Another heartbreaker. UNC loses to Virginia on a game-winning 3-pointer.
North Carolina lost at the final buzzer, again.
One week after losing to Duke on a buzzer-beating shot, UNC lost in similar fashion Saturday as Virginia junior guard Tomas Woldetensae hit a game-winning 3-pointer with 0.8 seconds left to give the Cavaliers a 64-62 win at the Dean Smith Center.
Woldetensae finished with a team-high 18 points. All six of his field goals were 3-pointers.
UNC (10-15, 3-11 ACC) lost five games this season after an opponent hit a game-tying or game-winning shot.
“There’s no secret formula you can say to the kids right now,” UNC coach Roy Williams said after the game. “It’s been a devastating year.”
Against Virginia, no baskets are easy and turnovers come often.
UVA’s suffocating defense under coach Tony Bennett, in his 11th year with the program, has made some of UNC’s best offensive teams look average in recent years.
But on Saturday, the Tar Heels played well, despite a number of first-half turnovers. They shot 50 percent from the floor and almost beat Virginia, if not for Woldetensae’s 3-pointer.
Before that 3, UNC trailed by 2 points with 10 seconds left in the game. UNC graduate guard Christian Keeling was fouled on a 3-point shot, and knocked down three straight free throws to give the Tar Heels a one-point lead.
“The toughness of that kid,” Williams said of Keeling. “He hasn’t had it very easily, to be honest with you, this year.”
UNC junior forward Garrison Brooks, who has a scratched cornea in his right eye, had a team-high 20 points. Freshman guard Cole Anthony, who left the game briefly after taking an elbow above his right eye, added 17 points.
The Cavaliers have won six consecutive games against the Tar Heels, dating back to the 2016-17 season.
The Tar Heels led 16-15 after 14 minutes. But Virginia went on a 10-4 run, and grabbed a five-point lead over the next three minutes. UNC managed to battle back and tie the game before halftime 28-28.
The score was tied 39-39 with 12 minutes remaining when Anthony took an elbow to the forehead. He was bleeding and he stayed on the ground for some time before jogging straight to the locker room.
The injury looked worse than it turned out to be. He returned four minutes later. When he came back, the Tar Heels trailed by only six points. After the game, he wore a bandage wrapped around his head. He said there was a cut from his eye brow to the top of his forehead. He said he didn’t get stitches.
When asked did he fear he had a concussion, Anthony said, “I wasn’t worried about no concussion. If I had a concussion or not, I was getting back in that game.”
The Tar Heels battled back and took the brief lead. But Virginia pushed the ball up the floor, got it to Woldetensae, who pump faked UNC sophomore guard Leaky Black, who jumped,, and knocked down the 3-pointer.
With the loss to Virginia, the Tar Heels’ losing streak extends to five. The Tar Heels will finish under .500 in the ACC for the first time since the 2010 season when they finished 5-11.
It was UNC’s first game since its 74-57 loss at Wake Forest on Feb. 11.
“I told them I thought we didn’t react very well to a bitter defeat against Duke, and we went to Wake Forest,” Williams said. “Gotta react better now. It’s a quick turnaround.”
The Tar Heels travel to Notre Dame on Monday.
“Gotta keep coming back and keep playing,” Williams said.
Personal foul
The Tar Heels turned the ball over 15 times, including 10 times in the first half. Some turnovers were because of Virginia’s defense. Others, though, were because UNC just made bad passes. .
And one
Despite the Tar Heels’ first-half turnovers, they shot it well from the floor. They ended up shooting 50 percent.
ICYMI
UNC senior guard Brandon Robinson missed his fourth consecutive game due to an ankle sprain he suffered on Feb. 1 against Boston College.
While he did not play on Saturday, he warmed up with the team and dressed out.
Robinson has missed nine games this season with a variety of injuries. He sprained the same ankle in the preseason and missed the first four games. He was also involved in a car accident in January and missed one game with neck pain.
Robinson is averaging 14.8 points per game in ACC play, third-most on the team, and is shooting a team-high 36.5 percent from 3.
There is a good chance he could return on Monday when UNC travels to Notre Dame.
Making sense of the numbers
56.5: The Tar Heels’ first-half field goal percentage. It was the third-highest field goal percentage allowed in any half by Virginia this season.
0: The number of free throws UNC missed in the final 71 seconds of the game. The Tar Heels missed five in its loss to Duke.
54.5: The 3-point percentage for Virginia in the second half. Virginia made 6 of 11 3-pointers after halftime, including Woldetensae’s final dagger.
This story was originally published February 15, 2020 at 10:04 PM.
