By R.L. Bynum
There have been times this season when North Carolina struggled mightily with its effectiveness while junior center Henri Veesaar was off the court or off his game.
For most games, a lead evaporated or the Tar Heels fell behind when that happened.
That all changed on Saturday at Virginia when No. 16 UNC overcame Veesaar’s worst game of the season — season-lows of seven points, three field goals and one rebound — to pull off an impressive 85–80 win over the now No. 17 Cavaliers.
In Charlottesville, the Tar Heels broke that pattern. They proved they can defend, run and share their way to a road win over a ranked team when one of the centerpieces is off his game. UNC didn’t wait around for its 7-footer to rescue the offense. It found answers from many sources.
“A number of people showed up and played really well,” Hubert Davis said Monday during the “Hubert Davis Live” radio show. “[In] our wins last week, you can point to a dozen of people that contributed in so many ways.”
Davis said that what pleased him most wasn’t only the result.
“Ultimately, you just want to play well,” Davis said, remembering “multiple consecutive mistakes on both ends of the court” in the losses at Stanford and California. “When things didn’t go well, it carried on to the next possession instead of just letting it go. And I felt like, last week against Notre Dame and against Virginia, we cut down those mistakes. We had a mindset of ‘next play, next possession.’ And just a number of people showed up and played really well.”
With Veesaar limited, Jarin Stevenson (season-high 17 points, all in the second half) became the spark that flipped the game’s script after UNC trailed by 16 late in the first half.
“It wasn’t just that,” Davis said of Stevenson’s points. “It was his rebounding, his defense. He got that charge late in the big play second half, which was a huge play.”
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— Dixon’s growth, efficiency delivering consistent results for UNC
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— From quiet to unstoppable: Aggressive Stevenson powers UNC’s rally
— ‘Start swinging’: Davis’ halftime challenge fuels rally for huge UNC win at Virginia
— Tar Heels in pros: White surges amid trade rumors; Ryan, Davis, Ingram lighting up G League
Freshman point guard Derek Dixon supplied the poise of a veteran against Virginia’s trademark full‑court pressure. Davis said he loved Dixon’s tempo control and vision.
“Derek has a calmness and a confidence about himself that, especially as a freshman, I never experienced,” Davis said. “That confidence and that composure, the team feels. They just do. Derek got the ball up the floor, got us into our offense.”
While a lot of the postgame focus after the win was on Stevenson and Caleb Wilson, Davis singled out Seth Trimble (16 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals) for turning in the kind of two‑way, all‑effort performance that keeps a road comeback going.
“I thought this was Seth’s maybe best game ever,” Davis said. “I was so proud of him. He went to the offensive glass. He was a combintion shooting threes, taking the ball to the basket, an and-one in transition. Defensively, he’s our guy. I thought his senior presence led us, and he was huge.”
Balance mattered, too. Davis pointed out Jonathan Powell’s team-high seven rebounds in less than 10 minutes, saying that it was huge factor in winning the game.
He credited Luca Bogavac with settling the group “not just his scoring, but his decision-making, his presence out there on the floor.”
Davis said that the second-half turnaround was as much about identity as it was about shot‑making. He said that team’s second‑half was its best blend of defense, rebounding and pace.
“Our defense was better, our rebounding was better, our fast break arrived,” he said. “It came even after made baskets. We’re pitching a ball ahead, scoring in three or four seconds.”
Other topics Davis covered on his radio show
— Road‑game logistics and momentum
UNC bused to Charlottesville, and Davis said that he appreciated the ACC moving the start of the game two hours earlier because of the weather forecast, saying everybody got home safely. “I thought it made a huge difference for us.” Davis even joked about his fondness for bus trips: “I love the bus.”
— Notre Dame as a growth checkpoint
He called the Irish win “growth,” praising how UNC turned a nine‑point halftime lead into a runaway: “Let’s take the next step. And they did that.” He praised the shot quality. “They’ve been good shots, and we’ve knocked them down.” He reiterated that the program’s pillars remain “defense, rebounding and taking care of the basketball.”
— Rebounding concerns and non‑negotiables
Rebounding, he said, is “the number one determining factor of a game.” He didn’t like some of the numbers: “You give up 18 offensive rebounds against Notre Dame, and then you get outrebounded by 16 against Virginia? I don’t think that’s sustainable.” The reason UNC survived, in his view: “The defense has been better, and we have taken care of the basketball.”
— Caleb Wilson’s evolution against double-teams
Davis praised Wilson’s passing when traps come: “He is a willing and great passer. If you look at the passes out of a double-team, when he passes to a teammate, it’s on target, right in their shooting pocket. It’s not hitting their feet. They’re not jumping up trying to keep it from going in the stands. It’s right there, chest level, ready to shoot, ready to pass, ready to drive. And he’s an elite passer.”
— Rotation, minutes and scripting the first half
He aims not to play anybody 38 minutes in a game or near that total. Davis said he scripts first‑half rotations, a practice he learned from Bill Guthridge, but adjusts to the game flow, using timeouts to steal rest. “I’ve consistently played nine or 10 guys every game,” he said, while acknowledging situational groups (like the Derek Dixon, Trimble, Bogavac, Stevenson, Wilson lineup at Virginia) can earn longer runs.
— Practices this week — mid‑season tweaks
With no midweek game, early practices would be “UNC specific” to sharpen fundamentals. He also planned to “tweak and alter some things on both ends of the floor” before pivoting to the Georgia Tech scout.
— Perspective on a new group
He reminded listeners that this is a rebuilt roster with 11 newcomers who didn’t fully come together until mid-August, and that absences for Bogavac (who missed the team beach trip) and Trimble (who missed several games) slowed cohesion. “It’s a new group learning to play with each other,” he said, while expressing pride in their “fight” and growth arc.
—Passion from parents
Davis shared a moment from the Virginia win with a reaction from Jarin Stevenson’s mother, Nicole (who played basketball at UNC). “I saw his mom and Caleb’s dad, after [Stevenson made] that three to put us up by seven, they gave each other a high five.”
| Team | League | Overall | NET* | WAB* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 1 Duke | 17–1 | 29–2 | 1 | 2 |
| No. 10 Virginia | 15–3 | 27–4 | 13 | 11 |
| Miami | 13–5 | 24–7 | 32 | 28 |
| No. 19 North Carolina | 12–6 | 24–7 | 23 | 19 |
| Clemson | 12–6 | 22–9 | 36 | 33 |
| No. 24 Louisville | 11–7 | 22–9 | 14 | 25 |
| N.C. State | 10–8 | 19–12 | 35 | 45 |
| Florida State | 10–8 | 17–14 | 69 | 74 |
| California | 9–9 | 21–10 | 65 | 49 |
| Stanford | 9–9 | 20–11 | 59 | 51 |
| SMU | 8–10 | 19–12 | 39 | 50 |
| Virginia Tech | 8–10 | 19–12 | 53 | 52 |
| Wake Forest | 7–11 | 16–15 | 64 | 81 |
| Syracuse | 6–12 | 15–16 | 83 | 92 |
| Pittsburgh | 5–13 | 12–19 | 109 | 146 |
| Notre Dame | 4–14 | 13–18 | 93 | 121 |
| Boston College | 4–14 | 11–20 | 159 | 217 |
| Georgia Tech | 2–16 | 11–20 | 167 | 210 |
* — Through Sunday games
Saturday’s results
No. 1 Duke 76, No. 19 North Carolina 61
Boston College 77, Notre Dame 69
Clemson 79, Georgia Tech 76
No. 24 Louisville 92, Miami 89
Florida State 92, SMU 78
Stanford 85, N.C. State 84
Wake Forest 80, California 73
Pittsburgh 71, Syracuse 69, OT
END OF REGULAR SEASON
ACC tournament
Spectrum Center | Charlotte
Tuesday through Saturday
| Date | Month/day | Scores | Opponent/event (current ranks) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. BYU in SLC | Exhib. |
| 29 | Wednesday | W, 95–53 | vs. Winston-Salem St. | Exhib. |
| November | ||||
| 3 | Monday | W, 94–54 | vs. Central Arkansas | 1–0 |
| 7 | Friday | W, 87–74 | vs. No. 17 Kansas | 2–0 |
| 11 | Tuesday | W, 89–74 | vs. Radford | 3–0 |
| 14 | Friday | W, 97–53 | vs. N.C. Central | 4–0 |
| 18 | Tuesday | W, 73–61 | vs. Navy | 5–0 |
| Fort Myers Tip-Off | ||||
| 25 | Tuesday | W, 85–70 | vs. St. Bonaventure | 6–0 |
| 27 | Thursday | L, 74–58 | vs. No. 11 Michigan State | 6–1 |
| December | ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge | |||
| 2 | Tuesday | W, 67–64 | at Kentucky | 7–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 81–61 | vs. Georgetown | 8–1 |
| 13 | Saturday | W, 80–62 | vs. USC Upstate | 9–1 |
| 16 | Tuesday | W, 77–58 | vs. ETSU | 10–1 |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | W, 71–70 | vs. Ohio State | 11–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | W, 99–51 | vs. East Carolina | 12–1 |
| 30 | Tuesday | W, 79–66 | vs. Florida State | 13–1, 1–0 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | L, 97–83 | at SMU | 13–2, 1–1 |
| 10 | Saturday | W, 87–84 | vs. Wake Forest | 14–2, 2–1 |
| 14 | Wednesday | L, 95–90 | at Stanford | 14–3, 2–2 |
| 17 | Saturday | L, 84–78 | at California | 14–4, 2–3 |
| 21 | Wednesday | W, 91–69 | vs. Notre Dame | 15–4, 3–3 |
| 24 | Saturday | W, 85–80 | at No. 9 Virginia | 16–4, 4–3 |
| 31 | Saturday | W, 91–75 | at Georgia Tech | 17–4, 5–3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | W, 87–77 | vs. Syracuse | 18–4, 6–3 |
| 7 | Saturday | W, 71–68 | vs. No. 1 Duke | 19–4, 7–3 |
| 10 | Tuesday | L, 75–66 | at No. 25 Miami | 19–5, 7–4 |
| 14 | Saturday | W, 79–65 | vs. Pittsburgh | 20–5, 8–4 |
| 17 | Tuesday | L, 82–58 | at N.C. State | 20–6, 8–5 |
| 21 | Saturday | W, 77–64 | at Syracuse | 21–6, 9–5 |
| 23 | Monday | W, 77–74 | vs. Louisville | 22–6, 10–5 |
| 28 | Saturday | W, 89–82 | vs. Virginia Tech | 23–6, 11–5 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | W, 67–63 | vs. Clemson | 24–6, 12–5 |
| 7 | Saturday | L, 76–61 | at No. 1 Duke | 24–7, 12–6 |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte | |
| 12 | Thursday | L, 80–79 | Quarterfinals: vs. Clemson | 24–8 |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| 19 | Thursday | L, 82–78, OT | First round: vs. VCU in Greenville, S.C. | 24–9 |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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