In a heavyweight battle between two of college basketball’s most storied programs, the No. 1 ranked Kansas Jayhawks held off a valiant second half surge by the No. 9 North Carolina Tar Heels to earn a thrilling 92-89 victory Friday night at Allen Fieldhouse. The Jayhawks saw a 20-point first half lead evaporate but made just enough plays down the stretch to avoid what would have been the program’s largest blown lead ever.
Kansas came out firing, using a barrage of three-pointers and transition baskets to race out to a 49-29 advantage late in the first half. All-American candidate Hunter Dickinson imposed his will early, tallying 12 points and 6 rebounds before the break. The Jayhawks’ length and athleticism smothered the Tar Heels, holding them to just 36% shooting in the opening period.
Tar Heels Storm Back Behind Withers and Trimble
But North Carolina came out of the locker room with renewed energy, gradually chipping away at the deficit behind the stellar play of Seth Trimble and Jae’Lyn Withers. Trimble, a sophomore, poured in 15 of his team-high 19 points in the second half, repeatedly getting to the rim and drawing contact. Withers drilled a clutch three to give UNC an improbable 80-79 lead with just over 7 minutes to play.
The teams then traded haymakers down the stretch in a back-and-forth affair. Kansas regained the lead on a pretty hook shot by Dickinson. After UNC tied it back up, Jayhawk freshman phenom Zeke Mayo (21 points) answered with a cold-blooded three to put his team back up 3 with under 2 minutes left.
Dickinson Delivers, Cadeau Misses at Buzzer
Trailing 92-89, the Tar Heels had one final chance to force overtime. After a timeout, UNC inbounded to star freshman point guard Elliot Cadeau who raced up the floor and launched a contested 25-footer that caromed off the back rim as the buzzer sounded, sealing the win for Kansas and sending the raucous crowd into a frenzy.
“What an unbelievable college basketball game, just high-level athletes making big-time plays,” said Kansas coach Bill Self. “We didn’t handle prosperity well and let them get back in it, but we made enough winning plays when it mattered. This will be great for us going forward.”
For the game, Dickinson led the Jayhawks with 20 points and 10 rebounds. KJ Adams Jr. added 14 points and some big plays defensively. North Carolina hung in the game by getting to the free throw line, finishing 28-31 from the charity stripe compared to just 9-13 for Kansas.
Rare Regular Season Matchup
This was just the 13th ever meeting between these two blue bloods, and the first since Kansas rallied from 16 down to stun UNC in the 2022 national championship game. Interestingly, the only other time they faced off on either team’s home floor was way back in 1960, when future Jayhawk coach Larry Brown led the Tar Heels to a win at Allen Fieldhouse.
Both squads entered this titanic early season tilt with national title aspirations. Kansas, the defending champion and preseason No. 1, improved to 2-0 on the young season and once again looks the part of a favorite to cut down the nets. North Carolina fell to 1-1 but showed tremendous fight and the kind of firepower that makes them a team no one will want to face come March.
“We’ve got a lot to learn, but we’re going to be really good,” UNC coach Hubert Davis said postgame. “There’s no moral victories, but we went toe-to-toe with the best team in the country in a hostile environment. We’ll grow from this.”
The Jayhawks will look to keep rolling as they host North Dakota State on Tuesday. UNC has a quick turnaround as they welcome Gardner-Webb to Chapel Hill on Sunday.
