North Carolina vs. Miami: Score, Highlights, Reaction from 2017 Regular Season

The ACC produced yet another bizarre result Saturday, with the Miami Hurricanes earning a 77-62 upset over the No. 9 North Carolina Tar Heels at the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables, Florida.

The Hurricanes built a 17-point first-half lead and never saw the margin drop to single digits again, easily improving to 4-4 in conference play. Though they still lead the conference, the Tar Heels dropped to 7-2 in the ACC and are 19-4 overall.

ESPN Stats & Info noted how rare the feat was for Miami:

Bruce Brown came through for the Hurricanes with the best game of his young career, totaling 30 points on 8-of-11 shooting. He also added five assists, four rebounds, two steals and two blocks in an all-around fantastic effort.

Mike Schmitz of DraftExpress detailed the freshman's improved skill set:

The guard's previous high was 17 points.

Ja'Quan Newton provided some help as well with 18 points and seven rebounds.

Justin Jackson had a big effort for North Carolina with 21 points, but he was pretty much the only one who showed up for the Tar Heels, as the other four starters combined for just 16 points.

Joel Berry II especially struggled, recording only two points while missing all eight of his field-goal attempts.

Myron Medcalf of ESPN discussed the main problem for the point guard:

Conversely, Kennedy Meeks wasn't aggressive enough, with five points on just 1-of-3 shooting.

The Tar Heels finished with 35 percent shooting from the field and 29.2 percent from three-point range.

It was a miserable day from the start for UNC, which scored 16 points in the first seven minutes of the game before shutting down offensively. The team scored only two points in the next 11 minutes, and Miami built a 39-22 lead before halftime.

Andrew Carter of the Charlotte Observer didn't sugarcoat the effort:

Kevin Steimle of the Asbury Park Press added his thoughts:

The team's Twitter account noted just how bad the shooting was in the first 20 minutes:

Although the Tar Heels improved slightly in the second half, Miami's defense continued to clamp down on the UNC offense. When the visitors picked up the pace, the home team responded with its own fast-break points, and cutting into the lead proved nearly impossible.

Brown was especially impressive to keep the Hurricanes in front despite a late charge from North Carolina. Sam Vecenie of Sporting News discussed the freshman:

Miami went up as much as 22 points in the second half and made big shots whenever it needed them, even though the Heels provided a bit of a challenge late.

The ACC remains unpredictable, but North Carolina should have an easier matchup Tuesday at home against Pittsburgh, which sits in last place in the conference.

Miami will try to keep its momentum Wednesday against Florida State, a team that is suddenly struggling with back-to-back losses on the road.   

Postgame Reaction

Brown was the best player on the floor in this game, and Miami head coach Jim Larranaga was quick to praise him.

"Everything you want in a player, Bruce Brown delivers," he said, per Matt Porter of the Palm Beach Post.

"The Dukes, the Carolinas, they just bring out the best in our team," Larranaga added, per Christy Chirinos of the Sun Sentinel. "They're competitors."

The coach himself is now 5-4 against North Carolina since joining Miami.

Meanwhile, there weren't any excuses in the other locker room.

"Not a lot to say. It was a big-time kick in our rear ends," UNC head coach Roy Williams said, per Porter. "They were more aggressive in everything they did."

UNC remains in good shape in the conference but needs to be able to look past this loss.