North Carolina rebounded from a self-described "depressing" loss to Duke by controlling Virginia on the boards and winning 70-52 at home. (2/11) Click for a photo gallery.

The Tar Heels outrebounded the Cavaliers 52-32 including a 23-8 edge on the offensive boards.

UNC's Tyler Zeller, who had a rough couple of minutes at the end of the loss to Duke, had nine rebounds and 25 points. While he missed a couple of key free throws down the stretch against the Blue Devils, on this day he was 7 of 8 from the line.

"Wednesday was definitely brutal," said Zeller, who blamed himself for the Duke loss because of the missed free throws. "I was trying to bounce back today and play as well as possible."

UNC coach Roy Williams said it has taken Zeller a while to get past the Duke loss. "He's a very sensitive kid," Coach Williams said. "People were tough on him and very, very, very unfairly too. I couldn't be happier for what he did today."

Zeller had a big first half against Duke and a poorer second half. This time he scored 12 points in the first half and 13 in the second half for a complete effort.

The 18-point final margin was deceptive as Virginia held a 27-20 lead with five minutes left in the first half. But Zeller started a 15-5 run with four straight free throws and then ended the stretch with a tip-in during the last minute to give UNC a 35-32 halftime lead.

A pair of threes by Virginia's Joe Harris helped the Cavaliers to a 40-37 lead. But Zeller would have none of that. Zeller hit a baseline hook, a free throw, another hook, and blocked a shot as the Heels re-took the lead 42-41.

That explosion started an even bigger blast as Carolina went on a 22-5 to take total control of the game. The two key plays during that stretch were an over-the-head assist pass from John Henson to Zeller and a length-of-the-court assist pass from Kendall Marshall to Reggie Bullock.

While the game had been close, the Tar Heels held a double-digit lead over the last eight minutes of the game with the final margin being the largest of day.

Harrison Barnes, who only hit four of his 15 shots, sank all six of his free throw attempts and finished with 14 points and a career-high 11 rebounds. Henson was the only other Tar Heel in double figures as he had 10 points to go with his 10 rebounds.

The Tar Heels, now 21-4 overall and 8-2 in the ACC, play at Miami Wednesday night.

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