Davis Reveals North Carolina Caught Off Guard After Losses

It has been a tumultuous week for the North Carolina Tar Heels, who lost both of their games on the road trip - Stanford and California - which was followed by the team dropping eight spots to No. 22 in the latest AP Poll Rankings.

During his appearance on his weekly Monday radio show, head coach Hubert Davis discussed what transpired this past week and how the team plans to respond.

Davis' Thoughts

Jan 14, 2026; Stanford, California, USA; Stanford Cardinal forward Aidan Cammann (52) dribbles against North Carolina Tar Heels forward Caleb Wilson (8) in the second half at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

"The Stanford game reminded me very [much] of the Wake Forest game," Davis said. "The only difference is we lost. We led for 38 minutes of the game; we were up 12 a number of times and we had a two-minute stretch that ended up getting us a loss."

To teach his team, the 55-year-old head coach took the players to the New York Knicks-Golden State Warriors game on Thursday at the Chase Center.

"One of the things I took from it, and I told the team, is the way that they move the basketball from an offensive standpoint is [a] point five mentality," Davis said. "As soon as it touches your hands, they were driving it, they were passing it, they were shooting it. They weren't dribbling it; they weren't holding it and just the ball movement is elite."

Jan 17, 2026; Berkeley, California, USA; California Golden Bears guard Dai Dai Ames (7) shoots against North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) during the second half at Haas Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Obviously, that lesson did not translate in the 84-78 loss to California two days later, which left the Tar Heels feeling the same way about their issues.

"I really believe against [California] we were, for the first half, shook from the game against Stanford," Davis said. "By the time that we woke up, we were down 18 or 20 and we started to play better and started to play the way that I know we can play."

"I really believe that [in] the first half, we were still shook from what happened against Stanford," Davis continued. "I really feel like that first half, we weren't awake."

Davis wanted his players to flush those tendencies out in practice, and he felt that Monday's film study and on-court preparation was productive.

Jan 17, 2026; Berkeley, California, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis (right) talks with guard Seth Trimble (7) during the first half against the California Golden Bears at Haas Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

"Being able to put those things together and put it on tape for them to watch it today, I thought it was good for them," Davis said. "I thought we took a step forward today."

North Carolina has lost three of its last four games, which has sounded the alarms for this team's chances in March. However, Davis believes this adversity will serve the players well moving forward.

Jan 3, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Kyan Evans (0) and center Henri Veesaar (13) and guard Derek Dixon (3) and forward Caleb Wilson (8) and guard Seth Trimble (7) come back on the court during the second half against the SMU Mustangs at Moody Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

"It would be great to go undefeated, having perfect practices and no turnovers, no injuries and no delays in travel, but that kind of stuff just doesn't happen," Davis said. "So, I always tell the players the two things you have control over are how you react and how you respond. I was not happy with how we reacted and responded against Stanford and Cal."

"We have 11 new guys on this team, and this is the first time that this group has had to kind of figure it out," Davis continued. "And that's really good. There are going to be bumps in the road, there's going to be traffic, there's going to be speed bumps, and you've got to figure out how to smooth those things out and the areas you have to get better at."

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