What to take away from UNC's victory over Virginia Tech

North Carolina continued to finish the season strong with an 89-82 win over Virginia Tech at the Dean Smith Center on Saturday night, its third straight victory.

While Virginia Tech shot 50% from the field and 39% from 3-point range, the Hokies had no answer for the offense of North Carolina (23-6, 11-5 ACC). The Tar Heels shot 29-for-52 (55%) from the field and 8-for-20 (40%) from 3-point range.

Here are some takeaways from North Carolina’s victory.

Seth Trimble Continues Hot Streak

Seth Trimble also continued his strong performance, scoring 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting from the field, with four assists, two rebounds and one steal. The senior captain has totaled 63 points since his 13-point second half at Syracuse last weekend, further cementing his role in North Carolina’s scoring attack.

Henri Veesaar Looked Like Himself Again

North Carolina center Henri Veesaar led the way with 26 points on 11-for-20 shooting from the field and 2-for-7 from 3-point range. He dominated the second half, tallying 18 of his points after halftime on 8-for-11 shooting.

Veesaar rediscovered his presence on the boards, finishing with seven rebounds — three on the offensive glass — his best outing since pulling down six against Miami.

The Bench 

A huge factor in the game was bench production. UNC outscored Virginia Tech 32-13 in bench points, as Jonathan Powell (15 points) and Zayden High (12 points) both scored in double figures off the bench. Zyan Evans also scored five points off the bench to go along with three assists.

The Tar Heels Finished the Job

After nearly letting a big lead slip away in Tuesday night’s win over Louisville, the Tar Heels did a better job of putting their opponent away when it was on the ropes.

Ben Hammond’s three-point play with 2:45 remaining not only fouled Jarin Stevenson out of the game, it also trimmed the Tar Heels’ lead to five after they had led by 11 with 4:00 to play.

Henri Veesaar’s dunk with 48 seconds left pushed the margin back to 86-78, effectively sealing the win.

This time, after late mistakes and missed free throws nearly cost them against Louisville, UNC converted at the line down the stretch to close the door on the Hokies.

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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC basketball: Key takeaways from UNC’s win over Virginia Tech