Tomas Woldetensae shot himself and his team out of trouble.
Woldetensae scored 18 points and made the go-ahead 3-pointer with 0.8 seconds left to lift Virginia past North Carolina 64-62 on Saturday night.
Mamadi Diakite added 15 points for the Cavaliers (17-7, 9-5 ACC), who won for the fifth time in six games.
Woldetensae’s winning shot came after North Carolina’s Christian Keeling made three free throws to give the Tar Heels a 62-61 lead with 10.3 seconds left. Keeling had been fouled by Woldetensae while attempting a 3-point shot.
“It was such a big emotional swing, for sure,” Woldetensae said. “At first, I thought I lost it for my teammates. Then I had the chance to redeem myself.”
Casey Morsell and Kihei Clark each scored 10 points for Virginia. The Cavaliers won back-to-back games against North Carolina in Chapel Hill for the first time in program history.
“It’s always nice to get a road win, especially in a place like this with all the history,” Clark said.
The Cavaliers, who entered the game last in the ACC in 3-point shooting at 28.5 percent, made nine of 21 from 3-point range. Woldetensae shot 6-for-10 from behind the arc, and Morsell made both of his 3-point tries.
Garrison Brooks scored 20 points to lead North Carolina (10-15, 3-11), which lost its fifth consecutive game.
Cole Anthony added 17 points for the Tar Heels, but his half-court heave at the buzzer wasn’t close. Keeling scored 11 points.
North Carolina lost despite shooting 50 percent from the floor against the Cavaliers, who entered the game with the nation’s top scoring defense and field-goal percentage defense.
The Cavaliers have returned to their winning ways just in time. Virginia’s NCAA Tournament chances were fading a month ago during a three-game losing streak, but the Wahoos have gone 6-2 while grinding out five wins by five points or fewer since then.
The Tar Heels remained winless in February, starting off their second month in a row with five-consecutive defeats. They sit in last place in the league and are one loss away from clinching their first losing record for a regular season since 2001-02.
“This is insane,” Anthony said. “I’ve never had a season like this of basketball. It’s really deflating, but our season is not over.”
Woldetensae, a junior college transfer from Italy, made at least six 3-pointers for the third time in Virginia’s last six games. He has 24 3-pointers during that span after totaling 20 through Virginia’s first 18 games.
“He’s a bit of a streaky shooter,” Virginia coach Tony Bennett said. “So when he gets his rhythm and his timing, you want to find him.”
The Tar Heels have lost five consecutive games decided by three points or fewer. That stretch includes three overtime games, and four of those losses have come at home.
“Life’s not easy,” North Carolina coach Roy Williams said. “Sometimes you’re going to be faced with a lot of adversity. But you’ve got to be able to handle it. You can’t give up.”
-- Associated Press
UVa Notes
Team Notes
The Cavaliers improved to 17-7, 9-5 ACC
Tomas Woldetensae drilled the game-winning three-pointer with 0.8 seconds left
Virginia has a six-game winning streak against the Tar Heels and posted its first two-game regular season sweep of UNC since 2001-02
Series Notes
UVa is 59-131 all-time vs. UNC in the series that began in 1910-11
UVa has won back-to-back games at North Carolina for the first time in school history
UVa is 9-66 all-time against the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, including a 6-24 mark at Smith Center (4 wins under Bennett)
The Cavaliers have won eight of the last nine regular-season meetings between the teams
UVa and UNC met as unranked teams for the first time since Jan. 20, 2014
UVa has won three of the last four meetings at Smith Center
Tony Bennett is 11-8 all-time vs. North Carolina, including a loss as head coach of Washington State in the 2008 NCAA Sweet 16
Virginia is 4-4 in true road games and 6-4 away from home in 2019-20
Player Notes
Double Figure Scorers: Tomas Woldetensae (18), Mamadi Diakite (15), Casey Morsell (10), Kihei Clark (10)
Woldetensae made six or more 3-pointers for the third time in 2019-20
Diakite had one blocked shot to move into a tie for second all-time at UVa with 148
Morsell had a career-high three steals
Morsell reached double figures for the first time since scoring 10 points vs. Navy (12/29/20)
