Stanford Cardinal forward Aidan Cammann (52) dunks against the North Carolina Tar Heels guard Jaydon Young (4) in the first half at Maples Pavilion in Palo Alto on Wed Jan 15, 2026 (AP News photo)
By Michael Roberson
STANFORD, Calif. — Ebuka Okorie’s 36 points and nine assists led his Stanford Cardinal (14-4, 3-2 ACC) to a dramatic 95-90 come from behind victory over the North Carolina Tar Heels (14-3, 2-2 ACC) inside a raucous Maples Pavilion, with large fan participation for both schools.
UNC started the conference clash with the first four points of the game. However, Stanford followed that with a 5-0 run, to put them up by one. That would be their only lead in the entire first half.
The Tar Heels performed another significant run (7-0), eventually leading by as many as 12 points during the initial 20 minutes of play. Although the Cardinal continued to claw at the lead. They kept the game competitive by the halftime whistle.
Despite trailing for nearly 19 of the 20 minutes of the first half, Stanford only trailed by two at recess, 47-45.
The aforementioned Okorie led both teams at the half, with 17 points and 7 assists. Ryan Agarwal joined him with 11 points of his own. UNC center Henri Veesaar was the lone Tar Heel to be in double-figures scoring, with his 16 points at mid game.
The second half had the visitors from the Old North State more than doubling (10-0) their first half start to the second 20-minute stanza. UNC eventually parlayed that 2-point halftime lead to the game-high 12 points again.
As they did in the first half, Stanford fought back to erase the large deficit. They kept the score within reach, but just could not get over the hump for most of the second half. However, that was a different story with approximately one minute left in regulation.
Jeremy Dent-Smith stroked a dagger 3-pointer, which put the Cardinal up 88-87 at 1:01, and only their second lead (5-4) of the entire game. Ryan Agarwal followed that clutch shot with his own trey. Stanford established their largest margin of five.
As the seconds ticked off the scoreboard, the majority of the crowd was happy, and some gathered on the court in celebration. The Cardinal finished off a sweep of the Tar Heels over their first two years of ACC play.
Okorie led all players with 36 points, establishing another Stanford freshman record. Both Ryan Agarwal and Jeremy Dent-Smith added 20 points apiece , UNC’s leaders were Caleb Williams (26), Henri Veesaar (26), Seth Timble (13) and Luka Bogavac (13).
The Cardinal will next be in action Saturday, January 17, as they host the Duke Blue Devils.at 3 PM PT on the ACC Network. The Tar Heels head across the Bay to Berkeley, on the same date to take on Cal at 1 PM PT, on the ACC Network.
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