Ian Jackson had 20 points and seven rebounds, his sixth 20-point game in the last seven games, to lead the North Carolina Tar Heels to a resounding 79-53 Atlantic Coast Conference win over the California Golden Bears on Wednesday in Chapel Hill, N.C.

Elliot Cadeau finished with 15 points for North Carolina (12-6, 5-1 ACC), while Seth Trimble chipped in with 12 off the bench. But it was the Tar Heels’ defense that took center stage in their sixth win in seven games.

The Heels held Cal’s top two scorers to a combined six points on 3-for-21 shooting. Andrej Stojakovic, who entered the game averaging over 20 points, finished with a season-low six points for the Bears, while Jeremiah Wilkinson had his first scoreless game since Nov. 13. As a team, Cal (8-9, 1-5) shot just 34.8 percent from the field and missed 22 of 25 3-pointers.

Mady Sissoko led the Bears with 16 points and eight rebounds, while Joshua Ola-Joseph scored 10 points.

Cal took a 4-2 lead right away thanks to back-to-back jumpers from DJ Campbell and Jovan Blacksher. But the Golden Bears would never lead again.

As the Bears missed seven of their next eight shots, North Carolina ripped off a 12-2 run, capped by a Jackson lay-up, to grab a 14-6 lead.

The Tar Heels continued to extend their lead midway through the first half with Seth Trimble slicing through the Cal defense for a lay-in to push the advantage to 26-15. North Carolina went into the half with a 39-29 lead, holding its opponent to under 30 first-half points for the third straight game.

Cal came out strong after the break, with a Sissoko dunk and short floater cutting the deficit to six points just over three minutes into the second half.

The Heels responded with a 17-2 surge to establish a 63-39 lead, capped by a driving lay-up from Cadeau. During this time, the Golden Bears missed eight straight shots as part of a scoring drought lasting nearly six minutes en route to their eighth loss in 10 games.

–Field Level Media