Davis Explains How UNC Responded Without Wilson

Without Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar, the North Carolina Tar Heels defeated the Pittsburgh Panthers 79-65 on Saturday at the Dean E. Smith Center. Wilson suffered a fractured hand on Tuesday night, and Veesaar was ruled out moments before tip-off.

While speaking with the media during his postgame press conference, head coach Hubert Davis discussed the team's response to the news this week, including the freshman phenom.

Davis' Thoughts

Feb 14, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis reacts in the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

“I mean, he was obviously devastated," Davis said of Wilson's reaction to the test results. "That’s how we felt, and obviously, he loves to play, but he loves being a part of a team. And I think he found out, even though he’s not playing, he’s still part of the team. I mean, even during practice, he can’t even sit down. He’s dribbling with his right hand. He’s shooting hooks with his right hand. He’s on the bike and in the huddles. He was vocal in the locker room. Him and Henri, I thought they played a huge part in giving confidence to their teammates that we could get this thing done.”

With the Tar Heels' two best players out, several players who had not played extensive minutes earned expanded roles on Saturday. Davis explained what stood out in the team's performance.

“With the news that Caleb was going to be out, and we didn’t know if Henri was playing or not, so we were preparing for [Pittsburgh] with two different game plans and different rotations and all different types of stuff. And I felt like the two days of practice, they took everything in.”

Feb 14, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Caleb Wilson (8) reacts on the bench in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

“You had two teammates out, and for them to react and respond this way, after maybe in the first half and a little bit of the second half, there was a stretch where we settled for jump shots as opposed to putting the ball on the floor," Davis continued. "But the energy, effort, enthusiasm like that was there the entire game, and that’s something that we’ve struggled with throughout the years.”

Leading up to the game, knowing that Wilson was going to miss this weekend's game, the 55-year-old head coach discussed what the message was throughout the week.

“We were talking about technical stuff, in regard to these plays offensively, from a defensive standpoint, this is what you want to do," Davis said. "But I said none of that matters without the competitive fight. I said, ‘You guys just have to fight. You’ve got to compete.’ And I said that’s the most important thing when you go home. Yeah, everybody wants to win, but it’s not the end result. It’s did you give everything that you had? Did you give everything that you had in your preparation, in your practice? Did you play as hard as you could? And that’s what gives you peace coming back in the locker room and the guys seem to kind of resonate with that.”

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