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Zeller leads No. 5 UNC past Wake Forest

Feb 1, 2012 - 5:51 AM Winston-Salem, NC (Sports Network) - Tyler Zeller scored 18 points with 18 rebounds and No. 5 North Carolina used a big second half run Tuesday night to pull away from Wake Forest for a 68-53 win.

John Henson added 14 points and 12 rebounds for North Carolina (19-3, 6-1 ACC) while Kendall Marshall also scored 14 and Harrison Barnes had 13 points.

The Tar Heels won their fourth straight game, but shot just 31 percent. They went on a 16-1 run in the second half that extended their lead from seven points to 22.

C.J. Harris scored 19 points for Wake Forest to land on 1,000 career points exactly. But the Demon Deacons (11-11, 2-6) lost their third straight game and fell to 1-6 in their last seven. They shot just 29.6 percent.

"It was an ugly game," North Carolina coach Roy Williams said. "But sometimes you have to win ugly to have a great year."

Making up for a poor offense, the Tar Heels had 12 blocks and out-rebounded the Demon Deacons 55-40.

"Their length really had an impact on the game around the rim," said Wake Forest coach Jeff Bzdelik. "We had some opportunities around the rim, but couldn't finish."

The Tar Heels had a 36-24 lead at the break, but Wake Forest was within 44-37 on Chase Fischer's jumper midway through the second half.

Henson's bucket at the other end sparked North Carolina's decisive run, which lasted almost five minutes. Marshall scored five points during it, including a steal and fastbreak layup near the end.

Zeller's layup capped the surge, giving the Tar Heels a 60-38 lead with 6:14 remaining. Wake Forest was never closer than the final margin.

Game Notes

North Carolina leads the all-time series 154-65 and has won three in a row and seven of the last nine meetings...The Tar Heels, who are 14-0 at home, moved to 3-2 in true road games.