Greenville, South Carolina - Terrence Hill Jr. sank a three-pointer with 15 seconds left in overtime as the 11th-seeded VCU Rams defeated the sixth-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels 82-78 in the first round of the 2026 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament on March 19, 2026.
The Rams rallied from a 19-point second-half deficit at Bon Secours Wellness Arena[1], forcing overtime after Hill's layup tied the score at 75-75 with 11 seconds remaining in regulation.
North Carolina's Seth Trimble stole the ball with 2.9 seconds left but missed a three-point attempt that did not touch the rim. In overtime, the Tar Heels went 0-for-7 from the free-throw line while VCU took control late.
Nyk Lewis scored a layup for a 77-75 lead with 2:08 remaining. Trimble tied the game after being fouled but rimmed out a layup on the play and made one of two free throws. VCU regained the lead with a basket before Hill's decisive three-pointer.
Henri Veesaar was fouled for North Carolina with the score 80-78 but missed his first free throw, allowing VCU to close out the victory. Hill led the Rams with 34 points on 13-of-23 field goals, including 7-of-10 from three-point range.
VCU shot 62% from the field in the second half (47-36 scoring edge) to erase the deficit. The Virginia Commonwealth Rams compete in the Atlantic 10 Conference[2], while North Carolina represents the Atlantic Coast Conference[3].
Sources
- Wikipedia. "Bon Secours Wellness Arena". Accessed October 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bon_Secours_Wellness_Arena
- VCU Athletics. VCU Rams men's basketball homepage. Accessed October 2024. https://vcuathletics.com/sports/mens-basketball
- University of North Carolina Athletics. North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball homepage. Accessed October 2024. https://goheels.com/sports/mens-basketball
