CHAPEL HILL - North Carolina is no stranger to close games.

It has become a staple throughout the 2024-2025 season, as the Tar Heels have played 10 one-possession contests and 12 in which the score was within five points with under five minutes remaining.

So when the scoreboard inside the Smith Center on Saturday read 67-66 in favor of UNC with 7.6 remaining, the Tar Heels were in familiar territory.

And like countless games prior, UNC found itself on the defensive end needing one stop to avoid falling to .500 in ACC play.

It did just that, making the final stand as Ishmael Leggett’s off-balanced jumper from inside the free throw line as time expired struck the front iron in harmless fashion.

“It kind of feels like every time we play at home, it’s a one possession game and it goes down to a game-winner,” said guard RJ Davis. “Every single time it’s like we score and then it’s like now we got to play defense to see if they’re gonna make the game-winner or not."

UNC’s last two home contests, a loss to Stanford and an overtime win against Boston College, featured the visiting team in possession of the ball with less than 10 seconds in regulation.

The Tar Heels are 6-4 in one possession games on the season, with four of those victories coming thanks to last-second defensive stops.

UCLA’s Sebastian Mack failed to convert a shot attempt in the final seconds inside Madison Square Garden in December, and Notre Dame’s Markus Burton missed a layup as time expired in South Bend.

Inside the Lenovo Center in Raleigh on January 11, Jalen Washington swatted away NC State’s last-second shot attempt to secure a two-point win for the Tar Heels.

Having made the winning plays before, the message inside the huddle prior to the last possession was simple.

“Just get a stop [was the message]. Talk and communicate and (Coach Davis) told us we’re going to get the stop right now [and] they’re not going score and that was our mindset going into the last possession,” said RJ Davis.

UNC held Pitt scoreless for the final 2:03 of gametime, a stark contrast from the first meeting between the two teams 11 days ago, where the Tar Heels were outscored 14-2 down the stretch.

The Panthers connected on just one of their last six shot attempts and were unsuccessful on their final three.

“We’ve been there before, and in the huddle and on the court I think one of the things that gives them confidence is that they’ve been in this situation before,” said head coach Hubert Davis. “One of the things that I’ve told them is that you guys have the answers to the test, we just got to write them down on the paper and we knew what we needed to do in terms of getting stops.”

North Carolina’s ten one-possession games are the most in any season during the three-point era, which began in the 1986-1987 campaign. And with six wins in said contests, the most since it had eight during the 2010-2011 season, it has become comfortable in the game’s most tense moments.

"It's not something we really work on, but when the clock hits the five-minute mark, it's winning time,” said freshman forward Drake Powell. “So, it's time to tighten the screws and be sharp on everything. The intensity we had throughout the game, I think that showed down the stretch."

A quick turnaround awaits the Tar Heels, as they travel to Littlejohn Coliseum on Monday, for a showdown with Clemson.