On Sunday, the No. 7 Tar Heels fell short to No. 5 Virginia 56-47 on the road at John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville. This effectively gives North Carolina its first conference loss this season.
North Carolina and Virginia began the matchup playing some of their best defense all season — both teams were limited to a combined 42 points in the first half. However, Roy Williams’ and Tony Bennett’s squads put on surprisingly cold-shooting displays that quickly overshadowed their efforts to protect the perimeter and paint. Before halftime, North Carolina shot 30.4 percent while Virginia only made 32 percent of their attempts.