Wake Forest might never rise to equality with beloved North Carolina, popular NC State or despised Duke in the hearts and minds of this state's manic Atlantic Coast Conference basketball fans. But the longtime little brother of the state powerhouses made clear on Saturday that in the ACC standing, Wake Forest is second to none right now.
In a game crucial not only to the conference hierarchy and the national ranking but to the fragile collective psyche of Wake Forest fans, the host Demon Deacons, ranked No. 4, showed unexpected poise during a 95-82 victory over No. 3 North Carolina in front of a crowd of 14,665 at Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
In fact, it showed record-making poise. Wake Forest (15-1), averaging 66 percent from the free-throw line this season, set an ACC mark by hitting 32 of 32 free throws against North Carolina (14-2).
"This means a lot because Wake Forest has come a long way," said Chris Paul, Wake Forest's sophomore guard, who lifted his team to 4-0 atop the ACC. "Growing up here in Winston-Salem, the buzz has never been like it is now. And just knowing that we have so many different guys on our team from North Carolina, it means a little bit more. We understand the rivalry."
And nobody understands it better than Paul, the point guard who was voted to the preseason all-America team. In a conference defined largely by its point guards, Paul has emerged as the best of an elite group.
In a head-to-head matchup on Saturday, Paul outplayed Raymond Felton, the highly touted North Carolina junior. Paul scored a game-high 26 points, adding 8 assists, 5 steals and 6 rebounds while committing only a single turnover. Felton had 16 points, 5 assists, 2 rebounds and 3 steals, but shot 5 of 18 from the field, including 1 of 7 from 3-point range. Felton was shooting 51.9 percent on 3-pointers, best in the conference.
"Chris has an ability to get it to the basket and finish the play even though he's slight of build," North Carolina coach Roy Williams said. "He's not an Arnold Schwarzenegger, but he might be when it comes to heart."
Paul was 9 of 9 from the free-throw line, leading Wake Forest as it extended its winning streak to nine games, snapping North Carolina's 14-game run. The Demon Deacons needed those points from the line as North Carolina overcame a 17-point deficit at 64-47 with 12 minutes 18 seconds remaining and closed to within 7 points twice in the final 1:49. North Carolina junior guard-forward Rashad McCants, limited by foul trouble throughout the game, scored on a layup with 49.2 seconds left to cut Wake Forest's lead to 89-82.
But Paul, guard Taron Downey and forward Vytas Danelius each hit a pair of free throws in the final minute to seal the victory.
"I think if you follow us, you will see that as an aberration," Wake Forest coach Skip Prosser said of the team's free-throw shooting. "We needed all 32 of those, especially down the stretch."
McCants finished with 19 points to lead North Carolina despite playing just 20 minutes because of foul trouble. He wasn't the only Tar Heel who was missing for large stretches of the game. The junior forward Sean May failed to provide an inside presence, finishing with a hardly noticed 9 points and 9 rebounds against steady double-teaming under the basket by the Demon Deacons.
Prosser wasn't about to revel in the victory.
"It was a good game between two high-caliber teams," he said, "but the reality of it is, this is one-sixteenth of the ACC regular season."
No. Illinois 78, Northwestern 66
While in Evanston, Illinois, Luther Head scored 17 of his season-high 26 points in the second half, and Illinois held off Northwestern 78-66 in Big Ten action at Welsh-Ryan Arena.
Roger Powell added 15 points and Dee Brown 12 for the Illini (18-0, 4-0 Big Ten), who eclipsed the best season start in school history. They have won 14 straight conference games.
No. 2 Kansas 76, Colorado 61
In Colorado, Wayne Simien scored 23 points and ripped down 17 rebounds to lead the second-ranked Kansas Jayhawks to a 76-61 win over Big 12 Conference rival Colorado.
Simien shot 8-of-16 for the Jayhawks (13-0, 3-0), who trailed just once, 2-1, in the early stages of the game. Keith Langford had 14 points in the win, while J.R. Giddens chipped in with 11.
No. 6 Oklahoma St. 83, Iowa St. 73
In Stillwater, Oklahoma, Joey Graham and Ivan McFarlin poured in 20 points apiece as the sixth-ranked Oklahoma State Cowboys defeated the Iowa State Cyclones, 83-73, at Gallagher-Iba Arena.
John Lucas chipped in with 17 points and seven assists, while Steven Graham netted 11 points for the Cowboys (13-1, 3-0 Big 12), who have won three straight after losing to Gonzaga back on Dec. 28.
Syracuse 75, Providence 71
In Rhode Island, Hakim Warrick scored 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, leading Syracuse to a hard-fought 75-71 victory over Providence at the Dunkin' Donuts Center.
Josh Pace chipped in 14 points and hit two key baskets in the closing minutes to help the Orange (17-1, 4-0 Big East) win their 10th straight game. Craig Forth added 11 points and Gerry McNamara finished with 10, including three clutch free throws in the final seconds.
Juan Dixon scored 13 of his 26 points in the fourth quarter and helped the Wizards to their seventh straight win, a 108-103 victory that sent the Phoenix Suns to their first three-game losing streak of the season.
The Wizards made up a 10-point, second-half deficit and pulled ahead with a 16-0 run in a game that had a rare MCI Center sellout crowd standing and cheering thunderously for much of the final minute.
"There's times when you're on the bench the whole game, you urge your teammates on, but you're not really a part of it because you're not out there contributing," Dixon said. "Me, getting an opportunity to play and be a part of it, it's a lot of fun. I'm enjoying it right now."
Gilbert Arenas scored 26 points, Larry Hughes had 22 points and 13 rebounds, and Antawn Jamison had 17 points and seven rebounds for the Wizards.
Amare Stoudemire scored 26 points and Quentin Richardson added 25 for Phoenix, which is 0-3 on its East Coast road trip.
Steve Nash, the NBA's assists leader, sat out after bruising his thigh in Phoenix's loss to Indiana the night before.
Timberwolves 92, Trail Blazers 84
In Minneapolis, Latrell Sprewell scored 25 points, including a pair of key 3-pointers in the fourth quarter, to lead Minnesota past Portland.
Kevin Garnett had 17 points and 10 rebounds, and Eddie Griffin grabbed a career-high 18 rebounds for the Timberwolves.
The Timberwolves also took advantage of a thinned Portland front-line to gain the edge in the rebounding battle 44-32. Missing frontcourt players Zach Randolph, Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Darius Miles due to injury, Portland went to a four-guard lineup through much of the second half.
Pistons 99, 76ers 95
In Auburn Hills, Michigan, Tayshaun Prince's short jumper with 24.5 seconds left put Detroit ahead and his two free throws sealed the Detroit's fifth straight victory.
Richard Hamilton scored 25 points for the Pistons, who have won 12 of 16 since falling to .500 on Dec. 11.
Allen Iverson had 28 points and 13 assists, tying a season high, for the 76ers.
Denver Nuggets forward Nene and Minnesota Timberwolves center Michael Olowokandi were each suspended four games by the NBA on Saturday for fighting.
The two squared off late in the third quarter of the Timberwolves' 93-83 victory in Denver on Friday.
Olowokandi bumped Nene twice as they fought for a rebound at Minnesota's end, then Nene pushed him away. Olowokandi followed by pushing Nene in the face, and the Brazilian charged in throwing punches, landing one to the side of Olowokandi's head.
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