By R.L. Bynum
CHAPEL HILL — There wasn’t much joy for Carolina’s players after a tougher-than-expected victory over Navy.
The Caleb Wilson Show was electrifying, as always, but Navy’s late 17–3 run had the team looking within after the 71–63 victory Tuesday at the Smith Center.
This was no bench-emptying biscuit-seeking blowout as Navy (2–3) pulled within nine in the final two minutes, mostly against Carolina’s starters.
Seth Trimble, among other leaders, initiated a players-only meeting after a brief talk from Coach Hubert Davis after the game.
“It’s unacceptable, the way we play; it’s just simply unacceptable,” said redshirt junior center Henri Veesaar, who had 10 points and seven rebounds. “They were very disciplined, played physical. Some of us probably thought the game was over. We just said we’ve got to have better effort and energy.”
Against a team that was shorter and less talented, UNC only outrebounded Navy 45–38 and had just a 28–26 advantage on inside points.
“We expected to be a lot more inside than we were,” Veesaar said. “But I think we still did a decent job of feeding the post. I didn’t convert. We missed a whole bunch of layups that we need to be better at.”
Wilson put up his third consecutive double-double (23 points, 12 rebounds) while swiping four steals for the second time this season. He threw down seven dunks to extend his nation-leading total to 23.
But after the game, he wasn’t the upbeat guy he usually is and gave a “no comment” when asked what led to the players’ meeting.
“Just got to communicate better on defense and make sure we’re physical against teams that are going to play hard,” said Wilson, who added that he didn’t underestimate Navy. “We just didn’t impose our will. We’re going to be one of the bigger teams in every game… It’s just [about] imposing our will.”
Players generally talk to the media about 15 minutes after the game, but it took about 35 minutes after Tuesday’s game. Clearly, there was a lot to discuss
Wilson is confident that the team can figure this out.
“I think it’s always an easy fix,” Wilson said. “We’re a talented team. We’ve just got to get it together. I was just frustrated with my performance in the first half, and I was frustrated that the game was close. [We’re] supposed to be a top team in the country; there’s no way that game should be close.”
Davis was OK with his players meeting after he talked to them.
“That’s great that they’re communicating and talking amongst themselves,” said Davis, who didn’t sugarcoat the end of the game. “So disappointed in how we finished the game. I felt like just the sustained energy in the first half wasn’t there, but I thought we picked it up in the second half.”
Wilson had three slams — including a tomahawk on a Euro step, driving past two defenders — and 14 points during a 21–5 early second‑half run that built a comfortable margin.
The freshman said his mindset flipped at halftime, and that he decided that he was “going to be aggressive — just take over the game.”
The dunks shot up the energy for the crowd and the players on the court.
“His game ignites us,” Davis said. “The plays he made just instinctively.’”
Even without Trimble on the court, Carolina’s starters have proved to be a talented group that has built terrific early-season chemistry. But it wasn’t always the best against Navy.
“Throughout the whole game, we weren’t playing to our potential, and we’ve got to be better,” said Jarin Stevenson, who had 11 points and eight rebounds. “A lot of mistakes let them back into the game. Even in the first half, we were up 10, and they’re creeping back in and keeping it close.”
Stevenson said the lapses during the game led to the meeting.
“We’re going to clean up a lot of mistakes,” he said. “Defensive assignments, like messing up communicating, I feel like, are a big thing.”
Some of the Tar Heels’ reserves have shown flashes early in the season, but the production wasn’t there in Tuesday’s game, with Derek Dixon scoring eight of Carolina’s season-low 10 bench points.
Davis knows that has to change, saying that, “It doesn’t work without our bench.”
Luka Bogavac poured in 16 points and three of UNC’s eight 3-pointers.
UNC scored the first seven points on a Veesaar 3‑pointer and two Wilson dunks.
The lead reached 10 on a Dixon 3‑pointer at 13:33 of the first quarter. But with some starters, including Wilson, resting, Navy went on an 8–1 run to cut the lead to three as Carolina went scoreless for 2½ minutes against a zone defense.
UNC pushed its lead to 12 on a pair of Bogavac free throws at the 5:45 mark of the first half, but Austin Benigni’s 3‑pointer with two seconds left cut the Tar Heels’ halftime lead to 38–31.
Navy began the second half with a 4–1 run. A UNC field‑goal drought that started at the end of the first half stretched nearly 4½ minutes before a 21–5 Carolina run. The Midshipmen went scoreless for almost eight minutes as the UNC lead ballooned to 24.
With most of the starters still in the game for UNC, Navy scored 15 consecutive points, eight from Benigni, the preseason Patriot League Player of the Year, slicing the lead to nine on his 3-pointer with 2:15 left. Benigni led Navy with 19 points, five assists and five rebounds.
Against tougher competition at the Fort Myers Tip-Off next week, Davis said there will be a lot that will have to change.
“The communication out there on the floor has to get better, the listening and being able to apply the communication has to be better,” Davis said. “I’m excited that we get to practice on us. I felt like over the last two to three weeks, we’ve been practicing, but we’ve been preparing.”
Notes
— The Tar Heels next head to Florida for Fort Myers Tip-Off, facing St. Bonaventure at 6 p.m. Tuesday (FS1) and No. 17 Michigan State at 4:30 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day (Fox). The Bonnies (4–0) host Robert Morris at 6 p.m. Thursday (ESPN+). The Spartans (4–0) beat No. 12 Kentucky, a future UNC opponent, 83–66 on Tuesday night in the Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden.
— UNC’s second consecutive win over Navy cut its deficit in the series to 14–7, with the Tar Heels 2–0 against the Midshipmen in Chapel Hill.
— Wilson is on the 50-player preseason watchlist for the Wooden Award, which goes to the player of the year.
— With the win, UNC became the third program with 2,400 victories, joining Kentucky (2,425) and Kansas (2,417).
— This is the second time under Davis that UNC is 5–0, also doing it in the 2022-23 season, marking the 43rd time the program has done it.
— It was UNC’s 20th consective victory when holding the opponent under 40.0% shooting (Navy shot 30.4%).
— Wilson is the first UNC freshman with three consecutive double-doubles since Armando Bacot in 2019–20 (vs. Miami, at N.C. State and Boston College).
— With 103 points, Wilson is the first Carolina freshman to score 100 or more points in his first five games since Cole Anthony scored 104 points in 2019–20.
— UNC committed a season-high 13 turnovers and scored a season-low 73 points.
No. 18 UNC 73, Navy 61
| Date | Month/day | Time | Opponent/event (current ranks) | TV/ record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. No. 10 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. 9 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 | 2:15 | at SMU | The CW |
| 10 | Saturday | 6 p.m. | vs. Wake Forest | ACCN |
| 14 | Wednesday | 9 p.m. | at Stanford | ACCN |
| 17 | Saturday | 4 p.m. | at California | ACCN |
| 21 | Wednesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Notre Dame | ESPN2 |
| 24 | Saturday | 2 or 2:30 | at No. 21 Virginia | ESPN or ESPNU |
| 31 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | at Georgia Tech | ACCN |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. Syracuse | ESPN |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | vs. No. 6 Duke | ESPN |
| 10 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at Miami | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 14 | Saturday | 2 p.m. | vs. Pittsburgh | ESPN |
| 17 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | at N.C. State | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 21 | Saturday | 1 p.m. | at Syracuse | ABC |
| 23 | Monday | 7 p.m. | vs. No. 16 Louisville | ESPN |
| 28 | Saturday | 6:30 or 8:30 | vs. Virginia Tech | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | 7 p.m. | vs. Clemson | ESPN or ESPN2 |
| 7 | Saturday | 6:30 | at No. 6 Duke | ESPN |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo courtesy of UNC Athletics
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