Heels erase 23 years of frustration against Kansas in second half

By R.L. Bynum

CHAPEL HILL — Twenty-three. That number hung over North Carolina like a storm cloud.

That’s how many years it had been since the Tar Heels had beaten Kansas. Five straight losses — four in the NCAA tournament and two in the Final Four, with one of those in the 2022 national championship game — had left scars on the program.

None of the players had been born at the time of the last win on Nov. 27, 2002, but they felt the weight of history and were intent on changing it.

“Absolutely,” Seth Trimble said. “I told the guys in the locker room, Coach told them, we told them, we represent this university tonight, we protect our floor, and we’re not losing. You know the history with Kansas and UNC obviously runs so deep. We haven’t beaten Kansas in 23 years. I made sure that we knew that we protect our home court.”

That urgency fueled a second-half explosion as No. 25 UNC stormed past No. 19 Kansas for an 87–74 victory Friday night at the Smith Center, snapping the streak emphatically.

Motivation is never a problem for freshman sensation Caleb Wilson. But if you throw a little extra in there, nobody will be able to stop him. Kansas didn’t, as Wilson poured in 24 points.

“I approached the game like I approach every other game, which is to go out there and try my hardest,” Wilson said. “But it was personal for me. We hadn’t beaten them in 23 years. I wasn’t even born. They beat us in the national championship [game]. I want to impress my coach. I want to impress the world. I want the world to know who I am.”

The world is getting a clear message of who he is. And the Tar Heels sent a clear message that Kansas wasn’t going to have its way with them this time.

While the players only knew what they read or were told about the Tar Heels’ recent history against Kansas, the heartbreak was still there for Coach Hubert Davis. He scored 25 points in the 1991 Final Four, only to endure a 79–73 semifinal loss.

“We lost to Kansas in the 1991 Final Four my junior year,” Davis said. “My first year as an assistant, I lost to Kansas in the second round of the NCAA tournament. Obviously, we lost to them in the national championship game four [seasons] ago, and lost to them last year. So, it’s nice to, against a storied program, unbelievable coached team, to be able to come out on the other side.”

And with UNC pulling out the victory, Davis earned a signature win during the first week of a season that has come with plenty of outside pressure for the program to return to the standard that has made it a top program over the years.

Friday night’s win, and exorcising the Kansas demons, was a good start.