Kenny Williams scored 18 points to lead five players in double figures as North Carolina opened defense of its national title with an 84-66 victory against Lipscomb in the NCAA Tournament's first round Friday afternoon at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C.

Theo Pinson and Joel Berry II, a pair of senior guards trying to help North Carolina reach the Final Four for the third year in a row, scored 15 and 14 points, respectively. Cameron Johnson added 12 points and Luke Maye had 10 points for the Tar Heels, who are seeded No. 2 in the West Region.

North Carolina (26-10) faces seventh-seeded Texas A&M, a 73-69 winner against Providence earlier in the day, in Sunday's second round.

North Carolina improved to 33-1 in NCAA Tournament games in its home state, including 12-0 in Charlotte.

Freshman forward Sterling Manley added a season-high 10 rebounds as part of North Carolina's 47-29 rebounding advantage. Pinson also grabbed 10 rebounds.

Kenny Cooper's 14 points and Rob Marberry's 13 points paced No. 15 seed Lipscomb (23-10), which was in the NCAA Tournament for the first time after winning the Atlantic Sun.

Lipscomb guard Garrison Mathews, who led the Atlantic Sun in scoring this season with 22.1 points per game, was limited to eight points on 3-for-14 shooting from the field. The Bison shot 7-for-28 on 3-pointers.

With just less than 15 minutes to play, all five North Carolina starters had reached double-digit point totals.

The Tar Heels also were encouraged by the mobility of Johnson, a guard who came out of last week's Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament with back and hip ailments after the team played four games in four nights.

Williams provided eight points in barely more than two minutes as North Carolina built a 65-49 lead.

North Carolina closed the first half on a 12-1 run to grab a 43-34 edge at the break.

The Tar Heels shot 54.8 percent in the first half, though they were bothered by eight turnovers.

Lipscomb, which managed just three points in the final five minutes of the opening half, hit 4 of 9 from 3-point range for an early 21-16 lead. Cooper hit two of the long balls.

-- Field Level Media