Henri Veesaar already understands what it means to play for the UNC basketball program.
Since arriving in Chapel Hill, Veesaar has taken his game to a whole other level. The former Arizona Wildcat has formed one of the nation's best front-court duos with Caleb Wilson, and Tuesday night's performance was yet another example of that notion.
Veesaar scored a career-high 26 points, connecting on 10 of his 11 shots from the floor, to guide the Tar Heels to their 10th victory of the 2025-2026 season. While East Tennessee State hung around for a bit, the junior big man knows that his team dictates the game, not the other way around.
"I feel like we let them hang in for the first 16 minutes, and then we kind of pushed the start button, turned it up a little notch, and then we just kept going," Veesaar said. At halftime, we spoke about how it's our game. We dictate how we play; they're not dictating us. So, kind of just asserting our will and the way we want to play was a huge part.
In terms of his efficiency from the floor, Veesaar was very complimentary of his teammates' great ball movement throughout the night.
"I feel like we just had overall great team ball movement in being able to move the ball side to side. We were finding easy pocket passes, and with me being strong with the ball around the rim, finishing towards the basket, and not leaning away. I think that made a huge impact that let me be efficient."
A humble giant, Veesaar's presence in the post is a very refreshing sight for UNC basketball fans, especially after a season in which the Tar Heels lacked size in the front court. His development and progression has been one of the biggest storylines thus far through the college basketball season, Veesaar has been a major factor in the UNC basketball program's early season success, and will need to continue his outstanding play as the season continues to progress.