UNC drops third straight in road loss to Indiana

The Tar Heels were unable to break through against the Hoosiers, losing for the third consecutive game.

Trevor Ruszkowski/USA Today Sports

For the third straight game, North Carolina turned in an uninspiring performance, falling to Indiana 77-65 in Assembly Hall.

Now riding a three-game losing streak, more questions than answers remain for Hubert Davis and company.

After a back and forth first half, Indiana extended their lead to 32-24 with 3:26 remaining in the first 20 minutes, firmly taking control of the contest.

Trailing 35-29 at the break, North Carolina cut the lead to as close as seven before careless turnovers increased the lead to double digits for the Hoosiers.

Indiana shot just 3-13 from three-point range, but it wasn't needed as they connected on 57 percent of their shots from inside the arc and scored 50 points in the paint.

Guards Caleb Love and R.J. Davis appeared to be overwhelmed by the pressure of the Hoosiers' backcourt, taking contested, low-percentage shots.

Love continued his poor shooting, recording 13 points on 16 shot attempts, while Davis committed three turnovers that led to six fastbreak points for Indiana.

The Tar Heel offense was stagnant throughout the contest, going one shot and out or playing one-on-one instead of running sets for hot hands Pete Nance or Armando Bacot.

Nance paced the roster with 15 points and 12 rebounds, joining Bacot, who tallied 12 points and 10 rebounds, in the double-double department.

North Carolina shot 33.9 percent from the field and amassed just five assists, further highlighting the lack of offensive flow in Chapel Hill.

For Indiana, Trayce Jackson-Davis played like a preseason All-American, recording a game-high 21 points and pulling down 10 rebounds. Guard Xavier Johnson added on 20 points, shooting 8-of-10 from the free throw line.

Although Indiana was called for more fouls, and rightfully so, they were the more physical team and made the Tar Heels earn every basket and work for every pass on the wing and in the paint.

On Sunday, North Carolina will conclude their five-game road trip, as they travel to Blacksburg to take on Virginia Tech.