Aggressive trapping defense and the up tempo offense that Coach Roy Williams loves did Iona in early as the UNC Tar Heels cruised to an easy 107-72 win over the Gaels Sunday night (11/18).

It was the first time Carolina has surpassed the century mark since a 104-67 victory over Wake Forest on Feb. 10 last season. Ironically it was a hop-skip-and-jump shot by Marcus Ginyard, the defensive specialist, that put the Heels at 100 points.

The victory also avenged a 65-56 loss to Iona from the 2002-2003 season, Matt Doherty's last as Carolina coach. Of course none of the current players were in that game but many Carolina fans remember it.

The Tar Heels led throughout the first half but really started to pull away after a pair of threes by Danny Green within 20 seconds of each other that pushed a 13-8 lead to 19-8. It never got closer as the Tar Heels used six-of-eight shooting from the three-point line to up the margin to 19 at 36-17 following a Bobby Frasor triple with 6:47 left in the half.

Quentin Thomas (who played early and often in this game) lobbed an alley-oop pass to Danny Green who skied up to lay it in for a 42-17 advantage. While Roy Williams doesn't look at the score during the first half, he had to feel comfortable at this point as Will Graves, the red-shirt freshman from Greensboro, got in for some action.

The last few minutes of the opening half were highlighted by Lawson, who went coast to coast for a layup, and Hansbrough, who drove the lane for a basket to make it 50-24, the largest margin of the first half at 26.

Lawson and Hansbrough faltered in the first game of the season after getting in foul trouble. This time the two looked like the All-America players they are expected to be as both hit double figures in scoring in the first half.

Lawson, who tied a career-high nine assists, finished with 13 while Hansbrough got a game-high 27. Five UNC players finished in double figures. Green picked up 15 points. Ellington was solid for the second game in a row finishing with 14 while Deon Thompson rebounded from a poor effort in the first game to put in 13.

The second half saw the Tar Heels work its lead up to a high of 40 at 90-50. The highlight of the second half was a steal by Lawson, who sliced a left-handed, off-balance pass to Hansbrough, who went in for the dunk and drew a foul. Who will be the first to make this their desktop background or screen saver?

A lot of Tar Heels got to play in this one – all of them in fact. While perhaps not as useful as the close first game, these games build team unity and build confidence.