UNC basketball will leave California with back-to-back losses for the first time this season. Sitting at No. 15 in the USA TODAY coaches poll and 14th in AP Top 25 poll, the Tar Heels lost 84-78 against the Golden Bears at Haas Pavilion in Berkeley. UNC (14-4, 2-3 ACC) has lost three of its last four games and its defense took another dive against the Golden Bears (14-5, 2-4). Cal never trailed, scoring 54 points in the first half, including 10 3-pointers to take control against the Tar Heels, who trailed by as many as 20 points early in the second half. The Golden Bears, who scored 56 total points in their previous game against Duke, shot 50% against UNC.

The Heels rallied to make it a four-point game in the final two minutes, using a 20-5 run to put some pressure on Cal. But the Golden Bears made enough free throws to keep UNC at bay, connecting on 12 of 16 free throws in the game. The Heels missed 11 free throws. Caleb Wilson (17 points), Henri Veesaar (14 points, 10 rebounds), Derek Dixon (14 points) and Seth Trimble finished in double figures for UNC. Cal was led by John Camden (20 points), Dai Dai Ames (19 points) and Justin Pippin (19 points).

Cal scored in the first 21 seconds and led the rest of the first half, leading by as much as 19 points against UNC. The Golden Bears scored 54 points and made 10 3-pointers, shooting 63% from 3-point range and 56% overall against UNC’s defense.

Keep this page bookmarked and refreshed for scores, live updates and highlights from the Tar Heels vs. Golden Bears.

UNC vs Cal final stats

Here are final stats from the Tar Heels’ loss at Cal:

Cal 84, UNC 78: Final score

FINAL: Cal 84, UNC 78

UNC down 81-78 after Henri Veesaar 3-pointer with 18.6 seconds left

UNC trails 81-78 with 18.6 seconds left at Cal. Henri Veesaar made a 3-pointer before the Tar Heels called their penultimate timeout.

UNC down 81-75 vs Cal with under a minute left

UNC trails 81-75 with 57.1 seconds left.

Seth Trimble makes free throws to make it 79-75 vs Cal

Seth Trimble made a pair of free throws to make it 79-75 with 1:47 left. UNC trails and hasn’t made a shot in more than three minutes.

UNC battling late, but Cal staying ahead by two possessions

UNC trails 79-73 with two minutes left at Cal.

Derek Dixon 3-pointers help UNC trim Cal lead to six points

UNC trails 77-71 with 4:12 left at Cal. Derek Dixon has knocked down three 3-pointers in the second half, all in the last 5-plus minutes. It’s a 16-3 run in a four-minute stretch to make it a two-possession game.

Tar Heels down 9 vs Cal with 6 minutes left

UNC trails 74-65 with 6:30 left at Cal.

UNC free-throw shooting poor at Cal

In addition to UNC’s abysmal defense, the Tar Heels have missed 32 free throws across the last two-plus games, including 10 at Cal. UNC trails 74-57 with 8 minutes left.

UNC trails by 15 vs Cal with 11:24 left in second half

UNC trails 67-52 at Cal with 11:24 left to play. The Tar Heels haven’t allowed a made shot in nearly three minutes.

UNC cuts Cal lead to 13, but Golden Bears hit 3-pointer to extend lead

UNC trimmed Cal’s lead to 63-50, but the Golden Bears buried an open 3-pointer to push the advantage back to 16 points.

Cal continues to hammer UNC defense, takes 20-point lead

UNC gives up 54 points in the first half. Cal opens the second half by making three of its first four shots (dunk, layup, 3-pointer)

UNC vs Cal halftime stats

Here are first-half stats for UNC vs. Cal:

Cal 54, UNC 37: Halftime

Halftime: Cal 54, UNC 37

UNC defense soft, poor against Cal, which has 12-point lead

UNC trails Cal 43-31 with 2:51 left in the first half. The Golden Bears have seven 3-pointers and are shooting 52% against the Tar Heels’ poor defense.

UNC down 31-24 at Cal late in first half

UNC trails 31-24 against Cal with 6:51 left in the first half. The Tar Heels, who went to a 2-3 zone, are allowing the Golden Bears to shoot 50%.

UNC defense continues to disappoint vs Cal, which has 26 points and big lead early

UNC trails 26-13 with 11:09 left in the first half. Cal is on an 11-0 run and has scored 16 points in a five-minute stretch.

UNC basketball off to another poor start, getting crushed by Cal on offensive glass

Cal has four offensive rebounds and 10 second-chance points in the first four-plus minutes. UNC trails 12-10 with 15:44 left in the first half.

Derek Dixon in starting lineup for UNC basketball vs Cal

Derek Dixon has replaced Kyan Evans in the starting lineup for UNC vs. Cal. Dixon is joined by Seth Trimble, Jarin Stevenson, Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar.

What time does UNC vs Cal start?

Date: Saturday, Jan. 17

Time: 4 p.m. ET

Where: Haas Pavilion in Berkeley, Calif.

What TV channel is UNC vs Cal on today?

How to watch online: Fubo (free trial)

TV: ACC Network

Streaming: Fubo (free trial)

UNC vs Cal predictions

It’s hard to put trust in the Tar Heels because of how they’ve defended on the road through two ACC games, but the Golden Bears have lost four of their last five games, including three in a row. If UNC can’t get right in this game, the season is officially in a spiral.

UNC 83, Cal 70

UNC vs Cal injury updates

The ACC released its first availability report for UNC vs. Cal at 11 p.m. ET on Friday, Jan. 16. Injury lists are released the day before conference games at 8 p.m. local time for the location of that particular game. The final injury list is released two hours prior to tipoff. UNC reserve Isaiah Denis are listed as probable on the initial report for the fifth straight ACC game.

Who is starting for UNC basketball vs Cal?

Here are the potential starting lineups for UNC vs. Cal:

UNC

Kyan Evans (5.9 ppg, 3.4 apg)

Seth Trimble (15.4 ppg, 4.4 rbg, 3.3 apg)

Jarin Stevenson (6.8 ppg, 3.8 rbg)

Caleb Wilson (19.9 ppg, 10.9 rbg)

Henri Veesaar (17.4 ppg, 9 rbg)

Cal

Dai Dai Ames (17.3 ppg, 2.6 apg)

Justin Pippen (14.4 ppg, 4 apg)

Chris Bell (13.3 ppg, 2.6 rbg)

John Camden (13.1 ppg, 4.6 rbg)

Lee Dort (8.7 ppg, 7.6 rbg)

UNC vs Cal stats

UNC

PPG: 82.2

PPG allowed: 68.7

FG%: 48.1

3PT%: 33.8

NET ranking: 30

Cal

PPG: 78.5

PPG allowed: 70.1

FG%: 45

3PT%: 35.3

NET ranking: 68

UNC basketball schedule 2025-26

Nov. 3: Central Arkansas (W, 94-54)

Nov. 7: Kansas (W, 87-74)

Nov. 14: N.C. Central (W, 97-53)

Nov. 18: Navy (W, 73-61)

Nov. 25: vs. St. Bonaventure (W, 85-70)

Nov. 27: vs. Michigan State (L, 74-58)

Dec. 2: at Kentucky (W, 67-64)

Dec. 7: vs. Georgetown (W, 81-61)

Dec. 13: vs. USC Upstate (W, 80-62)

Dec. 16: vs. ETSU (W, 77-58)

Dec. 20: vs. Ohio State (W, 71-70)

Dec. 22: vs. ECU (W, 99-51)

Dec. 30: vs. Florida State (W, 79-66)

Jan. 3: at SMU (L, 97-83)

Jan. 10: vs. Wake Forest (W, 87-84)

Jan. 14: at Stanford (L, 95-90)

Jan. 17: at Cal

Jan. 21: vs. Notre Dame

Jan. 24: at Virginia

Jan. 31: at Georgia Tech

Feb. 2: vs. Syracuse, 7 p.m. (ESPN)

Feb. 7: vs. Duke

Feb. 10: at Miami

Feb. 14: vs. Pitt

Feb. 17: at NC State

Feb. 21: at Syracuse

Feb. 23: vs. Louisville, 7 p.m., (ESPN)

Feb. 28: vs. Virginia Tech

March 3: vs. Clemson

March 7: at Duke

Rodd Baxley covers North Carolina Tar Heels athletics for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his ACC coverage on X/Twitter or Bluesky: @RoddBaxley. Got questions regarding UNC? Send them to rbaxley@usatodayco.com.