CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WNCN/AP) — North Carolina men’s basketball mounted a huge second-half comeback Tuesday night in Charlotte, but in the end, the Tar Heels came up short.
UNC (6-5, 1-0) could not hand No. 7 Florida (11-0) their first defeat of the season, losing to the Gators 90-84. The matchup was the first game of the 2024 Jumpman Invitational in Charlotte Tuesday night.
RJ Davis scored 29 points and pulled down 8 rebounds to lead the Tar Heels. Fellow guards Elliot Cadeau, Seth Trimble and Ian Jackson chipped in 11 points apiece.
Florida was strong down the stretch and Will Richard’s putback off an offensive rebound with 54 seconds left put the Gators ahead for good.
The game was the Tar Heels’ fourth against a top-10 team in their 11 games so far this season. They next face No. 18 UCLA Saturday afternoon at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Takeaways
Florida: The Gators were 11 of 32 from 3-point range and never panicked even as the Tar Heels rallied.
North Carolina: A lack of height continues to be an issue for the Tar Heels, but they made up for it in the second half with aggressive defense.
Key moment
Down by two, Davis missed an open 3. Florida got its own rebound on the next possession and Thomas Haugh made two free throws with 7.9 seconds left to put the game away.
Key stats
The Gators outrebounded the smaller Tar Heels 46-36.
Up next
Both teams are in action on Saturday as Florida hosts North Florida and UNC hosts No. 21 UCLA.