Georgia Tech wrecks UNC basketball’s perfect ACC record in upset win
UNC basketball received some words of advice from Luke Maye. It could have been seen as a warning for the third-ranked Tar Heels.
A video posted Tuesday on UNC basketball’s official X/Twitter account took fans inside the Tar Heels’ locker room at Florida State. Ahead of the game, head coach Hubert Davis said he received a text from Maye that morning.
The 2017 national champion wanted Davis to tell the Tar Heels that they’re doing well, but there’s more to accomplish. In the days leading up to UNC’s trip to Tallahassee, Davis said, the Tar Heels’ “thought of the day” was “more to be said, more to be done.”
UNC won that game in the final weekend of January but the Tar Heels needed more in a 74-73 loss at Georgia Tech on Tuesday night in Atlanta.
With the upset victory, the Yellow Jackets snapped UNC’s 10-game winning streak and earned their first win against a top-three team since beating Duke in 2004. Freshman guard Naithan George made the go-ahead layup with 7.7 seconds left as Georgia Tech wrecked the Tar Heels' perfect record in the ACC.
George finished with 16 points and Kyle Sturdivant had 18 to lead Georgia Tech. RJ Davis, who finished with a game-high 28 points, had a chance to win it in the final seconds but his shot caromed off the rim as time expired.
Davis was the lone UNC player to finish with double-digit points.
Halfway through their ACC schedule, the Tar Heels (17-4, 9-1 ACC) remain in first place but there's a long way to go, starting Saturday against No. 7 Duke (16-4, 7-2).
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UNC started 9-0 in conference games for the first time since 2000-01, but that squad lost three of its last five games in the regular season and shared the regular-season crown with Duke, which went on to win the ACC Tournament and the 2001 national championship.
So, yes, the current Tar Heels would be wise to keep Maye’s message in mind. Here’s how Georgia Tech upset UNC.
Georgia Tech gets it done with defense, bench
UNC had a chance to put Georgia Tech (9-12, 2-8) away with a double-digit lead in the first half, but the Yellow Jackets fought back and took command in the second half with their defense and bench play. Georgia Tech had a 39-14 advantage in bench points and limited the Tar Heels to 36% shooting (their worst performance of the season). Down 68-60 with five minutes left, UNC took the lead with 34 seconds left before George's layup.
UNC misses free throws, Georgia Tech makes ‘em
The Tar Heels entered Tuesday’s game as one of the best free-throw shooting teams in the nation at 76.2% on the season. But UNC didn’t touch that mark at McCamish Pavilion, finishing 9 of 17 (53%) from the charity stripe. It was the lowest percentage for the Heels since 2021. On the other side, Georgia Tech made 15 of its 17 free throws (88%).
UNC let Yellow Jackets off the hook
UNC led by 11 late in the first half, but the Heels didn’t make a shot in the final six and a half minutes as Georgia Tech closed with a 12-1 run to tie the game. From that point, the Yellow Jackets didn’t go away.
Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at @rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: What went wrong in UNC basketball's loss at Georgia Tech
