Wolfpack holds on to stun No. 3 UNC

Courtney Fells scored 21 points to lead North Carolina State to an 83-79 upset of No. 3 North Carolina on Saturday, giving Sidney Lowe his first big win as the Wolfpack's coach. Ben McCauley had 17 points and Gavin Grant added 16 for N.C. State (13-8, 3-5 Atlantic Coast Conference), which led by 12 and held off the Tar Heels' frantic comeback bid.

N.C. State controlled most of the second half, three times pushing its lead into double figures. The last _ and biggest _ came when Fells' 3-pointer from the right wing made it 72-60 with just under 7 minutes left.

North Carolina rallied to pull within three when Brandan Wright's leaner made it 80-77 with 1:08 remaining. But Engin Atsur hit two free throws for the Wolfpack, who forced the Tar Heels into misses on three straight possessions in the final minute and gave coach Roy Williams his first loss to N.C. State.

Tyler Hansbrough led the Tar Heels (20-3, 6-2) with 24 points and scored his 1,000th career point on a dunk late in the first half. North Carolina's other three double-figure scorers were freshmen _ Ty Lawson (21 points), Wright (15) and Wayne Ellington (11).

Brandon Costner had 15 points and 11 rebounds and Atsur had all 12 of his points in the second half for the Wolfpack, who beat the Tar Heels for the first time since 2003.

It was just the kind of game Lowe, a former Wolfpack point guard, was hired to win. N.C. State's fan base grew increasingly frustrated with consistent losses to rivals Duke and North Carolina under Herb Sendek, who went 8-38 against those schools during his 10 seasons before leaving for Arizona State.

Lowe was embarrassed after his first home game against one of the state's Big Four schools _ a 79-56 loss to Duke two weeks earlier _ and this time it seemed the Wolfpack came out clearly mindful of their miserable performance in that one.

This time, they pounced on the Tar Heels early. N.C. State's largest lead of the first half came when Fells' 3-pointer with 6:06 left made it 29-20.

North Carolina rallied to tie it 36-36 on Lawson's free throw with 5.7 seconds left in the half. The Tar Heels allowed Grant to drive the length of the floor for a layup just before the buzzer, a defensive lapse that infuriated Williams _ who stormed toward the locker room when the ball was barely through the net.