The UNC basketball team is ready for prime time.

Mid-day, though, maybe not so much.

The Tar Heels struggled from the floor all game, especially in the second half, and the Butler Bulldogs pulled away for an upset 74-66 victory in the first game of the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas.

“Very disappointing,” said head coach Roy Williams after the game. “They outhustled us…they outplayed us (and) they outcoached us.”

Wednesday’s game was a big step down for the sixth-ranked Tar Heels, who’d cruised to easy wins in their first three games. Butler posed a significantly greater challenge than NC Central, Robert Morris and Davidson, but UNC was still heavily favored to win.

“I didn’t see it coming,” Williams said. “Truth of the matter is, I thought that we would rise to the challenge.”

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Coach Williams directs his players during the game. Photo by Nick Vitali.

Carolina led 35-32 at halftime thanks to strong defense, but the shots simply would not fall in the second. The Heels shot only 33 percent in the second half after shooting 43 percent in the first. Even the free throws wouldn’t drop – UNC missed a dozen free throws in the second half alone.

Then halfway through the second half, Butler made a pair of three-pointers to convert a small advantage into a 14-point lead – and the Bulldogs never trailed after that.

But UNC didn’t go down lightly. The Tar Heels cut that lead in half late in the game, keyed by a trio of quick Butler turnovers and a big 3-pointer by Marcus Paige. Then Nate Britt added a big three-pointer with 1:20 to play to cut the lead to five; Paige added another with 50 seconds left to cut it to four; and Paige made it a one-possession game a few seconds later with a bucket and a free throw. But it was too little, too late. Paige did turn it on late and ended the game with 18 points, but that was on 5-17 overall shooting.

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Brice Johnson gets up after a tough play. Photo by Nick Vitali.

In the end, the Tar Heels shot only 38 percent from the floor. Butler shot even worse – 31 percent – but were aided by a 57-40 rebounding advantage, including 29 offensive boards, tying the most ever for a UNC opponent in the Roy Williams era (Texas in 2009).

“We got 26 defensive rebounds (and) they got 29 offensive rebounds,” said Williams. “The biggest thing is you got to want to go get the basketball.”

“As a big man, I feel like we could have done better,” added Isaiah Hicks, who finished the game with a career-high 10 points. “We had opportunities to get a rebound – and we just let them push us.”

Brice Johnson added 11 points for the Heels, who fall to 3-1 on the season. Kennedy Meeks finished with 7 points, 10 rebounds, and a career-high 5 blocks. Point guard Alex Barlow led Butler with 17 before fouling out late.

It’s a disappointing loss – and it’s also deja vu for the Tar Heels, who also lost to Butler in the Maui Invitational back in 2012, the last time these two teams met.

But Williams – remembering his days coaching at Kansas – says it’s important to keep things in perspective.

“In (2001), we lost our first game in Maui to Ball State, and that team played in the Final Four,” he said. “It’s a bad day today, and I’m going to be ticked off all night tonight – but we’re going to get better.”

The Tar Heels next play UCLA, Thursday at 7:00.