North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) boxes out Ohio State Buckeyes forward Brandon Noel (14) in the first half at State Farm Arena. Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Unorthodox assist gives No. 12 North Carolina win over Ohio State

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Dec 20, 2025 6:01 PM ET

Seth Trimble tripped, fell and somehow got the basketball to Henri Veesaar for the game-winning dunk in No. 12 North Carolina's 71-70 win over Ohio State on Saturday.

The Tar Heels led by 10 with eight minutes to play and appeared to be in the catbird's seat, but little by little, the Buckeyes began chipping away.

With 48 seconds to play, John Mobley Jr. nearly became the hero of the day. Mobley nailed a three, got fouled and knocked down a free throw to put OSU up 70-67.

After Trimble cut Ohio State's lead to one and UNC got the ball back, Trimble tried to drive right back to the rim. But he stumbled, with the ball landing in the hands of Veesaar, who stuffed it for what turned out to be the game-sealing basket.

UNC regains the lead! pic.twitter.com/kNPuMKT33h
— CBS Sports College Basketball (@CBSSportsCBB) December 20, 2025

UNC looks to be a bona fide threat

"It just shows that we're here," freshman forward Caleb Wilson told CBS. "We're on the way for sure."

Wilson led the Tar Heels with 20 points, while Trimble and Veesaar added 17 apiece. Devin Royal led Ohio State with 18 points.

Saturday's win is another marquee win for the Tar Heels, who have also beaten the likes of Georgetown, Kentucky and No. 17 Kansas so far this season. North Carolina's only loss came to No. 9 Michigan State.

UNC is off to its best start since 2017-18, and Saturday's win was another indicator that Hubert Davis has a special squad in Chapel Hill.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

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