Tar Heels Claw Back, Hand Hoos First Home Loss 85-80

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — North Carolina erased a 16-point deficit at Virginia on Saturday afternoon, taking over the second half en route to an 85-80 win, handing the No. 14 Cavaliers their first home loss of the season and delivering a huge Quad 1 road win for the Tar Heels.

Second Half Surge

A different North Carolina team emerged from the underbelly of John Paul Jones Arena for the second half on Saturday. Down nine coming out of the break, UNC outscored Virginia 33-19 across the opening 10:17 of the second half to take a 67-62 lead. The Tar Heels sunk 10 of their first 14 shots to open the second frame, holding the Cavaliers to 5-of-their-first-15.

UNC Hangs On Down Stretch

Jarin Stevenson’s left-wing 3-pointer gave the Tar Heels their biggest lead of the night at 81-74 with 1:38 left in regulation. The Cavaliers would respond with five straight points of their own before Caleb Wilson’s floater with 31 ticks left put the Heels back up four. The star freshman would then grab Derek Dixon’s missed free throw with 18 ticks remaining, helping the Heels return to the free throw line and secure the victory.

Jarin Stevenson, Derek Dixon Take Control

After finishing scoreless in the first half, Jarin Stevenson took over for the Tar Heels in the second half, finishing the night with 17 points, a season-high, shooting 6-of-9 from the field. Meanwhile, freshman Derek Dixon’s second half included eight points six assists and no turnovers (his game totals were 11 points, seven assists, one turnover).

Caleb Wilson added a team-high 20 points of his own, finishing the night 8-of-12 from the floor.

Up Next

North Carolina heads to Atlanta to take on Georgia Tech at 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon at McCamish Pavilion.