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Two losses to unranked teams in three games, even with a victory over a top-10 team in between, isn’t the recipe for improving your NCAA tournament resume. Luckily for No. 3 North Carolina (18–5, 10–2 ACC), the Tar Heels have banked enough big wins that they only fell one spot in the NET to 10th after their 80–76 Tuesday night home loss to a Clemson team (15–7, 5–6) that had dropped three of its previous five games.
Coby White may not have earned a spot in the NBA All-Star Game, but he continues to produce all-star quality performances. White scored 33 points with seven assists and five rebounds Tuesday as he led host Chicago Bulls in a rally from a 23-point deficit to earn a 129–123 overtime win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
CHAPEL HILL — It took a half for No. 3 Carolina to shake off a Duke hangover.
It started with bad practices since that big win and continued until the Tar Heels finally found their stride. But the best they could do was tie it when Harrison Ingram shook off cramps with a game-tying 3-pointer with 4:17 left.
North Carolina held its spot at No. 3 in the latest AP Top 25 men’s basketball poll after rebounding from its first ACC loss with an impressive 93–84 Saturday win over Duke.
Caleb Love, Destiny Adams and Dawson Garcia all had big games last week, while Penn State won back-to-back games for the first time since December with D’Marco Dunn in the starting lineup.
CHAPEL HILL — A hard-fought game isn’t always rewarded in the gauntlet that is ACC women’s basketball. That was the case for No. 24 North Carolina, which battled No. 17 Virginia Tech into overtime. But the Hokies took control in the extra period on their way to a 70–61 victory Sunday before 5,618 fans at Carmichael Arena for the Tar Heels’ third consecutive loss.
CHAPEL HILL — Harrison Ingram has only been on campus for a few months, but he’s already a fan favorite and “living the dream” with his relentless hustle and dogged determination on the court.
No. 3 North Carolina’s 93–84 victory Saturday over No. 7 Duke earned the Tar Heels their fifth Quad 1 victory but not a better standing in the NET rank
CHAPEL HILL — Armando Bacot rediscovered his offensive game, which was bad news for Duke, with Harrison Ingram putting on another dazzling display. After combining for 19 points in the previous three games, Bacot’s vintage aggressiveness returned with 25 points and Ingram scored a season-high 21 points to lead No. 3 North Carolina to a huge 93–84 win Saturday night over No. 7 Duke at the Smith Center.
CHAPEL HILL — GameDay coming to the Triangle for a Carolina-Duke battle is as predictable as sky-high ticket prices for the greatest rivalry in sports. Aside from when ESPN didn’t go to campuses during the pandemic, it has taken the show to Chapel Hill and Durham for every matchup since 2011. Even though it’s become routine, fans filled most of 12 lower-level sections in the Smith Center on Saturday morning for the latest visit, with many there an hour before the show began.
Harrison Barnes continued to heat up on Sacramento’s long road trip, and Leaky Black produced the best game of his rookie season on Friday night.
CHAPEL HILL — Of the many ways the growing number of passionate Carolina women’s basketball fans show their support, none is more inventive than a group sitting behind the south baseline at Carmichael Arena.
On the first day of Black History Month, a racial slur was directed at a Carolina women’s basketball player before the Tar Heels’ 63–59 loss Thursday at N.C. State, according to a source.
RALEIGH — Deja Kelly tried to will her way to a first victory at Reynolds Coliseum, took a hard fall and just kept fighting, but No. 24 North Carolina missed multiple golden chances in the final minutes.
CHAPEL HILL — After No. 3 North Carolina arrived at the Smith Center about midnight after the first conference loss of the season, the Tar Heels still couldn’t believe they had lost at Georgia Tech. Rather than head back to their apartments, the players had a players-only meeting in the locker room that lasted about 90 minutes, ending a little before 2 a.m.
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