NCAA Tournament Best UNC first and second round games of all-time

North Carolina Tar Heels vs. Washington Huskies (2011), Second Round (Round of 32)

This game is one of the best college basketball games I have ever seen. This second round NCAA tournament game was loaded with NBA talent.

The 2011 Washington Huskies consisted of current NBA players Isaiah Thomas (Boston Celtics), Justin Holiday (New York Knicks), Terrence Ross (Orlando Magic) and C.J. Wilcox (Orlando Magic).

The 2011 North Carolina Tar Heels had Reggie Bullock (Detroit Pistons), Harrison Barnes (Dallas Mavericks), John Henson (Milwaukee Bucks) and Tyler Zeller (Boston Celtics).

The Tar Heels were very close to losing this game as  Washington fought till the end.

Although Washington held an 11 point lead in the first half, North Carolina rallied to cut the deficit to one point by halftime.

Late in the game, the Huskies had a chance to seal the victory after UNC’s Kendall Marshall missed a free throw. Down 84-83 with less than 17 seconds left in the game, Washington secured the rebound and advanced down the court. Washington missed their shot attempt.

They received a second chance to score after the ball went out of bounds on North Carolina. UNC’s Henson blocks Holiday’s pass, which UNC’s Dexter Strickland receives. Strickland makes two free throws with 5.6 seconds left in the game.

North Carolina defeats Washington 86-83. Zeller had 23 points and Barnes scored 22 points for UNC. Washington’s Ross scored 19 points (3-of-5 from three-point range), Wilcox had 11 points (3-of-5 from three-point range) and Thomas had 12 points (5-of-15 from the field) and eight assists.