LAWRENCE, KS - If taking a punch was equitable to the results on a basketball court, North Carolina took the haymakers of all haymakers from Kansas on Friday night.

With 1:06 remaining in the first half, KJ Adams Jr. converted a layup attempt to extend the Jayhawks’ lead to a game-high 20 points and send Allen Fieldhouse into a frenzy.

And while winning at Kansas was always unlikely for the Tar Heels, as the Jayhawks entered with a staggering 315-18 record at home under Bill Self, it didn’t stop UNC from giving its best shot and responding with a counterpunch of its own.

Kansas would ultimately get the last laugh, winning 92-89, but the Tar Heels turned what looked like an inevitable TKO into a 12-round heavyweight bout, outscoring the Jayhawks 54-32 over a 17-minute streetch of the game of game that began when the KU lead hit 20.

The Tar Heels kickstarted the run with a 5-0 spurt to end the first half, highlighted by a putback from freshman James Brown at the buzzer.

Entering the halftime locker room, UNC knew it was going to get up off of the mat, thanks in part to head coach Hubert Davis, who challenged his team ahead of the final 20 minutes.

“HD has a really good ability to bring that fire out of us and in the second half, he did that,” said Jae’Lyn Withers. “We weren’t going to keep taking punches.”

By the under-16 timeout, UNC had trimmed Kansas’ lead to just nine at 57-48, turning the aggressiveness of RJ Davis and Seth Trimble into seven points during that span.

If the Tar Heels could cut the lead to six in just over four minutes, they were confident they could do even more over the final 15 minutes of play.

But, to continue the second half success on offense, UNC needed to bring consistency on the defensive end, a glaring issue in the opening 20 minutes.

“I was telling the team in the first half, [and] told them at halftime that things can change and things can change quickly if our will and our want to and our desire on the defensive end raises and that’s what we did in the second half,” said Hubert Davis.

The Jayhawks connected on 59.5 percent of its shots in the first half, but were held to a measly 38.5 percent over the final 20 minutes, making just 15 of 39 attempts.

A team that thrives on transition baskets and a fast-paced offense, UNC turned missed Kansas baskets into fastbreak opportunities, forcing the Jayhawks to either give up uncontested shots or send the Tar Heels to the free throw line.

North Carolina earned 17 free throw attempts in the second half, converting 15 of them, including four in a critical stretch that allowed the Tar Heels to take the lead with 7:09 left.

Trailing by 11 with 10:39 to go, UNC scored 12 of the next 14 points, highlighted by four Trimble free throws and two 3-pointers via Withers.

The Tar Heels turned in a 16-for-32 shooting performance in the second half, including three threes from Withers and points from seven different players.

“It felt like we got it rolling, but I think also it shows how much we believed in one another to take it possession by possession to get a stop, to get a rebound, then execute on the offensive end,” said RJ Davis.

UNC would see its lead grow to as much as four at 87-83 when a Jalen Washington free throw capped off the 54-32 run, a feat that seemed next to impossible near the end of the first half.

“We’re resilient and we’re fighters,” said Washington. “Basketball is a game of runs, but we just kept our heads up and we knew that we were going to be back in this game and we were going to make it a fight.”

The fight ended with a Kansas victory, but the end result is reason for confidence in the Tar Heels.

On the road, in one of the most hostile environments in college basketball, against the No. 1 team in the country, UNC turned a 20-point deficit into a four-point lead with 3:30 remaining.

The 22-point advantage in that stretch didn't translate to a notch in the win column, but, it created a growing moment for the visiting Tar Heels.

“I think we showed toughness,” said RJ Davis. “We showed that we can climb back and it took all 15 guys in that locker room.”