THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, January 8, 1995 TAG: 9501080248
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY FRANK VEHORN, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHAPEL HILL, N.C. LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
North Carolina proved Saturday night it still may be deserving of the No. 1 ranking when healthy.
The Tar Heels, with forward Dante Calabria returning to the lineup, bounced back from their only loss of the season to defeat seventh-ranked Maryland, 100-90, to even the Tar Heels' ACC record at 1-1.
North Carolina (10-1) lost to unranked N.C. State on Wednesday in Raleigh with Calabria out with a badly sprained right ankle.
Maryland (11-3), expected to challenge the Tar Heels for the ACC regular-season championship, also dropped to 1-1 in the league.
The Terps, who had won five straight games and nine of their last 10, played most of the game with star center Joe Smith in foul trouble.
Smith, playing only 20 minutes, still recorded the 26th double-double of his career with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
But he had only two points in the second half.
The 6-foot-10 sophomore from Norfolk sat out the final 5:33 of the first half after picking up his third foul.
He was called for his fourth with 16:38 left in the second half and spent the next seven minutes on the bench while the Tar Heels built a 73-67 advantage.
Following Smith's return, the Terps cut the margin to 77-73 with 6:22 remaining. But that was as close as they came despite spotty foul shooting by the Tar Heels in the final three minutes.
Rasheed Wallace, Carolina's 6-foot-10 sophomore center, scored 21 points in 37 minutes but also finished the game with four fouls.
``Our game plan was to get Wallace in foul trouble, but unfortunately I got there first,'' Smith said.
Smith said the Terps felt they could control the game if they made at the Tar Heels go to their short bench.
But Maryland was the one caught short-handed when Smith got his fourth foul so quickly in the second half.
``I didn't think it was a good call. I didn't think I even touched him (Wallace),'' Smith said.
``It was frustrating having to sit on the bench for so much of the game.''
Wallace admitted he was excited about playing against Smith.
``Some people think he is the premier center in the league. Some think I am, and that's the way I look at it.''
Forward Jerry Stackhouse led the Tar Heels with 22 points, hitting seven of his 10 field goal attempts.
Calabria added 12 points, six rebounds, and a pair of steals.
``He does a lot of things for us, and it was good to have him back,'' North Carolina coach Dean Smith said.
Smith admitted the Terps had him worried early in the game when they took a quick 13-8 lead.
``They came in here confident and took it to us,'' Smith said. ``They made us look slow. The difference in the game may have been our home-court advantage.''
The Tar Heels were fortunate they did not have to rely on their foul shooting down the stretch to preserve the victory.
``It could have been a 20-point margin if we had hit our foul shots,'' Dean Smith said.
Still, Smith contended he was not concerned with his team's shooting from the line.
``I really think we are going to be just fine there,'' Smith said.
Maybe so, but one of North Carolina's most famous alumni quickly voiced his concern after the game.
Former All-American Michael Jordan, after watching his first game in the Smith Center, went to the Tar Heels' dressing room after the game.
``The only thing he said to the team was we needed to work on our foul shots,'' Smith said. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Maryland's Joe Smith, left, and UNC's Rasheed Wallace tangle.
by CNB