CHAPEL HILL – Freshmen Caleb Wilson, backed by fans on social media, turned North Carolina’s game against Kansas into an unscheduled whiteout.
And then Wilson – backed by a fan base that’s fallen in love with him even though he’s played two regular season games in Chapel Hill – made sure it was worth the trouble.
Wilson scored a game-high 24 points and UNC used a dominant second half, the No. 25 Tar Heels downed No. 19 Kansas 87-74 on Friday night, earning an out-of-conference win that should pay huge dividends come March. The crowd, most of which followed his lead and came clad in white, roared in approval anytime Wilson did, well, anything.
“He connects with people,” UNC coach Hubert Davis said. “When he steps on the court, obviously, you can see his game. But when he steps in the room, you can feel his personality. His personality lights up a room as soon as you get in it.”
Davis continued: “We had a white out because Caleb went on social media and says, ‘I want a whiteout. … We had a freshman just say we’re having a whiteout and the whole 22,000 showed up in white. I’m just like OK. I really believe this, if he ran for student body president, he would win – and he’s only been here three months.”
Wilson has been working the crowd, like any good politician. He’s active on social media. He’s done giveaways in the Pit – a gathering space in the middle of campus. He came on stage during the Ludacris concert to hype the crowd.
“I just tried to incorporate the crowd because we need them more than ever,” Wilson said. “It also comes with how you perform. If I scored zero points, I don’t think nobody would be out there losing it.”
He probably doesn’t have to worry about that.
Wilson, a 6-foot-10 forward and five-star recruit from Georgia, dunked home a rebound for UNC’s first two points and sealed the game with a final transition dunk. His effort and passion electrified the crowd. He nailed smooth fadeaway jumpers, drew fouls and filled the box score (seven rebounds, four assists and four steals). He went diving late in the second half in an attempt to save a backcourt violation.
“It revs the crowd up,” UNC senior Seth Trimble said. “It revs us up. It gives us no choice but to join the wave. You know what I mean? When a guy gives that energy and the guy gives that passion, and you just leave him out on the island, that’s very selfish on the team. So it boosts us up, just like it boosts the crowd up.”
Trimble, who had 17 points and helped UNC control the pace by constantly pushing in the second half, said the Tar Heels of last year were missing those energy boosts that Wilson provides.
UNC overcame a 20-point halftime deficit and took a lead late in its visit to Kansas last year. But the Tar Heels couldn’t hold on.
This year, with Wilson, they would.
Kansas led for much of the first half and carried a 37-29 edge into halftime. Wilson, Henri Veesaar and Trimble scored 26 first-half points, but Kyan Evans, Jarin Stevenson and Luka Bogavac combined to shoot 0-for-10 from the field, including 0-for-8 from 3-point range.
That would change in the second half. While Trimble, Wilson and Veesaar scored 35 points and led the way, Evans, Stevenson and Bogavac combined for 20 on 8-of-10 shooting, including 4-of-5 on 3-pointers.
UNC scored 58 second-half points and outrebounded Kansas 39-27. UNC had 16 offensive rebounds.
“The halftime speech was just to be ourselves in the second half,” Trimble said.
Kansas star freshman Darryn Peterson – who, like Wilson, is forecast to be a top pick in next year’s NBA Draft – scored 22 points for the Jayhawks. Bryson Tiller, another freshman, had 15 points, but none in the second half, before fouling out.
The Tar Heels were the last team into the NCAA Tournament field in 2025, almost done in by their lack of victories against top opponents. Now they already have a signature victory just two games into the season. And, at long last, a victory over Kansas.
The Jayhawks had won the last five meetings between the two storied programs, who are forever connected by a shared history (two national title games against each other) and through former UNC coaches Dean Smith (who played at Kansas) and Roy Williams (who coached at Kansas before UNC). Four of those meetings were in the NCAA Tournament.
It was Davis, who played at UNC under Smith and coached under Williams, who wanted to play the Jayhawks in a home-and-home series.
“I wanted this new team, this new group, to have evidence of what it’s like to play in a game like this in the Smith Center and to come up big,” Davis said. “I just wanted them to have a taste of what it’s like to be here.”
