conference home loss to Florida State.
Walk-on guard James Fuller, a reserve, scored 28 points for Jacksonville, hitting 10 of 15 shots, including six of 10 from three-point range. Kelly McKinnon added 21 points, hitting five of eight three-pointers.
Jacksonville's scoring leader, Tim Burroughs, was held to eight points, 10 below his average.
The Dolphins led 31-21 after McKinnon's third three-pointer of the half and by as many as 12 points on two other occasions. Fuller, who hadn't scored more than 14 points in a game, hit a three-pointer at the buzzer to give Jacksonville a 52-42 lead.
McKinnon opened the second half with his fifth and final three-point basket as the Dolphins went ahead 55-42.
NORTH CAROLINA (7-1) -- Montross 7-13 7-10 21, Phelps 3-9 10-13 16, Rodl 0-1 0-0 0, Salvadori 3-6 2-2 8, Sullivan 1-1 4-4 6, Lynch 10-14 4-5 24, Davis 7-13 5-6 20, Reese 1-5 1-1 3, Wenstrom 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 32-63 33-41 98.
JACKSONVILLE (1-6) -- Burroughs 4-11 0-1 8, Fisher 4-13 2-5 10, Ivery 0-2 0-0 0, Livingston 1-8 2-2 4, McKinnon 8-15 0-0 21, Fuller 10-15 2-4 28, Harris 1-4 1-3 3, Pouncy 1-4 0-0 3, Shafer 4-5 0-0 8, Taylor 1-4 0-0 2. Totals 34-81 7-15 87.
Halftime--Jacksonville 52, North Carolina 42. 3-point goals--North Carolina 1-5 (Davis 1-5), Jacksonville 12-24 (Fuller 6-10, McKinnon 5-8, Pouncy 1-3, Taylor 0-1, Livingston 0-1, Ivery 0-1). Fouled out--Reese, Fisher, McKinnon. Rebounds--North Carolina 49 (Montross 12), Jacksonville 41 (Fisher 11). Assists--North Carolina 6 (Phelps, Lynch 2), Jacksonville 23 (Livingston, Pouncy 6). Total fouls--North Carolina 18, Jacksonville 29. A--9,413.
No. 12 Michigan State 75 Illinois-Chicago 51
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Dwayne Stephens scored a career-high 19 points and Anthony Miller and Mike Peplowski scored 14 each as Michigan State won in a rout.
The Spartans, leading 32-31 at halftime, pulled away in the second half in large part because of miserable shooting by Illinois-Chicago. The Flames, who shot 35 percent in the first half, made only three of 29 shots in the first 15 minutes of the second half, including 12 consecutive misses on three-point attempts, and fell behind 63-39.
At one point, Michigan State held Illinois-Chicago scoreless for 6:47, scoring 19 straight points, and the Spartans led by as many as 27 points in the late stages of the game.
Kenny Williams led the Flames with 16 points, but leading scorer Brian Hill made just two of 20 shots and missed all eight attempts in the second half.
The teams struggled through a sloppy first half. The Flames hit three-pointers on their first two possessions and led 9-0 before Michigan State could get untracked.
After making just one of their first eight shots, the Spartans went on a 12-2 run to take a 16-15 lead with 9:08 to play. The lead changed five times the rest of the half.
Lacking a way to deal with Michigan State's inside game, the Flames took 16 three-pointers in the first half, making four.