Tar Heels Stay Unbeaten

Men’s Top 25 basketball

Vince Carter scored 22 points and Antawn Jamison added 20 as No. 1 North Carolina put on an offensive clinic Thursday night, rolling over Georgia Tech 96-75 in Chapel Hill, N.C., for its 16th straight victory.

The Tar Heels (16-0, 3-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) reversed last year’s 0-3 league start - the worst in school history - and have now won 32 of their last 33. That’s the best 33-game stretch for North Carolina since the mid-1950s.

Shammond Williams also added 20 points as the Tar Heels returned home for the first time since a Dec. 16 win over Hampton - a span of 23 days.

North Carolina, second in the nation in field-goal percentage, made nine of its first 10 shots and hit 61.1 percent in the first half to build a 20-point lead over the Yellow Jackets (10-4, 0-2).

Illinois 76, (11) Iowa 64

At Iowa City, Iowa, Jerry Hester scored 20 points and made four of Illinois’ 11 3-pointers, sending the Illini to a victory over the Hawkeyes.

Hester hit three from long range during an 18-4 second-half run that gave Illinois (10-5, 2-0 Big Ten) a 14-point lead and control of the game.

The Hawkeyes 13-2, 2-1) shot a season-low 36.2 percent.

Ryan Bowen led Iowa with 14 points.

Wake Forest 70, (24) Clemson 66

At Winston-Salem, N.C., Tony Rutland redeemed himself after losing his starting job by scoring nine of the Demon Deacons’ (8-4, 1-1 ACC) last 17 points in a win over the Tigers (10-5, 1-2).

Rutland, benched after scoring a combined 11 points in the previous two games, finished with 12 points as Wake Forest defeated Clemson for the eighth straight time at home.

Clemson’s Tony Christie matched his career high with 15 points.