Freshman star Caleb Wilson scored a season-low 12 points and briefly exited with an apparent left hand injury as No. 11 North Carolina fell, 75-66, at Miami on Tuesday night at the Watsco Center. A UNC spokesperson told the N&O on Wednesday afternoon that Wilson has a wrist sprain. No further information is available at this time.
Wilson, the Tar Heel’ leading scorer, went 4-of-10 from the field against the Hurricanes and was limited early, scoring three points in the first half. He left the game with just under 15 minutes left in the second half and went to the locker room with North Carolina trainer Doug Halverson. Wilson’s mother and sister soon left their seats by the court after a brief conversation with a UNC staffer. Wilson returned several minutes later with his hand heavily taped. He re-entered the game with 8:47 remaining before sitting out the final 1:43. Afterward, coach Hubert Davis downplayed the injury in his postgame news conference. “There is no situation,” Davis said, later adding that the wrap did not affect Wilson “to my knowledge.”
Wilson was not made available to reporters after the game. North Carolina (19-5, 7-4 ACC) missed 10 of its final 12 shots and shot just 26.5 percent in the second half, snapping a five-game winning streak that included a home win over No. 4 Duke on Saturday. The Tar Heels made only one of their 14 second-half attempts from 3-point range. Miami (19-5, 8-3) never trailed and sealed the win at the free-throw line, outscoring UNC 11-6 in the final 2:07. Malik Reneau led the Hurricanes with 16 points, 10 rebounds and four assists, while Ernest Udeh Jr. added 15 points and 10 rebounds. Tre Donaldson scored 14 points.
Jarin Stevenson led UNC with 13 points, while Henri Veesaar added 11. Miami outrebounded the Tar Heels 41-35 and outscored them 46-28 in the paint. North Carolina trailed 43-40 at halftime despite shooting 55.2 percent in the opening half, but the offense stalled after the break as Miami controlled the interior and limited transition opportunities. The Tar Heels return home Saturday to host Pittsburgh at the Smith Center.
