Halfway through the second half of Saturday night’s in-state, ACC rivalry battle against Wake Forest, the UNC basketball team appeared well on its way to a blowout victory.
Just after Jaydon Young‘s 3-pointer with 9:50 left, North Carolina carried a 72-57 advantage. Up to this point, the Tar Heels played solid defense and limited their rival’s scoring chances.
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Wake came roaring back, closing its deficit to one point on a couple late occasions. Nate Calmese led the Demon Deacons’ late charge, scoring 17 of his 28 points in the final 10 minutes.
Even with a near-defensive collapse, UNC held on to win an 87-84 thriller, its first 2026 victory and 500th overall in the Dean Dome.
After North Carolina’s (14-2, 2-1 ACC) close call, Young highlighted how his team pulled through and held off Wake’s (10-7, 1-3 ACC) late charge.
“Honestly, I just think we’re a group of fighters,” Young said. “I don’t think we did anything special. We just fought through adversity, guys gave everything they had. You saw people diving on the floor, you saw loose balls getting knocked all around. And that’s what it is sometimes in the ACC. Everybody’s coming to compete. You might not be making shots, the other team might not be either. It’s just competitive out there and may the best man win.”
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Young recorded Tar Heels bests of 12 points in 19 minutes. Seth Trimble had several crucial plays late, including a block, defensive rebound, steal and dunk, then several free throws. UNC forced Calmese to chuck up an off-balance 3-pointer as time expired.
North Carolina almost lost in a massive upset. Instead, Young and his teammates competed their hearts out for a crucial ACC victory.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC guard Jaydon Young points to reason behind win vs. Wake Forest
