In his 100th college start, RJ Davis, the senior standout for UNC basketball, led the third-ranked Tar Heels to a commanding 85-64 home victory over unranked Wake Forest on Monday night. This win improved UNC’s record to 16-3 overall and a perfect 8-0 in ACC play, maintaining their strong position in the rankings. Davis, with a career-high 36 points, displayed an outstanding performance, marking the highest point total by a Tar Heel in the Smith Center since Tyler Hansbrough’s 39 points against Clemson in February 2008.
Notably, Davis achieved the distinction of being the first UNC player to score 30 or more points against Wake Forest since the current head coach, Hubert Davis, accomplished the feat with 30 points in a February 1992 game. With an impressive average of 21.0 points per game, RJ Davis has emerged as a frontrunner for ACC Player of the Year. His remarkable shooting included a 14-for-23 performance from the field, 4-for-8 from beyond the arc, and 4-for-5 at the free-throw line. The 22-year-old guard also contributed with four rebounds and two assists, all while maintaining a clean record of zero turnovers in his team-high 37 minutes on the court.
Davis’s proficiency from beyond the arc has been a key highlight, boasting a career-high 41.7 percent this season. His recent performance set a new UNC basketball record with 16 consecutive games featuring multiple 3-pointers, surpassing the previous record held by Justin Jackson with 15 in a row during the 2016-17 season, which culminated in a national championship.
It’s worth noting that the victory extended North Carolina’s winning streak to nine games, the longest since their 11 consecutive victories spanning the 2017 NCAA Tournament and the beginning of the subsequent season. Looking ahead, the Tar Heels will face unranked Florida State with a 2 p.m. ET tip-off on Saturday, aired on ESPN.
