North Carolina Exposed in Loss Without Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar

The North Carolina Tar Heels are coming off a 79-65 win over the Pittsburgh Panthers, which did not feature Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar, who each missed the game due to injury.

That would be the case again on Tuesday night against North Carolina State, as the Tar Heels' frontcourt tandem remained out of the lineup. Would North Carolina be able to pick up a tough road win over the Wolfpack?

First Half

Pittsburgh was not capable of exploiting North Carolina's two pillars missing, but North Carolina State is more equipped to take advantage of the hampered Tar Heels. The Wolfpack jumped out to a 12-6 heading into the under-16 media timeout. Without Veesaar and Wilson, North Carolina was forced into exclusively operating from the perimeter.

The Wolfpack's lead grew heading into the under-12 timeout, as they opened the game shooting 9-of-13 from the field, including 3-of-4 from beyond the arc. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels' offense was sporadic, going 3-of-11 from the field, including 1-of-7 from three-point range. North Carolina was heavily dependent on drawing fouls and getting to the free throw line. The Tar Heels trail 22-11 with 11:44 remaining in the first half.

North Carolina cut the deficit to 25-18 with 8:05 left in the first half. The Tar Heels ability to create eight second-chance points on seven offensive rebounds was the sole reason they were still in the game. Other than that, North Carolina were dreadful, shooting 1-of-10 from three-point range up to that point.

Feb 17, 2026; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Seth Trimble (7) reacts after scoring against the NC State Wolfpack during the first half at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

North Carolina State would orchestrate a 10-2 run in the next five minutes, extending its lead to 35-20 with 3:56 remaining in the first half. The Tar Heels were settling for contested threes while the Wolfpack were excelling in transition.

At halftime, the Wolfpack lead 42-26, with Quadir Copeland leading all scorers with 13 points while shooting 5-of-11 from the field. On the other hand, North Carolina shot 8-of-32 from the field, including 1-of-16 from three-point range in the first 20 minutes.

Second Half

Feb 17, 2026; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Derek Dixon (3) passes the ball at the half court against during the first half against the NC State Wolfpack Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

It was much of the same for the Tar Heels, as they opened the second half shooting 1-of-4 from three-point range. North Carolina State led 48-33 at the under-16 timeout.

The deficit only grew, as North Carolina trailed 58-40 with 11:27 left in the game. The Tar Heels backcourt - Seth Trimble, Derek Dixon, and Luka Bogavac - were a combined 5-of-24 from the field.

It was all North Carolina State, as the Tar Heels were increasingly overwhelmed in the paint. By the under-eight timeout, Copeland had 18 points while Darrion Williams had 13 points, spearheading a 65-45 lead. North Carolina was simply outmatched without its elite frontcourt duo and was unable to recover, as the Wolfpack coasted to victory.

Final: North Carolina State 82, North Carolina 58

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