Henri Veesaar’s 26 points lead UNC past ETSU. What we learned about the Heels

It took the Tar Heels a little while to get there, but North Carolina looked like a team that took last week’s lessons to heart — particularly Henri Veesaar.

Behind a new career-best 26 points from the Arizona transfer, No. 12 UNC rolled past East Tennessee State on Tuesday night at the Dean E. Smith Center, 77-58. The Tar Heels pulled away after a 12-0 run midway through the game put them up by 15. The Buccaneers never cut the deficit to single digits after that point.

“The first 17 minutes of the game we didn’t like,” said point guard Kyan Evans, “and then we ended the game on a high, and that’s what you want. You want a good response.”

Coming off an uneven performance against USC Upstate that left coach Hubert Davis publicly frustrated with his team’s preparation and effort — particularly on the defensive boards — North Carolina (10-1) delivered the kind of response necessary after conceding season-worst offensive rebounding totals in back-to-back games.

UNC’s frontcourt asserted itself once again, with Caleb Wilson and Veesaar combining for 46 points and 16 rebounds.

“One of the things that I think is allowing Caleb and Henri to be really good out there is, yes, they can score, but they’re really good passers,” Davis said. “So when you put two on the ball, they can find an open teammate — whether it’s on the perimeter or a teammate cutting to the basket.”

The Buccaneers (8-4), who entered as one of the Southern Conference’s top teams, struggled to generate rhythm as North Carolina’s depth and pressure gradually wore them down. ETSU won seven straight at home this season and had not faced a Power Four opponent in the regular season entering Tuesday.

With final exams now behind them, the Tar Heels looked freer, faster and far more connected — turning a potential mid-December trap game into a statement performance that reflected a sense of urgency. With Seth Trimble on the mend, there are plenty of reasons for confidence as North Carolina looks ahead to a neutral-site showdown with Ohio State in Atlanta on Saturday.

Davis said on Tuesday night he anticipates being able to deploy more blitzes and traps on ball screens once Trimble returns.

“We tried to do that against [USC] Upstate, and I just didn’t think we were doing it very well,” Davis said, later adding, “I felt like our attention to detail, our energy was up [on Tuesday]. We got in the passing lanes and got some steals, got in transition, and so it really lit a fire in us.”

Here’s what we learned on Tuesday night:

UNC responds, battles on the defensive boards

Davis’ biggest point of dissatisfaction following UNC’s sluggish win over USC Upstate on Saturday was the team’s performance on the boards — particularly the number of offensive rebounds allowed.

On Tuesday night, however, North Carolina limited the Buccaneers to just six offensive boards — five of which came in the first half.

Davis, after the win over ETSU, said he was satisfied with his team’s response in this area.

“One of the things I always talk to them about is whatever it takes,” Davis said. “Whether it’s five seconds, 30 seconds —let’s be committed to getting a defensive stop and finish it with the rebound.”

Veesaar led the way with eight defensive boards. As previously reported by the N&O, defensive rebounding is an area Veesaar honed in on this offseason with assistant coach Sean May.

Last year at Arizona, Veesaar played limited minutes and was tasked with simply boxing out his assigned man and ensuring they didn’t get the rebound.

“I was kind of happy with that and that was my role,” Veesaar said during Davis’ radio show on Monday night. “This year, Big May put a big emphasis on making the contact first and then going to get the rebound.”

Wilson finished Tuesday night with five defensive rebounds. Evans followed with three. The six-foot-two point guard fought relentlessly on the boards, despite being undersized. His ability to turn those defensive rebounds into quick offense helped contribute to his team-high six assists.

Veesaar continues to impress

In addition to his impressive performance on the defensive boards, Veesaar recorded his career-best scoring output.

The Estonian native dropped 26 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the field — including two 3-pointers. Veesaar’s 90.9% shooting performance is the fifth highest single-game field goal percentage in Smith Center history.

Reflecting after the win, Veesaar said he is most proud of his ability to fit in quickly at UNC.

“I feel like the coaches have done an amazing job of trying to help me get adjusted... and I feel like overall [I’m] doing a better job of being effective and finishing through contact,” Veesaar said. “I think that’s something I have to keep on working on.”

Veesaar’s previous career-best (24) came in the team’s 85-70 win against St. Bonaventure over Thanksgiving break. Tuesday night marked the third time this season Veesaar has scored 20 or more points. He also had 20 against Kansas.

“One of the things that’s really good for him is being able to catch around the basket on the move,” Davis said. “And so we have a number of actions that can get him close to the basket on the move. He’s got a wonderful floater. He can finish with either hand, he can shoot from three, and he runs the floor.... obviously he’s in a really good rhythm right now.”

The win over ETSU marks the 10th time in 11 games that either Veesaar or Wilson have led the team in scoring and rebounding.

Balanced scoring attack beats the Buccaneers

North Carolina’s start to the game — which saw the Tar Heels take 11 of their first 17 shots from deep — may have raised some eyebrows. At least, it did for Davis.

“I didn’t feel like we were sharp on the offensive end,” Davis said of UNC’s start on Tuesday. “I think the first 12 shots that we took, seven of them were from three... I love threes, but man, if early in the shot clock we can get a layup or a dunk, deep post catch, get fouled, get to the free throw line — I like that better than a quick three.”

But UNC made 45% of those looks, generating tons of open opportunities by pitching the ball around the perimeter or driving inside and kicking out.

Later in the game, North Carolina got into an offensive rhythm much more in tune with Davis’ preferences. At one point later in the game, UNC scored 12 straight points in the paint — part of 36 total paint points on the night.

The Tar Heels racked up 18 assists and also recorded their second-highest shooting percentage of the season at 54% — just half a percentage point off from their best mark of the year.

This story was originally published December 16, 2025 at 10:18 PM.