Are you still coming down off the high from Saturday afternoon? Thanks to great awareness and a clutch dunk from Henri Veesaar, UNC won a 71-70 thriller against Ohio State in the CBS Sports Classic. With their victory, the Tar Heels (11-1) won their fifth-straight basketball game – and final non-conference matchup away from Chapel Hill. Veesaar finished Saturday with a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double, which is becoming a commonality for North Carolina’s 7-foot center, but he wasn’t the only player in Carolina Blue to provide offensive fireworks.
Superstar freshman Caleb Wilson enjoyed a 20-point, 15-rebound afternoon, his fifth time reaching the 20-10 mark this season. This put Wilson in elite company, passing all-time great Tyler Hansbrough for the most 20-10 games by a UNC freshman, in the last 20 seasons.
Hansbrough is the best collegiate player to come through Chapel Hill, winning a National Championship (2009), ACC Player (2008) and Rookie of the Year (2006) awards, while averaging 20.2 points per game.
Wilson likely goes to the NBA after this season, but he’s enjoying one of the best singular seasons ever by a Tar Heel. Wilson currently averages a 19.5 point, 10.8-rebound double-double, with the latter average Top-10 across college basketball. Wilson has eight double-doubles to his name – through just 12 games – which leads the entire ACC.
North Carolina will be tested as it heads into the conference portion of its schedule, while Wilson’s teammates will continue relying on him. Can Wilson help UNC host two more trophies, further adding to the standout legacy he’s already creating?
