Hansbrough sets mark in No. 1 UNC's 91-73 win

[December 19, 2008]  CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) -- Top-ranked North Carolina waited for Tyler Hansbrough to make history, then cruised to its latest lopsided victory.

Hansbrough scored 20 points Thursday night to break the storied program's career scoring record and help the Tar Heels remain unbeaten with a 91-73 victory over Evansville.

The reigning national player of the year finished 7-for-14 from the field and had nine rebounds for North Carolina (10-0), which shook off a slow start and stretched the lead to double figures shortly after Hansbrough passed Phil Ford for the record midway through the first half. Ford, now an assistant coach to fellow Tar Heel alumnus Larry Brown with the NBA's Charlotte Bobcats, finished his career in 1978 with 2,290 points.

Hansbrough, who needed nine points coming in, tied Ford on a jumper from the left wing with 14:05 left in the first half. He set the record by muscling in a bank shot over James Haarsma and Pieter van Tongeren with 7:41 to go.

As soon as the record-setting shot went through the net, officials briefly stopped the game to allow Ford, coach Roy Williams and athletics director Dick Baddour to present Hansbrough with the game ball. Students who carried small signs saying "Phil Ford 2,290" on one side turned it around to reveal "Tyler 2,291+" on the other.

Hansbrough waved to acknowledge the roaring crowd and handled the historic moment with his typically reserved demeanor, though he seemed eager to get back to the game and away from the focus being on him.

After the game, the school showed a brief video montage of Hansbrough's career highlights that included congratulations from several former players. Hansbrough then briefly addressed the crowd, something he admitted Wednesday would probably make him nervous.

"I never dreamed I'd be here and be the all-time leading scorer," Hansbrough said as he stood alone at midcourt. "This is a great honor to be here and to represent you guys every night in this uniform."

Ty Lawson added 16 points for the Tar Heels, while Danny Green had 14, including the 1,000th of his career.

Shy Ely scored 23 points for the Purple Aces (7-2), who hung around early as the Tar Heels seemed a little tight and the home crowd seemed anxious to see Hansbrough set the record. But in the minutes afterward, the Tar Heels finally got running and outscored Evansville 22-10 the rest of the half to take a 46-28 lead.

The Tar Heels maintained a comfortable margin the rest of the way, though everything didn't go completely smoothly. Williams grew so irritated with his starters during one stretch that he pulled them all for the so-called "Blue" team of reserves barely 4 minutes into the second half.

Evansville, off to its best start since going 10-1 in 1981-82, was playing the No. 1 team for the first time since 1980 and just the third time ever.

[Associated Press; By AARON BEARD]

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