CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Junior forward James Worthy scored 23 points and ignited a second half rally Saturday to lead top-ranked North Carolina to a 74-67 victory over Kansas in a season opener for both teams.
North Carolina came out sluggish and trailed most of the first half, but an 8-0 scoring blitz put the Tar Heels ahead 55-47 with 13:05 to play and kept Kansas out of the rest of the game.
Worthy, who scored 12 of his points in the second half, was joined in double figures by center Sam Perkins with 16 and guards Matt Doherty and Mike Jordan with 12 points each.
The Jayhawks were led by David Magley with 24 points, 16 in the second half, and Tony Guy with 18.
The nation's No. 1 team trailed by as many as five points in the first half when they encountered difficulty getting the ball inside to Worthy and Perkins, the team's leading scorers from last year.
Guy, who had 12 first half points, hit a pair of free throws with 7:37 left in the first half to put the Jayhawks ahead 26-21. North Carolina tied it up 27-27 on two consecutive baskets from Worthy and went into the lockerroom at halftime with the score 37-37.
In the second half, Doherty put the Tar Heels ahead for good with 15:02 to play when he came up with a three-point play that made it 48-47.
Guard Jimmy Black added a 10-foot jumper, Doherty hit a free throw and Worthy added two more baskets to put North Carolina ahead 55-47.
The Jayhawks mounted one last challenge when Magley scored two unanswered baskets with just under three minutes to play, cutting the North Carolina lead to four points, 67-63.
The Tar Heels quickly went ahead by eight points on a slam dunk by Worthy and a pair of Jordan free throws with about a minute to play, then went to its delay game to close the door.
