NEW YORK — RJ Davis made the tying and go-ahead free throws with 13 seconds left, and North Carolina erased a 16-point deficit for a 76-74 victory over No. 18 UCLA on Saturday in the CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden.
Davis scored 17 points and gave the Tar Heels (7-5) their first lead since the opening minutes. Ian Jackson scored a career-high 24 points. Seth Trimble added 12 and forced a UCLA turnover that set up the free throws by Davis as North Carolina outscored UCLA 33-15 over the final 12-plus minutes and shot 46.8%.
Tyler Bilodeau tied a career high with 26 points but the Bruins (10-2) had a nine-game winning streak stopped. Sebastian Mack added 22 for UCLA, which shot 26 of 53 (49.1%) from the field and 9 of 18 (50%) from 3-point range. They were the only Bruins to score in double figures.
The Tar Heels forged a 72-all tie with 1:32 left on a basket by Jalen Washington. After Bilodeau missed a 3, Mack hit two free throws for a 74-72 lead with 48 seconds left. Davis made one free throw to trim it to a point, and after Trimble forced a turnover on Dylan Andrews, Davis hit two more for a 75-74 edge.
Mack drove and missed a go-ahead pull-up jumper in the key in the final seconds. The Tar Heels’ Drake Powell pulled down the rebound and was fouled, making one of two free throws with 0.1 seconds left.
The Tar Heels managed their first victory over a Top 25 team in five tries despite committing a season high-tying 18 turnovers and shooting just 24 of 35 (68.6%) from the free-throw line.
The Bruins struggled from the line as well, making just 13 of 22 (59.1%) free throws.
They led 59-45 when Bilodeau was forced to the bench with his fourth foul with 11:45 remaining. The Tar Heels went on a 20-9 run until Bilodeau returned with 5:15 left and trailed 68-65.
Bilodeau entered the game shooting 35.5% from 3 and made his first five attempts before his critical miss.
UCLA faces No. 13 Gonzaga next Saturday in the Intuit Dome in Inglewood.