Less than 24 hours after blowing a double digit lead against Texas on the way to its first loss of the season, the seventh-ranked UNC men’s basketball team turned the tables on Friday in the Las Vegas Invitational Consolation Game–overcoming an early 11-point deficit to defeat the No. 17 UCLA Bruins by a score of 94-78.

Freshman point guard Coby White was outstanding once again, as he led the Tar Heels with a team-high 18 points and eight assists following a career-high 33-point effort on Thursday.

UNC (6-1) also received 16 points from senior forward Luke Maye and a 15-point, six-assist game from guard Kenny Williams.

Perhaps the most influential player in the second half, though–when a 16-2 run helped the Tar Heels build a comfortable lead–was freshman Nassir Little.

The hyper-athletic wing had 10 of his 14 points after halftime. None was more important than a posterizing slam dunk with 12 minutes remaining that helped kick-start the game-changing run.

“You let my boy get up and down the court and dunk,” Tar Heel head coach Roy Williams said afterwards about his prized recruit. “And he can dunk it as well as anybody.”

Little scored seven of UNC’s 16 points during the run, which seemed to energize the entire roster.

Over the final eight minutes of the game, UCLA (4-1) was unable to trim UNC’s lead below seven points as the Tar Heels picked up their first victory over a ranked opponent so far this season.

“I think it was a big game for us,” Williams said. “Because we’ve got three teams that could be [ranked in the top five or six [in the country] over the next three weeks. We’ve got Michigan, Gonzaga and Kentucky coming up in our next five games.”

Up Next:

UNC is back in action on Wednesday Nov. 28 against another ranked opponent as it travels to face No. 9 Michigan. The game is part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

Game Notes:

  • Cameron Johnson was the fifth Tar Heel player in double figures, finishing with 14 points and seven rebounds.
  • UNC turned the ball over just six times, which represents a season-low.
  • Coby White converted on 11 of his 17 attempts from three-point range in Las Vegas, going 4-for-7 against UCLA and 7-for-10 against Texas.

 

FINAL BOX SCORE

 

Photo via Todd Melet

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