UNC Basketball Edges Charlotte in Preseason Finale as Hubert Davis Joins TNT

The North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team closed out its exhibition schedule on Tuesday night with an 89-82 overtime victory against the Charlotte 49ers at the Dean E. Smith Center. The matchup marked North Carolina's first home game since early March and offered fans their first opportunity to watch head coach Michael Malone lead the program inside the Dean Dome. The dramatic contest capped an eventful preseason stretch for the Tar Heels, who are opening a new era following the April dismissal of former head coach Hubert Davis.

Tuesday's exhibition featured a reunion as the 49ers visited Chapel Hill with former Tar Heels Wes Miller and Marcus Paige on hand. North Carolina found itself in deep trouble early, falling behind by as many as 14 points while shooting under 25 percent from the field in the first half. However, the Tar Heels eventually found their offensive rhythm, persevering through their slump to finish above 50 percent from the floor. After battling back in the fourth quarter to force an extra period, North Carolina took control in overtime, limiting Charlotte to only two field goals.

Utah transfer Terrence Brown anchored the Tar Heels' offense, delivering a game-high 27 points in front of the home crowd. Brown more than doubled his total scoring output from North Carolina's first two exhibition outings, converting nine field goals and seven free throws. The newcomer made the critical game-tying free throw near the end of regulation following a miscue by the 49ers and subsequently scored North Carolina's final three points to put the game out of reach in overtime.

Despite the victory, the contest highlighted specific areas where North Carolina must improve ahead of the regular season. Free throw shooting remained a lingering issue, as the Tar Heels knocked down only 17 of their 27 attempts from the foul line, leaving 10 points behind. In contrast, Charlotte converted 14 of its 18 free throw attempts. Frontcourt depth also presents a challenge alongside starting center Sayon Keita, as seven-footer Cameron Fens remains ineligible and Cade Bennerman sat out all three preseason contests.

North Carolina did receive encouraging production from its bench and showed notable lineup versatility. Senior guard Jaydon Young led the reserve unit with 11 points, bringing his total to 25 points across the three preseason matchups. Young, a Goldsboro native who averaged just 1.8 points in 7.2 minutes per contest last season, displayed significant improvement. Additionally, Malone deployed versatile roster assets, including Jarin Stevenson, 6-foot-9 guard Avdalas, tall guard Matt Able, forward Alex Samodurov, and hybrid wings Maximo Adams and Kevin Thomas.

The Tar Heels will now turn their attention to official competition when they host Western Carolina for their regular season opener on Monday at 7 p.m. North Carolina enters the season with momentum from Tuesday's comeback and an 18-point victory over USC in its preseason opener, which helped offset a difficult exhibition loss at Indiana. Meanwhile, Davis is returning to television this week, joining TNT Sports as a studio and game analyst for network broadcasts, beginning with a studio appearance Thursday ahead of a triple-header on truTV.