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Apopka's Joel Berry II leads North Carolina to Elite 8

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Beats Butler 92-80 in Sweet 16 matchup

Apopka's Joel Berry II scored 26 points and Justin Jackson added 24 as top-seeded North Carolina moved to the Elite Eight with a 92-80 victory over Butler in the NCAA South Region on Friday night.

Luke Maye recorded his first career double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds, helping fuel a quick start for Carolina (30-7). The Tar Heels never let their lead get under double digits in the second half.

Joel Berry II

Andrew Chrabascz led the fourth-seeded Bulldogs (25-9) with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Kelan Martin finished with 16 points for Butler, which struggled shooting early and did not recover.

The Tar Heels, which reached the Elite Eight for the 27th time, will face the winner of Friday's second game between UCLA and Kentucky for a shot at the Final Fout next weekend in Phoenix, AZ.

The Tar Heels connected on 54.4 percent of their shots, while Butler was at 43.5 percent.

Berry, a 6'0 point guard, played high school basketball at Lake Highland Preparatory School in Orlando, Florida. He led his team to three state titles and was the first player named Florida Mr. Basketball three times. He was named a Parade All-American and McDonald's All-American as a senior in 2014. At North Carolina, Berry has led the Tar Heels as its point guard, averaging 14.6 points, 3.7 assists, 3.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals per game this season.

ESPN contributed to this report.

 

Joel Berry II

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