Allie Lawhon

Men's Basketball

Jae’Lyn Withers Buries Seven 3-pointers and North Carolina Rolls Past Notre Dame 76-56 in ACC Tournament

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Jae’Lyn Withers scored 21 points — all on 3-pointers — and Ven-Allen Lubin had 17 points and 10 rebounds in North Carolina’s 76-56 rout of Notre Dame on Wednesday, March 12, the second day of the 2025 T. Rowe Price ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament. 

North Carolina made 9-of-17 3-pointers in the first half, highlighted by Withers, who made 5-of-6. His first three 3-pointers, all in a row, helped the Tar Heels build a 17-5 lead in the opening five minutes. Later, he made two more in a 12-0 run that gave the Tar Heels a 37-17 lead. North Carolina led 43-29 at halftime. 

Five players scored for the Tar Heels in the first 7 1/2 minutes of the second half as they extended their lead to 58-38. The largest lead was 24 points on two occasions, the second time when Withers made his career-high seventh 3-pointer in 10 attempts. 

RJ Davis added 13 points, Elliot Cadeau had 11 assists and Withers grabbed nine rebounds for North Carolina (21-12). The Tar Heels shot 48% and made 13 of 28 3-pointers. 

Markus Burton was held to 11 points on 3-of-11 shooting plus 5-of-7 from the free-throw line for Notre Dame (15-of-18). 

The Tar Heels won seven of their last eight games to close the regular season, reaching 20 wins for the 55th time in 72 seasons in the ACC. 

North Carolina finished in a tie for fourth place in the regular season and was seeded fifth in the tournament. The Tar Heels will play No. 4 seed Wake Forest on Thursday, March 13. SMU, the other team tied for fourth, was given the sixth seed. SMU drew Syracuse for a late game on Wednesday night. 

Of Note 
  • North Carolina has logged a victory by 20 or more points in each of the last six ACC Men’s Basketball Tournaments. 
  • The Tar Heels have now won 14 of their last 16 games against Notre Dame, including five straight.  
  • The Tar Heels are now 169-28 in games played in Charlotte, including a 19-3 mark at the Spectrum Center since 2006. 
  • With 11 assists on Wednesday, Elliot Cadeau became the first Tar Heel to log 10 or more assists in an ACC Tournament game since Marcus Paige in the 2013 quarterfinals.  
  • Jae’lyn Withers set the North Carolina single-game ACC Tournament record with seven made 3-pointers. Withers finished with a game-high 21 points. 
  • Ven-Allen Lubin logged his eighth double-double of the season after finishing with 17 points and 10 rebounds for the Tar Heels.  
  • The Tar Heels buried 13 3-pointers in the win, well above their average of 7.9 triples per game.