Who leads all-time series between blue bloods KU basketball & North Carolina?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Kansas holds a 7-6 lead in the all-time series against North Carolina.
- Kansas won five straight matchups under Bill Self, four of them in NCAA play.
- The 13-game rivalry includes multiple Final Four clashes and two title games.
Kansas, which at one point had a 2-6 record against North Carolina, has surged to a 7-6 advantage in the all-time series entering Friday’s 6 p.m. Central clash against the Tar Heels at the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Most recently, Hall of Fame coach Bill Self’s Jayhawks went 3-0 versus Tar Heel teams coached by Hall of Famer/former KU coach Roy Williams. Those three games were played in the NCAA Tournament spanning the years 2008-2013.
Self’s Jayhawks also have won two and lost none against UNC teams led by fifth-year coach Hubert Davis.
One of the KU wins came in the 2022 NCAA title game (72-69 in New Orleans) and the other in last Nov. 8’s first edition of a two-year home-and-home series, a 92-89 KU victory at Allen Fieldhouse.
The Jayhawks enter Friday’s matchup second in all-time victories (2,415), with the Tar Heels right behind in third (2,396). Kentucky leads the pack with 2,423 wins at this juncture.
Campus games between KU and UNC have been a rarity. In the 13-game series, which started with the 1957 NCAA championship game won by Carolina in three overtimes, just two games have been played in the fieldhouse, none in the Smith Center.
Kansas has won the last five matchups, all during the 23-year Self era — four of the five coming in the NCAA Tournament.
Carolina and Kansas have played seven times in the NCAAs, with KU prevailing in five of the seven contests.
Aside from the two NCAA title game meetings (1957 and 2022), the squads have met three times in the national semifinals (1991, 1993 and 2008). Kansas won the last tourney game between the teams in 2022.
Also, KU won 70-58 in a second-round contest on March 24, 2013, at Sprint (now T-Mobile) Center in Kansas City. The Jayhawks won 80-67 in the Elite Eight on March 25, 2012, in St. Louis and again, 84-66, in the Final Four semifinals on April 5, 2008, in San Antonio.
Prior to that, KU had lost to the Heels in the semifinals of the preseason NIT on Nov. 27, 2002, in New York and lost 78-68 in the Final Four semifinals on April 3, 1993, in New Orleans. In another postseason meeting, KU beat UNC 79-73 in the Final Four semifinals on March 30, 1991, in Indianapolis. Also, KU lost to UNC 54-53 in three overtimes in the national title game March 23, 1957, in Kansas City.
Here’s a look at all 13 KU-North Carolina games starting with games contested in the NCAA Tournament. KU coach Self is 5-0 versus the Heels as KU coach; Davis 0-2 against KU.
NCAA Tournament games between KU, UNC
KU 72, North Carolina 69, April 4, 2022, New Orleans: The Jayhawks rallied from 16 points down in the first half to defeat Davis’ Tar Heels in the NCAA championship game at Caesars Superdome.
KU in winning recorded the largest comeback in a victory in title game history. Loyola (Chicago) trailed Cincinnati by 15 points in a 60-58 (OT) title win in 1963. KU also pulled off the biggest comeback from a halftime deficit (15 points) in title game history. Kentucky trailed Utah by 10 points at intermission in the Wildcats’ 78-69 championship game victory in 1998.
“I think we’re probably all a little overwhelmed and spent. I don’t know that I’ve ever had a team flip the script like we have in the NCAA Tournament, whether it be Miami in the Elite Eight or whether it be this game,” Self said.
Miami led KU by six points at halftime of the Jayhawks’ 76-50 victory over the Hurricanes in the 2022 Elite Eight.
“It would be special to win regardless. But to win when your team had to fight and come back the way they did and show that much grit makes this one off the charts. I thought this would be good. And this is a heck of a lot better than I thought it would be,” Self added.
Christian Braun scored 12 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for the Jayhawks.
“David (McCormack) was telling me, ‘Keep your head up, keep going, we’ll be all right.’ I was, like, ‘Man, I don’t know if I’ve ever been here before.’ Down 15 in a national championship game, I’ve definitely never been there. But we’re just proud of him and he kept us going and then obviously hit a really big shot.” Braun said of McCormack, who had two huge baskets in the final minute and a half.
McCormack finished with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Jalen Wilson scored 15 points and Remy Martin 14 points, while Ochai Agbaji finished with 12.
Agbaji was named the Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA Tournament. McCormack joined Agbaji on the all-NCAA tournament team.
KU 84, UNC 66, April 5, 2008, San Antonio: Brandon Rush scored 25 points and grabbed seven rebounds as the Jayhawks, who rolled to an early 40-12 lead, stopped former KU coach Williams’ Tar Heels in a Final Four semifinal.
Darnell Jackson scored 12 points, while Mario Chalmers and Sherron Collins contributed 11 points apiece for KU. Cole Aldrich came off the bench to score eight points, grab seven rebounds and block four shots.
Wayne Ellington scored 18 points, Tyler Hansbrough 17 points with nine rebounds and Danny Green 15 points for North Carolina.
KU made 12 of its first 16 shots and went on an 18-0 run to secure a 33-10 lead with 9:31 left in the first half, one in which the Tar Heels went 9:03 without a basket. Carolina cut the gap to 58-53 on a 3-pointer by Ellington with 9:20 left. The Jayhawks ultimately re-built the lead to double figures.
KU hit 53% of its shots to Carolina’s 35%. KU had nine more rebounds, 10 more assists and six more blocks than UNC.
KU 80, UNC 67, March 25, 2012, St. Louis: Tyshawn Taylor scored 22 points, while Thomas Robinson had 18 points and nine rebounds in an Elite Eight victory at the Edward Jones Dome. The victory sent the Jayhawks to the Final Four for the first time since winning it all in 2008.
Jeff Withey scored 15 points, Travis Releford 11 and Elijah Johnson 10 points. Johnson hit a 3 with 3:07 to play that sparked a 12-0 run to end the game.
Taylor secured the ball after Withey’s block of a John Henson shot and raced to the other end where he hit a layup as he was fouled by Stilman White. Taylor made the free throw to give KU a 74-67 lead with 1:59 left. UNC did not make a basket over the final 5:46.
James Michael McAdoo scored 15 points for the Tar Heels, who were without injured point guard Kendall Marshall. White had seven assists and no turnovers for UNC.
“It was a game of runs,” UNC coach Williams said. “And we didn’t answer the last one.”
Harrison Barnes finished with 13 points, four assists and three turnovers. Tyler Zeller had 12 points, six rebounds and four blocks.
KU 70, UNC 58, March 24, 2013, Kansas City: Travis Releford scored 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting, his third 20-point effort inside the Sprint Center during the 2012-13 season, as KU rolled in a second-round NCAA Tournament game in KC.
Four Jayhawks scored in double figures, including a double-double from Withey, who scored 16 points and grabbed 16 rebounds with five blocked shots. Naadir Tharpe added 12 points and Kevin Young finished with 10. KU outscored the Heels 49-28 in the second half as Self claimed his 300th coaching victory at KU.
P.J. Hairston scored 15 points and McAdoo 11. Reggie Bullock, who entered with a 14.2 scoring average, managed five points on 1-of-7 shooting.
KU’s nation-best field goal percentage defense held the Tar Heels to 30.1% shooting.
UNC 54, KU 53, 3 OTs, March 23, 1957, Kansas City: Lennie Rosenbluth scored 20 points on 8-of-15 shooting (4-4 from line) and grabbed five rebounds as North Carolina claimed its first NCAA title by beating the Wilt Chamberlain-led Jayhawks in triple overtime before 8,000 fans in Municipal Auditorium in KC.
Chamberlain scored 23 points on 6-of-13 shooting (11-of-16 from the line) and grabbed 14 rebounds.
Gene Elstun and Maurice King had 11 points apiece for the Jayhawks. Pete Brennan and Tommy Kearns had 11 points and Joe Quigg 10 points and nine boards for UNC. The Heels outrebounded KU 36-25.
The teams scored two points each in the first overtime and neither team scored in the second. All the points in the third overtime came on free throws, with UNC’s Quigg hitting two with six seconds remaining. KU missed a final shot at the buzzer.
UNC 78, KU 68, April 3, 1993, New Orleans: Donald Williams scored 25 points off 5-of-7 3-point shooting and Eric Montross contributed 23 points on 9-of-14 marksmanship as UNC, which was up by four points at halftime, defeated KU in the national semifinals in the Superdome.
George Lynch had 14 points and 10 rebounds. Adonis Jordan and Rex Walters each scored 19 points for KU. They combined for nine assists.
Williams attempted all of UNC’s 3s. KU, meanwhile, went 11-of-20 from beyond the arc. The Tar Heels hit 17 of 24 free throws to KU’s 7-of-7 from the line. UNC outrebounded KU 32-22.
With 2:43 remaining, Williams hit a 21-foot 3-point shot that put the Tar Heels up 71-65. Williams stole two Kansas passes after cashing that 3.
North Carolina iced the game by making seven free throws over the final 1:23.
“Donald Williams made a 3 for them and we had three (straight) possessions and didn’t come up with anything,” KU coach Williams lamented.
KU 79, UNC 73, March 30, 1991, Indianapolis: Mark Randall scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as KU, the No. 3 seed out of the South, upended the Tar Heels, the No. 1 seed in the East, in the national semifinals in the Hoosier Dome.
Point guard Jordan scored 16 points, while Mike Maddox had 10 and Alonzo Jamison nine points for KU.
KU graduate Dean Smith, who was a member of KU’s 1952 NCAA title team, was ejected after receiving a second technical foul in the closing minutes of the loss against his pupil, KU coach Williams.
“I remember standing next to Dean Smith when he got kicked out. I was in shock,” Randall said. “I never heard him say one thing that would warrant a technical. I know he went up to coach Williams and said he was sorry. He didn’t want it (his ejection) taking away from the game. We knew how hard it was for coach Williams playing against his mentor.
“Since we both played the same styles it came down to who out-executed the other team,” Randall added. “We talked about that a lot in Lawrence before going to the Final Four. We had the same setups, schemes, whoever would be able to be more precise in execution would win. It worked to our advantage.”
Current UNC coach Hubert Davis had 25 points in that game for the Tar Heels.
Regular-season games between KU, UNC
KU 92, UNC 89, Nov. 8, 2024, Allen Fieldhouse: KU coach Self moved into a tie with Phog Allen for the most wins in Kansas history, courtesy of the narrow win versus UNC.
Hunter Dickinson scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for KU, which entered the game ranked No. 1 in the country. Carolina was ranked ninth.
Elliot Cadeau of UNC missed a possible game-tying 3-pointer as time expired.
Zeke Mayo had 21 points and KJ Adams 14 for the Jayhawks, who led 49-29 in the first half but trailed 87-83 with 3:28 remaining. Dickinson and Mayo responded with a series of baskets to tie the game at 89, and Dickinson’s basket with 1:15 left and free throw with 12 seconds remaining made it a three-point game.
Seth Trimble scored 19 points to lead North Carolina. RJ Davis had 16 points and Cadeau 12.
The only other time the teams had met on campus was in 1960, when UNC guard Larry Brown — who coached the Jayhawks to the 1988 NCAA title — helped the Tar Heels win in Allen Fieldhouse.
UNC 67, KU 56, November 27, 2002, New York: Freshman Rashad McCants scored 25 points on 10-of-15 shooting for the Tar Heels, who were coached in the Preseason NIT semifinal by former Jayhawk assistant Matt Doherty.
The loss at Madison Square Garden ended a streak of 14 straight victories in the Preseason NIT for KU.
“Freshmen in college basketball aren’t like they used to be,” KU coach Williams said. “Ten or 15 years ago, they were scared to death, but they aren’t anymore.”
KU suffered 11 turnovers in the first half and committed 21 overall. Jawad Williams scored 15 points for UNC. Nick Collison scored 19 points and grabbed six rebounds while Kirk Hinrich had 13 points and Wayne Simien 11 points with eight rebounds.
UNC 74, KU 67, November 28, 1981, Charlotte, North Carolina: Michael Jordan made his debut as a Tar Heel, scoring 12 points in a win over KU. That UNC team was ranked No. 1 at the time and went on to win the NCAA title.
James Worthy scored 23 points in the season opener for both teams.
Worthy, who scored 12 of his points in the second half, was joined in double figures by center Sam Perkins with 16 and Doherty 12.
The Jayhawks were led by David Magley’s 24 points. He had 16 in the second half. Tony Guy added 18 points for KU.
Guy, who scored 12 first-half points, converted a pair of free throws with 7:37 left in the first half to put the Jayhawks ahead 26-21. North Carolina tied it 27-27 on two consecutive baskets from Worthy and went into the locker room at halftime with the score 37-37.
Doherty put the Tar Heels ahead for good with 15:02 to play when his basket and free throw made it 48-47. Guard Jimmy Black added a 10-foot jumper, Doherty hit a free throw and Worthy added two more baskets to put North Carolina ahead 55-47.
Magley scored two unanswered baskets with just under three minutes to play, cutting the North Carolina lead to four points, 67-63.
The Tar Heels went ahead by eight points on a slam dunk by Worthy and a pair of Jordan free throws with about a minute to play.
UNC 60, KU 49, December 11, 1959, Raleigh: The Jayhawks, who had opened the season 2-0, dropped their third game of the campaign, a game played at North Carolina State’s Reynolds Coliseum instead of Chapel Hill.
KU had opened with a road win over Northwestern and home win over Texas Tech. KU stayed in Carolina on a two-game road trip to Carolina country and the night after losing to UNC defeated North Carolina State 80-58.
That Kansas team was led by forwards Bill Bridges (11.4 points, 13.8 rebounds season averages) and Wayne Hightower (21.8 points, 10.1 rebounds). Lee Shaffer and Doug Moe were the Heels’ top players.
UNC 78, KU 70, December 17, 1960, Allen Fieldhouse: Larry Brown, who would later become head coach at Kansas, played in his fifth game as a Tar Heel guard in the only game in the KU-UNC series (before last year) contested in Allen Fieldhouse. UNC stopped KU at Allen Fieldhouse in Frank McGuire’s final season as UNC head coach.
It was Smith’s third season as an assistant coach at Carolina. KU, which went 17-8 that season, was led by Hightower, who averaged 20.7 points and 11.6 rebounds.
KU 56, UNC 55, January 3, 1981, Kansas City: The Jayhawks’ Victor Mitchell missed a pair of free throws with 0:09 remaining and KU up by one, point. However, the Jayhawks, who played zone defense, survived as Al Wood missed a shot at the buzzer in Kemper Arena in KC.
The Jayhawks took a 23-12 lead with 6:46 remaining in the first half. But North Carolina went on a 14-5 spurt en route to a 28-28 halftime tie.
The Jayhawks led by six points, 56-50, with 58 seconds left, but a free throw by Wood, a field goal by Sam Perkins and two more free throws by Wood closed to within 1 point with 20 seconds left.
