North Carolina knocked off Providence 85-66 Friday night, in a game that was much more competitive than the final score indicates.
Providence came out of the gates matching the number one seed punch for punch, as both teams set the tone early with their transition play. Kris Dunn scored 10 quick points, but was sidelined for most of the half after picking up two unnecessary fouls. In Dunn's absence, Ben Bentil and Kyron Cartwright picked up the slack and kept their team in the game, as the pair had nine and seven points in the half, respectively.