Despite trailing by 18 points at halftime and by 21 points early in the second half, Carolina rallied past Dayton to win 92-90 in the opening round of the Maui Invitational on Monday night. It’s the second-largest comeback in UNC history.

R.J. Davis led the way with 30 points, including a three-pointer with 1:52 to go which gave UNC an 85-84 lead, its first of the second half. Seth Trimble added 27 on 10-14 shooting from the floor and 10-11 shooting from the free throw line. Overall, Carolina finished 27-34 from the foul line, compared to 12-15 for Dayton.

The Flyers had their way with the Tar Heels early, using a 31-13 run to turn a 20-20 tie into a 51-33 lead in the final nine minutes of the first half. The Flyers shot 51 percent from the floor and made seven threes in the half, while also taking advantage of several UNC miscues: UNC turned it over 12 times in the first half alone, more than it had in the entire previous game against Hawai’i.

The 18-point halftime deficit was UNC’s largest since the 2022-23 season. It grew to 21 points at 56-35 early in the second half, but buckets from Elliot Cadeau, Davis and Trimble steadily chipped away at the seemingly insurmountable lead. The Flyer advantage dipped under 10 points midway through the half on a three from Davis, and the game stayed tight the rest of the way.

Dayton held a 78-71 lead with 5:25 to go when UNC made its most consequential move. Jalen Washington converted a key and-1 opportunity, part of a crucial second-half performance which saw him score all nine of his points. Free throws from Davis and Trimble got UNC to within 84-82 before Davis’ three put Carolina in front.

Dayton’s Malachi Smith answered with a three of his own, but freshman Drake Powell knocked in the biggest bucket of his young career to give Carolina the lead once again at 88-87. After Davis made two more free throws, the Flyers’ Nate Santos appeared to tie the game with a three with six seconds remaining, but replay review showed his toe touching the line, meaning the basket was a two-pointer. Two more Davis free throws gave UNC its three-point lead back at 92-89, and the Flyers couldn’t piece together a miracle in the final seconds.

UNC shot 19-32 (59.4 percent) from the floor in the second half after posting a 9-22 clip in the first. The Tar Heels also turned the ball over just three times in the half following their sloppy showing in the opening 20 minutes. Trimble led all players with 10 rebounds to register a double-double.

Aside from Davis and Trimble, Elliot Cadeau was the only other Tar Heel to finish in double figures. He scored 10 points despite being saddled with four fouls early in the second half. Powell and Ian Jackson combined for 11 points off the bench.

Carolina is now 4-1 on the season and will be back in action when it faces No. 4 Auburn in the tournament semifinals on Tuesday night at 11 p.m.

 

Featured image via UNC Athletic Communications/Maggie Hobson

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