No. 18 UNC men's basketball suffers first loss of the season to No. 6 Purdue, 94-83

The No. 18 North Carolina men’s basketball team (3-1) suffered its first loss of the season, 93-84, to the No.6 Purdue Boilermakers (4-0) in the opening round of the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament.  

What happened?

Purdue quickly took an early lead against the Tar Heels behind strong shooting performances from its guards and dominant interior post-play from big men Trevion Williams and Zach Edey. 

UNC responded with a run of its own, hitting five of seven shots to trim the Boilermakers’ lead to 19-15. The Tar Heels also held Purdue to 2-of-10 shooting from the field and blocked one shot while forcing five turnovers over that stretch. 

Both teams went on runs of their own after the midway mark in the first half, but the Boilermakers hit more shots and scored more points off their 11 forced turnovers to take a 41-35 lead into the halftime break.   

Purdue maintained a comfortable lead throughout the early part of the first half, but that changed with the Boilermakers’ big men Williams and Edey on the bench due to foul trouble. Sophomore guard RJ Davis spearheaded the Tar Heels’ comeback, as UNC trimmed Purdue’s lead to 58-56, which prompted Purdue to put Williams back in the game.

The score remained close after Davis helped the Tar Heels come within striking distance of the Boilermakers’ lead, and with just over nine minutes left in the second half, sophomore forward Dawson Garcia hit a three from the wing to give UNC its first lead of the game, 65-64. 

Immediately after the Tar Heels took the lead, Purdue scored 10 unanswered point to take a 74-65 lead.  

The Tar Heels were again able to trim Purdue’s lead to only two points just before the Boilermakers’ scored seven unanswered points to go ahead 81-72. 

UNC couldn’t overcome the Boilermakers’ late-game 7-0 run and lost to the nation’s sixth-ranked 93-84.  

Who stood out?

With junior big man Armando Bacot in foul trouble, transfer sophomore forward Dawson Garcia filled the void left by Bacot and kept the Tar Heels afloat in the first half, hitting all seven of his field goal attempts and scoring 15 of UNC’s 35 first-half points. Garcia also added three rebounds and an assist to complement his scoring. 

After a quiet first half, Davis exploded in the second half, scoring 16 of his 18 points and hitting two three-pointers. Davis’ accuracy from three and aggression scoring in transition fueled the Tar Heels second-half comeback. 

Garcia also continued to make significant contributions in the second half, adding 11 points to his 15 first-half points. Garcia also hit three of his five 3-point attempts, which helped alleviate congestion in the paint and create driving lanes for the Tar Heel guards.  

Davis’ backcourt partner, sophomore guard Caleb Love, also stood out despite a poor shooting night from beyond the arc. Love registered 18 points on 7-of-16 shooting to go along with his four assists, three rebounds, one block and one steal.  

When was it decided?

Purdue went on several big scoring sprees throughout the game that the Tar Heels responded to by trimming the lead to a manageable deficit and, at times, taking a lead. But the turning point seemed to be late in the second half when Purdue scored seven unanswered points.

From that point forward, UNC couldn’t manage to string together enough stops and scores to make the deficit manageable and give themselves a chance to make a late-game comeback victory. 

Why does it matter?

After winning its first three contests, this game gives the Tar Heels’ their first lose of the season, but it also shows the Tar Heels that they’re capable of competing at a high-level against the top teams in the nation. 

Additionally, the game highlighted areas where the Tar Heels can improve and where they’re doing well. Out-rebounding the Boilermakers — one of the nation’s tallest and best rebounding teams — 37-31 shows the Tar Heels that they can be among some of the top-rebounding teams in the nation. 

On the other side, UNC committed careless turnovers, which Purdue exploited and used to help them win the game. ACC opponents will similarly take advantage of careless turnovers, so cutting down on those will be important for the Tar Heels to avoid upset loses during conference play.   

When do they play next?

The Tar Heels’ next game is tomorrow — Sunday, Nov. 21 — at 3:30 p.m. against No. 17 Tennessee in the consolation round of the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament.

@DTHSports | sports@dailytarheel.com