University of North Carolina Athletics
Wednesday, January 21
Chapel Hill
7 p.m.
North Carolina
15-4,3-3ACC
91
vs
69
Notre Dame
10-9,1-5ACC
1
2
F
Notre Dame
33
36
69
North Carolina
42
49
91
Caleb Wilson
Photo by: DALTON WAINSCOTT
Big Run Leads Tar Heels By Notre Dame, 91-69
January 21, 2026 | Men's Basketball
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — No. 22 North Carolina used a 44-20 run and got a combined 39 points and 19 rebounds from big men Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar, pulling away from Notre Dame to win, 91-69, on Wednesday night in the Smith Center.
After the Fighting Irish inched within three points at 26-23 with 5:36 left in the first half, the Tar Heels went on their big run to lead, 70-43, before the second media timeout of the second half. Notre Dame never got closer than 22 points the rest of the way.
Wilson scored 14 in the first half and finished with 22 points with seven rebounds for his 13th 20-point game of the season, the most by a UNC freshman since Tyler Hansbrough's 14 in 2005-06. He has nine 20-point efforts in the last 11 games.
Veesaar scored just three points in the first half but finished with his 10th double-double of the season with 15 points and 12 boards. Derek Dixon hit 3 of 5 three-pointers and scored 11 points in his second consecutive start. Dixon is shooting 7 for 13 from behind the arc in his two starts.
The Tar Heels snapped a two-game losing streak with the victory, improving to 15-4 overall this season, 3-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference and 12-0 at home. Notre Dame lost its fifth in a row and fell to 10-9, 1-5 ACC. The Tar Heels have won six in a row and nine of the last 10 meetings in the series.
"It just kind of exposed what we need to do better," Wilson said of the two-game skid last week in California. "And everybody's a competitor, so, losing kind of brings out that edge in everybody. I feel like it was good for us to have it earlier this year than later."
Eleven Tar Heels scored with eight hitting three-pointers, tying the school record set earlier this season against East Carolina and in 2019 against Wake Forest.
Carolina shot 52.9 percent in the second half and 50.8 percent overall. UNC is 9-1 this season and 44-2 under head coach Hubert Davis when making at least 50 percent of its shots from the floor.
Meanwhile, the Tar Heel defense clamped down and held the Fighting Irish to 36.0 percent. Carolina is 11-0 this season and 56-4 under Davis when holding opponents under 40 percent shooting from the floor.
The Tar Heels hit 7 of 17 three-pointers in the first half and led, 42-33, at the break behind Wilson's 14 points and five rebounds. Six different UNC players hit three-pointers in the opening period.
Carolina started the second half with an 8-0 burst to take its biggest lead to that point at 50-33. The run continued until the Tar Heels led by as many as 29 with under 10 minutes to go.
"I think we just really focused on not letting up," Dixon said. "Once we got the lead, [we] just didn't let up. We were just having a lot of fun out there moving the ball. The ball was moving. We were getting great shots, and we all had smiles on our faces and I think that really went a long way."
How It Happened
First Half
• The Tar Heels launched 10 of their first 11 shots from three-point range (going 5 for 10) and led, 18-10, at the second media timeout.
• Ultimately 13 of Carolina's first 15 and 15 of its first 20 shots were from behind the arc. UNC attempted 10 two-point shots in 27 total attempts in the first half.
• Wilson led all players with 14 points on 4 of 6 shooting and a 5-for-8 effort at the free throw line.
• Henri Veesaar's first field goal came with 2:28 left in the half. He had three points and seven rebounds on 1 of 4 shooting in the half.
• The Tar Heel defense limited the Irish to 35.3 percent shooting, and UNC could've led by more than 42-33 at the break had Notre Dame not hit 6 of 12 three-pointers.
Second Half
• Carolina hit 10 of its first 14 second-half shots (71.4 percent) while limiting the Irish to 29.4 percent (5 for 17) during the same span.
• The Tar Heels eventually cooled off but kept playing strong defense, limiting Notre Dame to 36.6 percent shooting in the second half, including 2 of 13 three-pointers (15.4 percent).
• After scoring three first-half points, Veesaar scored 12 in the second.
Notes
• Junior Jaydon Young made his first start as a Tar Heel and tallied three points and three rebounds before getting in foul trouble. He started 10 games in two seasons (all in 2024-25) at Virginia Tech prior to transferring to UNC prior to this season.
• UNC hit 13 three-pointers to eight for Notre Dame. Carolina has won 18 consecutive games when making more three-pointers than its opponents.
• Carolina outrebounded Notre Dame, 44-39, overall, but the Irish had 18 offensive boards to UNC's 10.
• Wilson has scored in double figures in all 19 games this season, the second-longest streak by a Tar Heel freshman to start his career.
Up Next
Carolina returns to the road for back-to-back games at Virginia (Saturday Jan. 24) and Miami (Saturday Jan. 31).
After the Fighting Irish inched within three points at 26-23 with 5:36 left in the first half, the Tar Heels went on their big run to lead, 70-43, before the second media timeout of the second half. Notre Dame never got closer than 22 points the rest of the way.
Wilson scored 14 in the first half and finished with 22 points with seven rebounds for his 13th 20-point game of the season, the most by a UNC freshman since Tyler Hansbrough's 14 in 2005-06. He has nine 20-point efforts in the last 11 games.
Veesaar scored just three points in the first half but finished with his 10th double-double of the season with 15 points and 12 boards. Derek Dixon hit 3 of 5 three-pointers and scored 11 points in his second consecutive start. Dixon is shooting 7 for 13 from behind the arc in his two starts.
The Tar Heels snapped a two-game losing streak with the victory, improving to 15-4 overall this season, 3-3 in the Atlantic Coast Conference and 12-0 at home. Notre Dame lost its fifth in a row and fell to 10-9, 1-5 ACC. The Tar Heels have won six in a row and nine of the last 10 meetings in the series.
"It just kind of exposed what we need to do better," Wilson said of the two-game skid last week in California. "And everybody's a competitor, so, losing kind of brings out that edge in everybody. I feel like it was good for us to have it earlier this year than later."
Eleven Tar Heels scored with eight hitting three-pointers, tying the school record set earlier this season against East Carolina and in 2019 against Wake Forest.
Carolina shot 52.9 percent in the second half and 50.8 percent overall. UNC is 9-1 this season and 44-2 under head coach Hubert Davis when making at least 50 percent of its shots from the floor.
Meanwhile, the Tar Heel defense clamped down and held the Fighting Irish to 36.0 percent. Carolina is 11-0 this season and 56-4 under Davis when holding opponents under 40 percent shooting from the floor.
The Tar Heels hit 7 of 17 three-pointers in the first half and led, 42-33, at the break behind Wilson's 14 points and five rebounds. Six different UNC players hit three-pointers in the opening period.
Carolina started the second half with an 8-0 burst to take its biggest lead to that point at 50-33. The run continued until the Tar Heels led by as many as 29 with under 10 minutes to go.
"I think we just really focused on not letting up," Dixon said. "Once we got the lead, [we] just didn't let up. We were just having a lot of fun out there moving the ball. The ball was moving. We were getting great shots, and we all had smiles on our faces and I think that really went a long way."
How It Happened
First Half
• The Tar Heels launched 10 of their first 11 shots from three-point range (going 5 for 10) and led, 18-10, at the second media timeout.
• Ultimately 13 of Carolina's first 15 and 15 of its first 20 shots were from behind the arc. UNC attempted 10 two-point shots in 27 total attempts in the first half.
• Wilson led all players with 14 points on 4 of 6 shooting and a 5-for-8 effort at the free throw line.
• Henri Veesaar's first field goal came with 2:28 left in the half. He had three points and seven rebounds on 1 of 4 shooting in the half.
• The Tar Heel defense limited the Irish to 35.3 percent shooting, and UNC could've led by more than 42-33 at the break had Notre Dame not hit 6 of 12 three-pointers.
Second Half
• Carolina hit 10 of its first 14 second-half shots (71.4 percent) while limiting the Irish to 29.4 percent (5 for 17) during the same span.
• The Tar Heels eventually cooled off but kept playing strong defense, limiting Notre Dame to 36.6 percent shooting in the second half, including 2 of 13 three-pointers (15.4 percent).
• After scoring three first-half points, Veesaar scored 12 in the second.
Notes
• Junior Jaydon Young made his first start as a Tar Heel and tallied three points and three rebounds before getting in foul trouble. He started 10 games in two seasons (all in 2024-25) at Virginia Tech prior to transferring to UNC prior to this season.
• UNC hit 13 three-pointers to eight for Notre Dame. Carolina has won 18 consecutive games when making more three-pointers than its opponents.
• Carolina outrebounded Notre Dame, 44-39, overall, but the Irish had 18 offensive boards to UNC's 10.
• Wilson has scored in double figures in all 19 games this season, the second-longest streak by a Tar Heel freshman to start his career.
Up Next
Carolina returns to the road for back-to-back games at Virginia (Saturday Jan. 24) and Miami (Saturday Jan. 31).
Team Stats
ND
UNC
FG%
.360
.508
3FG%
.320
.382
FT%
.538
.696
RB
39
44
TO
5
8
STL
5
3
Game Leaders
Pts
22
FGM
8
3FGM
1
FTM
5
Pts
15
FGM
6
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's BasketballC
/ Men's BasketballF
/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's BasketballCarolina Insider: Rapid Reactions – Men’s Basketball vs. Notre Dame – January 21, 2026
Thursday, January 22
UNC Men's Basketball: Three-Pointer Powers Heels Past Irish, 91-69
Thursday, January 22
MBB: Three-Pointer Powers Heels Past Irish, 91-69
Wednesday, January 21
MBB: Hubert Davis Post-Notre Dame Press Conference
Wednesday, January 21