Carolina basketball was back in action last night as the Tar Heels took on Ohio State in a battle of two nationally ranked teams.

After leading by a wide margin the majority of the night, Ohio State rallied to close the gap, but eventually fell short as the Tar Heels held on to seal a 77-73 victory.

The Tar Heels led by as many as 19 points in the second half before the Buckeyes cut the lead down to two. But with time running out, Ohio State was forced to foul and key free throw shooting from sophomore guard Larry Drew preserved the win. 

Veterans Deon Thompson and Marcus Ginyard led their team with 15 and 13 points respectively. Thompson also grabbed 12 rebounds in the win, while sophomore forward Ed Davis scored 5 points and grabbed 6 rebounds but was limited in play due to early foul trouble. 

Offensively the Tar Heels shot 7 of 15 from three point land including a 3-for-5 performance from Marcus Ginyard. Last nights game also featured strong performances from the Tar Heel true freshman as Travis Wear, Dexter Strickland, and Leslie McDonald saw significant game action. Tampa, Florida native John Henson also made his mark early in the first half with a big rim-rattling dunk. 

Now that Ohio State is out of the way, The Tar Heels will now focus their attention on Syracuse, as they prepare to do battle in the finals of the Coaches versus Cancer Classic.  Tip-off is scheduled for 7pm with pre-game coverage to start at 5 p.m.