No. 3 UNC Ripped by Fans for Upset Loss vs. Georgia Tech Ahead of Duke Game

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The North Carolina men’s basketball team rolled into Atlanta for a road matchup against Georgia Tech with a No. 3 Associated Press poll ranking and a perfect 9-0 ACC record, but the Tar Heels will leave town with a shocking L after falling 74-73 to the Yellow Jackets.

Georgia Tech entered this game 9-11 overall (2-7 ACC) but looked far better than its record. Freshman guard Naithan George scored 16 points, including the game-winning bucket with 7.7 seconds remaining.

UNC still had time left for a game-winner, and the ball found its way to RJ Davis, who led all scorers with 28 points. Davis rolled into the paint and took a shot attempt from the left side of the key, but the ball bounced off the rim. No foul call was made despite Georgia Tech big man Ebenezer Dowuona making contact with Davis prior to the shot.

One could argue Davis deserved to head to the line for a chance to win the game, but the bottom line is UNC dug itself into too big of a hole against a team that began the day tied for second-last in the ACC. This win wasn’t a fluke, either, with Georgia Tech winning for much of the second half and leading by as much as 68-60 before UNC stormed back.

Outside Davis, UNC couldn’t get anything going on offense. Every Tar Heel not named Davis combined for just 45 points on 17-of-53 shooting (32.1 percent) and 5-of-20 (25 percent) from three-point range. Harrison Ingram and Cormac Ryan notably had off-nights, shooting 3-of-14 apiece. UNC also shot 9-of-17 from the free throw line.

Meanwhile, Georgia Tech enjoyed a more efficient evening, shooting 41 percent overall, 9-of-20 from three and 15-of-17 from the free throw line. Kyle Sturdivant was red-hot off the bench with 18 points, including a perfect 4-of-4 from the three-point line. The Yellow Jackets also blocked eight shots to UNC’s zero.

Georgia Tech certainly has talent in place to excel—the team also defeated No. 7 Duke earlier in the year—but this was still a surprising defeat for a Tar Heels team that was cruising through ACC play and even opened this game as a double-digit favorite at one point.

The loss could be attributed to any number of things. Perhaps UNC just had an off-night shooting. Maybe Georgia Tech, under first-year head coach Damon Stoudamire, is finally realizing its potential and is ready for a second-half surge. Or UNC could have had Duke on the back of its mind with a home game against the Blue Devils set for Saturday evening.

Regardless of what happened, this is still a brutal loss for the Tar Heels, and fans let their feelings known on the matter.

UNC must move on, though, and will now host Duke on Saturday at 6:30 p.m. ET in the Dean Smith Center.

Georgia Tech will look to keep the good vibes rolling at North Carolina State on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.