Heels Need 2 Ots To Claim 24th Win

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Shammond Williams scored for a career-high 42 points, including 12 in the second extra period, as second-ranked North Carolina beat Georgia Tech 107-100 in double overtime Sunday in Atlanta to avoid a major upset.

The Tar Heels extended their winning streak to seven and are expected to be ranked No. 1 in the newest poll after knocking off No. 1 Duke 97-73 on Thursday night.

The Tar Heels, (24-1, 10-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) had led most of the game until Tech (14-9, 3-7) rallied from a seven-point deficit in the final 1:21 of regulation when Michael Maddox forced overtime with a 3-pointer from the left wing with 15.9 seconds to play.

Maddox, who had a career-high 32 points, narrowly missed giving Tech the upset at the end of the first overtime when his tipin came just after the horn sounded, sending the game to the second extra period deadlocked at 90.

Matt Harpring, who added 30 for the Jackets, gave Tech its last lead on a layup that made it 95-94 with 3:05 to play.

Williams, who had eight 3-pointers, then connected on a 3-pointer. Antawn Jamison, who scored 31, followed with a free throw, and Williams came back with another 3-pointer for a 101-95 lead with 1:11 remaining.

(1) Duke 65, NC State 49 < At Raleigh, N.C., the Blue Devils regained their edge three days after losing by 24 points to arch-rival North Carolina, getting a career-high 27 points from Roshown McLeod in a 65-49 victory over the Wolfpack.

At one point during the game McLeod scored 20 of Duke’s 30 points as Duke (21-2, 10-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) kept pace with soon-to-be No. 1 North Carolina in the ACC regular-season title chase. The Wolfpack fell to 12-10, 3-8.

(8) Kentucky 79, Villanova 63

At Philadelphia, Jeff Sheppard and Nazr Mohammed each had 18 points and Heshimu Evans added 17 as Kentucky (21-3) beat Villanova (9-12) in a battle of Wildcats.

(23) UMass 73, (21) Xavier 62

At Cincinnati, Charlton Clarke scored 18 points and led a late firsthalf surge as the Minutemen (17-6) built an 18-point lead and held on for the victory over the Muskateers (15-6, 7-4).

Xavier lost for the first time this season at Cincinnati Gardens, where it had won 16 in a row.