CHAPEL HILL, NC- The Vikings faced their second ACC opponent in the Tar Heels of the University of North Carolina on Friday night in the Dean Dome. The Vikings came out and played hard but dropped the exhibition game 83-55.
 
ECSU shot 36.7 percent (22-60) from the field, 34.6 percent (9-26) from behind the arc, and went 2-5 at the line shooting 40 percent.
 
UNC shot 43.1 percent (25-58) from the field, 39.1 percent (9-23), but the most significant advantage was that the Tar Heels took 30 free throws and made 24, shooting 80 percent at the line.
 
The Vikings were led by graduate student guard Zac Hobbs (Maysville, NC); Hobbs recorded 16 points and has led the Vikings in scoring against both ACC opponents. The All-CIAA preseason honoree and past CIAA Rookie of the Year will be exciting to watch throughout the season. Transfer Michael Wright II followed up with nine points on the night, all from behind the arc. Wright shot 75% (3-4) from 3-point land. 
 
"It was a tremendous experience to play in the dean dome against my childhood favorite basketball team and give the crowd some excitement," said Hobbs.
 
Senior forward Brandon Beloti (Apex, NC) controlled the boards for the Vikings totaling nine rebounds; he also led the Vikings in assists with five. 
 
Dawson Garcia led the charge for the Tar Heels with 17 points, while Armando Bacot and Brady Manek followed up with 16 points each. Five Tar Heel players ended the game in double-digit scoring. Bacot and Leaky Black led UNC in rebounding with seven each, while Brady Manek added three blocks.
 
ECSU came out and played a tremendous first half of basketball against one of the nation's infamous NCAA Division I programs. Coming into the game, there was a major emphasis on limiting turnovers after the Vikings gave up 30 points off turnovers Monday night at North Carolina State. In the first half, the Vikings accomplished this task with only seven turnovers to UNC's five, but the second half was a challenge. However, the Vikings and Tar Heels each turned the ball over ten times. Nevertheless, UNC won that battle, scoring 30 points off of turnovers similar to the NC State game, while the Vikings were limited to only 15 points off of UNC's 15 turnovers. 
 
"I had a great time out there competing with my guys and I feel like we all gave it our all," said Wright II. "We left everything on the floor and it was a great experience."
 
Historically UNC has been an offensive rebounding machine; the Vikings were out rebounded 49-28.
 
Despite the top tier level of competition, the Vikings held their own in the first half from start to finish. UNC jumped out to a 7-0 lead in the opening minutes, but a corner three from senior Gabe Kirkendoll (Jacksonville, NC) gave ECSU its first points of the night. On the next ECSU possession, Hobbs sank a three-pointer making it an 11-6 Tar Heel lead going into the first media timeout. 
 
UNC was able to pull away from the Vikings several times, creating its largest scoring gap by 13 points with just over a minute left in the opening half, but the Vikings made a habit of knocking down big shots to make it a single-digit UNC lead at least four times. At the 5:43 mark, senior Shykeef Daniels (Greensboro, NC) beat his defenders to the rim for a quick bucket and came away with a steal on defense to give the Vikings a spark and cut the UNC lead to nine points. UNC went scoreless after a turnover and a pair of missed shots before making substitutions. The Vikings substituted Wright II in, and he quickly took a pair of three-pointers knocking down the second shot to bring the Vikings within 6 points 34-28.
 
Without a doubt, UNC had to play competitive basketball all gas no brakes for a complete 20 mins until the halftime buzzer sounded as a jumper from sophomore D'Andre Barrett went in to cut the Tar Heel lead to 11, 43-32 at halftime.
 
The Vikings struggled to find an offensive rhythm in the second half, and UNC took full advantage going on a 15-0 run to start the half. Six minutes into the half, a steal from sophomore forward Deandre Wilkins (Edenton, NC) set up a three-pointer for Barrett to give ECSU its first bucket of the half. 
 
The Vikings would experience some foul trouble in the second half sending Daniels to the bench early after fouling out. Despite their fight, the Vikings could not climb their way back into the game and would fall to UNC 83-55. 
 
These early exhibition games have shown the world and most definitely the CIAA conference that the Vikings will be a contender and a competitive team to beat. As the preseason progresses, it will be exciting to see this group develop and how the blend of Viking returners and newcomers can gel together to win games. 
 
The Vikings will be back in action on the road at Kutztown playing in the PSAC/CIAA Challenge November 12-13^th.
 
Follow Elizabeth City State Athletics via its official website at www.ecsuvikings.com to get pre-and post-game stories and updates.
 
ECSU Athletics is also on social media, follow us on Twitter at @ECSUVikings and Instagram at @ecsusports