UNC basketball vs Alabama score, updates, highlights: Tar Heels fall 89-87

North Carolina Tar Heels basketball was 20 minutes away from advancing to its second Elite Eight in two years as the Tar Heels led by 10 points at halftime.

However, Grant Nelson and Alabama had something to say about that.

Nelson delivered in big ways for Nate Oats' squad in the second half as the North Dakota State transfer scored 19 of his 24 points of the night in the final 20 minutes. The 6-foot-11 forward didn't only come up big on the offensive end for Alabama as he blocked North Carolina forward Harrison Ingram's shot at the end, knocking the 1-seeded Tar Heels out of the NCAA Tournament with a 89-87 loss to Alabama.

REQUIRED READING: UNC basketball's cold shooting ends season in NCAA Tournament loss to Alabama

But perhaps the biggest story of the night was the inconsistency in North Carolina's offense between both halves.

After its most 3-pointers in a single half (10) and shooting a strong 52.6% from the field in the 20 minutes, the Tar Heels shot a poor 10-for-40 (25%) from the field in the second half. To put it in perspective from beyond the arc, North Carolina hit 10-of-16 shots from deep in the first 20 minutes but only hit 2-of-16 shots from downtown in the final 20 minutes.

Alabama caused issues all night for ACC Player of the Year RJ Davis as it wasn't until late in the second half Davis was able to find consistent scoring himself. He was 3-of-12 from the floor in the first half.

Armando Bacot posted another double-double for the Tar Heels as he finished with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Cormac Ryan added 17 points on the night himself on 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc.

Here are some highlights from North Carolina's loss to Alabama in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament:

UNC vs Alabama live score updates in NCAA Sweet 16

Check here for live score updates for UNC vs. Alabama in the 2024 NCAA Tournament.

All times are in Eastern

12:05 a.m.: Grant Nelson blocks Harrison Ingram's long 3-pointer to seal the win for Alabama. Crimson Tide beat North Carolina 89-87 to advance to the Elite Eight.

12:04 a.m.: Grant Nelson misses both free throws. UNC ball

12:02 a.m.: Alabama calls a timeout as Aaron Estrada is unable to inbound the ball before five seconds.

12:01 a.m.: Grant Nelson hits both free throws to give Alabama a four-point lead. But Armando Bacot gets the layup to fall off the pass from RJ Davis to bring the game to 89-87. Hubert Davis calls a timeout with 1.2 seconds remaining.

11:58 p.m.: North Carolina turns over the ball with a shot clock violation. Alabama leads 87-85 with 7.8 seconds remaining.

11:57 p.m.: Grant Nelson blocks RJ Davis' shot. Tar Heels ball coming up.

11:56 p.m.: Alabama's defense has been spectacular this second half as it has forced North Carolina to shoot 25% from the field.

11:55 p.m.: Hubert Davis calls a timeout on the court after North Carolina brings the ball across half court. Tar Heels trail 87-85 with 35.2 seconds remaining.

11:54 p.m.: Grant Nelson gets the layup to roll in and draws the AND-ONE to put the Crimson Tide up 86-85. Nelson then hit the free throw to push Alabama's lead to 87-85 with 38.6 seconds to go. Nelson is on a scorching run here for the Tide.

11:53 p.m: One minute to go, North Carolina leads Alabama 85-84.

11:52 p.m.: Alabama's Nick Pringle gets called for his fourth foul as RJ Davis drives to the basket. Davis hits both free throws to push the North Carolina lead to 85-82 with 1:32 to go. Tar Heels are on a 8-0 run over the last 1:45.

11:50 p.m.: Jarin Stevenson gets called for the foul sending RJ Davis to the line for free throws for UNC. Davis hits both free throws to put the Tar Heels back up one, 83-82 with two minutes to go in regulation.

11:49 p.m.: RJ Davis delivers with a jumper to bring North Carolina within one at 82-81 with 2:43 to go. He now has 12 points.

11:44 p.m.: Nelson is doing it all for Alabama as he first forces the turnover on Armando Bacot and then hits a 3-pointer in front of the Tar Heels to put the Crimson Tide up five against North Carolina at 82-77 with 3:35 to go. Tar Heels haven't made a field goal in nearly three minutes. Alabama is on a 7-0 run over the last 1:21.

11:43 p.m.: Grant Nelson hits two free-throws for Alabama to tie the game at 77-77 with under five minutes to go. Both teams are now in the double bonus.

11:41 p.m.: Alabama's Aaron Estrada ties the game at 75-75 as he connects on the 3-pointer for his 19th point of the game. The Crimson Tide have now hit five of their last seven shots from the floor.

11:40 p.m.: Cormac Ryan shows no hesitation as he hits his fifth 3-pointer of the game, North Carolina leads 75-70.

11:38 p.m.: Despite leading Alabama 71-67 at the under-eight media timeout, North Carolina is struggling offensively in the second half as it is 1-for-11 (9%) from 3 in the second half. Tar Heels shot 62.5% from 3 in the first half.

11:31 p.m.: Nate Oats burns a timeout after Crimson Tide guard Rylan Griffen hits a huge 3-pointer to cut the North Carolina lead to 70-67.

11:30 p.m.: CBS' Allie LaForce reported that Alabama forward Nick Pringle has a heel bruise. Pringle went to the bench after sustaining a non-contact injury a few minutes ago.

11:29 p.m.: Paxson Wojcik hits a massive 3-pointer for North Carolina to put the Tar Heels up 66-61.

11:27 p.m.: RJ Davis gets his fifth and sixth points of the night at the charity stripes. North Carolina now leads Alabama 63-61. Davis is 2-for-14 from the field.

11:24 p.m.: Alabama's Nick Pringle heads to the bench after looking like he sustained a non-contact injury underneath the basket. He is currently seeking medical attention from Alabama's training staff at the end of the Crimson Tide bench.

11:22 p.m.: North Carolina's offense has struggled mightily in the second half as it is 2-for-17 from the floor to open up the second half. Meanwhile Alabama is 6-for-13 from the floor to begin the half itself.

11:20 p.m.: Jalen Withers gets called for his third foul, joining Armando Bacot as the two North Carolina players in foul trouble. Withers' foul leads to a stoppage on the court for the under-12 media timeout with the game all knotted up at 59-59.

11:18 p.m.: Harrison Ingram works the shot clock and makes something out of nothing as he gets the layup to spin off the backboard to stop the Alabama run and tie the game at 59-59.

11:17 p.m.: Sam Walters gives Alabama a 59-57 lead as he converts on the 3-pointer. It is a 7-0 run for the Crimson Tide over the last 2:07.

11:16 p.m.: Alabama gets within one point of North Carolina at 57-56 as Grant Nelson hits back-to-back free throws.

11:15 p.m.: Armando Bacot heads to the bench as he picks up his third foul of the game. Jalen Washington replaces Bacot on the floor for the Tar Heels. UNC leads 57-54.

11:09 p.m.: Aaron Estrada spins and finishes with the layup to cut the Tar Heels lead to five at 55-52. RJ Davis then missed a 3-pointer on the other end. Davis' shot went out of bounds forcing the under-16 media timeout. Davis is shooting an uncharacteristic 1-of-11 from the floor.

11:06 p.m.: Armando Bacot draws the foul and hits one of two free-throws for North Carolina's first points of the second half. Tar Heels now lead 55-48 with 17:21 in the second half. Bacot now has 13 points on the night.

11:02 p.m.: The second half is underway as Alabama's Mark Sears gets the layup to roll in. Tar Heels now lead 54-48.

10:40 p.m.: North Carolina uses an 11-2 run over the last 2:47 to take a 54-46 lead into the locker room against Alabama. Tar Heels go an impressive 10-for-16 from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes, led by Cormac Ryan's four triples. Ryan and Harrison Ingram lead North Carolina with 12 points each.

10:34 p.m.: Nate Oats calls an Alabama timeout after Cormac Ryan hits his fourth 3-pointer of the game to push the Tar Heels run to 8-0 in the last 1:06. North Carolina leads 51-44 with 1:41 until halftime.

10:33 p.m.: Armando Bacot gets the bucket to roll in underneath the basket with his lefthand to push the Tar Heels lead out of the media timeout.

10:30 p.m.: Both teams trading buckets in the last few minutes. Rylan Griffen hits his fourth 3-pointer of the half to put Alabama back up by one, 44-43, going into the final media timeout of the first half. Tide have now hit four of their last five shots from the floor.

10:28 p.m.: Cormac Ryan and Harrison Ingram spark a quick 7-0 run for the Tar Heels to tie the game at 41-41.

10:26 p.m.: Cormac Ryan hits a 3-pointer to end an over 2:20 scoreless drought for the Tar Heels. UNC is now within two of Alabama at 36-34.

10:24 p.m.: Alabama coach Nate Oats hints to CBS' Allie LaForce that the Crimson Tide have to tighten up on their defense and zone in on Elliott Cadeau and Seth Trimble, UNC's two leading scorers thus far tonight. Before tonight, Cadeau was 8-for-48 from beyond the arc. Tonight? He is 2-for-3.

10:21 p.m.: North Carolina guard Seth Trimble has his shot blocked by Aaron Estrada and sent out of bounds. Crimson Tide lead by one at the under-eight media timeout, 32-31. Alabama has six of its last seven shots from the floor, meanwhile, North Carolina is three for its last seven.

10:18 p.m.: Elliot Cadeau answers right back to Alabama's Mark Sears' 3-pointer with a triple of his own to tie the game at 29-29. Cadeau has a team-high eight points for UNC on two 3-pointers and a layup.

10:17 p.m.: Aaron Estrada ties the game at 26-26 as he gets the hook shot to go in off the backboard. It's a 7-0 run for Alabama over the last two minutes. The Tar Heels offense has cooled off mightily after their hot start.

10:14 p.m.: Alabama's offense is heating up as Riley Green rains in a triple to cut the North Carolina lead to 26-24 with 10:20 to go in the first half.

10:10 p.m.: North Carolina leads Alabama 21-17 with 11:56 remaining in the first half as we've reached the under-12 media timeout. Elliot Cadeau leads the Tar Heels with five points. Tar Heels are shooting 8-of-14 from the field to open up.

10:10 p.m.: Nate Oats brings freshman forward Mo Dioubate in from the bench. Dioubate is a big reason why the Crimson Tide are playing in tonight's game against UNC. He is also one of two Alabama players who are observing in Ramadan.

10:07 p.m.: Grant Nelson brings the Tar Heels lead to 19-14 as he drains a 3-pointer.

10:04 p.m: Alabama'a Aaron Estrada snaps a 10-0 North Carolina run as he hits the jumper. It's 17-9 Tar Heels.

10:01 p.m.: UNC's defense is out to a solid start as we've reached the under-16 media timeout, as it has forced four turnovers in the last 3:26 and held Alabama to 2-for-5 from the field.

10:00 p.m.: Armando Bacot draws the foul on Nick Pringle as he tries to make a move inside the paint. Stoppage on the court for the under-16 media timeout, UNC leading 12-7. Tar Heels have responded nicely from an early deficit as UNC is on an 8-0 run over the last 1:42.

9:58 p.m.: Cormac Ryan pushes the North Carolina run to 6-0 as he hits a wide-open 3-pointer at the top of the key. Tar Heels lead 10-7.

9:55: Grant Nelson makes an early impact as he blocks Harrison Ingram's layup. Alabama leads 4-2 early on in the first half.

9:55 p.m.: Alabama wins the tip and this Sweet 16 game is underway in Los Angeles!

9:50 p.m.: Charles Barkley predicted an Alabama win on the CBS pregame show. The Auburn grad even yelled "Roll Tide" as he gave his pick.

9:48 p.m.: Tip-off between UNC and Alabama has been delayed again. The updated tip-off is now 9:54 p.m. ET.

9:41 p.m.: UNC starting five: G Elliot Cadeau, G Cormac Ryan, G R.J. Davis, F Armando Bacot and F Harrison Ingram

9:40 p.m.: Alabama starting five: G Mark Sears, G Rylan Griffen, G Aaron Estrada, F Grant Nelson and F Nick Pringle

9:27 p.m.: According to The Tuscaloosa News Alabama beater reporter Nick Kelly, the Crimson Tide will be without guard Latrell Wrightsell due to a head injury that he sustained in Alabama's second-round win over Grand Canyon.

9:15 p.m.: Per the score bug on CBS broadcast, North Carolina and Alabama will now tip-off at approximately 9:50 p.m. ET due to 2 seed Arizona vs. 6 seed Clemson still going on at Crypto.com Arena. The Tar Heels and Crimson Tide were originally scheduled to start at 9:39 p.m. ET.

8:14 p.m.: This is the first time both teams have each other since their four-overtime game back in 2022 in the Phil Knight Invitational tournament, one that Alabama won 103-101 behind Mark Sears 24 points.

7:01 p.m.: The matchup between RJ Davis and Mark Sears will sure be a fun one to watch but let's focus on UNC big man Armando Bacot before tipoff. The 6-foot-11 forward has been a force to be reckoned with this NCAA Tournament, as he is averaging 19.0 points and 11.0 rebounds through two games in March Madness.

7 p.m.: As a reminder to Tar Heels fans: They're 7-1 under Hubert Davis in the NCAA Tournament.

Alabama's Nick Pringle injured, heel bruise

At the 17:55 mark of the second half of Thursday's Sweet 16 game between Alabama and UNC, Crimson Tide forward Nick Pringle headed to the bench with a non-contact injury that he sustained in the paint.

CBS' Allie LaForce reported that Pringle sustained a heel bruise injury. He returned to the court at the 8:10 mark but was seen limping on the court. It's a massive injury for the Crimson Tide, who are already without key 3-point shooter Latrell Wrightsell, who was ruled out for Thursday's game with a head injury he sustained in the second round against Grand Canyon.

UNC basketball breaks 3-pointer record for a half

The Tar Heels were scorching hot from deep in the first half, so much so that they broke their season-high record of 3-pointers for this season.

North Carolina hit 10-of-16 shots from downtown in the first half, surpassing its previous season high of nine against Northern Iowa earlier this season. Cormac Ryan had four of those 10 triples for the Tar Heels.

Cormac Ryan heating up in LA for UNC

UNC guard Cormac Ryan hits a big 3-pointer for the Tar Heels to push their run to 8-0 and lead to five out of the under-four media timeout. He is 4-for-4 to start from beyond the arc.

UNC's Elliot Cadeau hits his first 3-pointer in three weeks

Tar Heels guard Elliot Cadeau hit his first 3-pointer since March 2 vs. NC State early on in the first half against Alabama in the Sweet 16:

Charles Barkley predicts Alabama to beat UNC in Sweet 16, yells ‘Roll Tide!’

As the CBS pregame show was wrapping up, former Auburn and NBA star forward picked Alabama to advance to the Elite Eight and gave a loud "Roll Tide" as he made his pick.

UNC basketball starters vs Alabama

Here's the lineup that Hubert Davis will go with Thursday against Alabama:

Alabama basketball starters vs UNC

Here's the lineup that Hubert Davis will go with Thursday against Alabama:

UNC arrives for Sweet 16 game vs Alabama

Alabama arrives for Sweet 16 game vs UNC

What channel is UNC vs Alabama on today? How to watch, stream live

• TV channel: CBS

• Stream: NCAA March Madness Live app | Fubo TV (free trial)

UNC will tip off against Alabama on CBS. Streaming options include the free NCAA March Madness Live app and Fubo TV, which carries CBS and offers a free trial to select users. Brian Anderson (play-by-play), former Ohio State star forward Jim Jackson (analyst) and Allie LaForce (sideline reporter) will have the call on CBS.

Jones Angell will lead radio coverage on the Tar Heels Sports Network. Spero Dedes and Austin Croshere will have the call on Westwood Radio.

UNC vs Alabama start time, TV info, location

• Start time: 9:54 p.m. ET

• TV info: CBS

• Location: Crypto.com Arena (Los Angeles)

UNC will now tip-off against Alabama in the Sweet 16 of the West Region on Thursday, March 28 on CBS at 9:54 p.m. ET from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles due to 2 seed Arizona vs. 6 seed Clemson finishing later than expected.

UNC vs Alabama preview

UNC: Coming off a pair of double-digit victories against Wagner and Michigan State, the Tar Heels have their top two players — RJ Davis and Armando Bacot — playing their best at the right time. Continued production from Harrison Ingram, Cormac Ryan, Elliot Cadeau and the supporting cast will be key if UNC is going to get through to Phoenix.

Alabama: Three-pointers and layups. All-American guard Mark Sears and the Crimson Tide can pile up the points with an offense that’s always fun to watch. Alabama averages 90 points per game, but its defense has to be better to knock off UNC.

UNC-BAMA PREDICTION: UNC basketball vs Alabama prediction: March Madness, NCAA Sweet 16 pick is in

UNC vs Alabama odds, betting line, spread

Odds courtesy of BetMGM on Thursday, March 28.

• Spread: UNC (-4.5)

• Over/Under: 174.5

• Moneyline: UNC -200 | Alabama +165

UNC vs Alabama prediction, game picks

UNC 85, Alabama 79

The Crimson Tide’s offense is capable of running teams out of the gym, and UNC’s defense has displayed the ability to make teams miserable. In what should be a fun, back-and-forth game, the Tar Heels’ comfort offensively will be the difference.

UNC vs Alabama injury updates

UNC: The Tar Heels don't have any injury concerns ahead of their NCAA Tournament matchup with the Crimson Tide.

Alabama: Tuscaloosa News Alabama beater reporter Nick Kelly reported before tip-off that Latrell Wrightsell has officially been ruled out for Thursday's game against North Carolina due to a head injury that he sustained on Sunday against Grand Canyon.

KEEP IT 100: Meaning for UNC basketball entering March Madness matchup with Alabama

UNC vs Alabama stats

UNC

• PPG: 81.8

• PPG allowed: 70

• FG%: 45.3%

• 3PT%: 35.8%

• KenPom ranking: 9

Alabama

• PPG: 90.7

• PPG allowed: 80.9

• FG%: 47.7%

• 3PT%: 36.7%

• KenPom ranking: 14

UNC vs Alabama championship odds

Odds according to BetMGM as of Thursday, March 28.

• UNC: +1100

• Alabama: +4000

UNC basketball schedule 2023-24

Below are the results North Carolina's last five games. For the Tar Heels' full schedule, click here.

Alabama basketball schedule 2023-24

Below are the results from Alabama's last five games. For the Crimson Tide's full schedule, click here.

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This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: UNC basketball vs Alabama score, updates, highlights: Tar Heels fall 89-87