R.J. Davis leads No. 10 UNC past Hawaii 87-69, moves to fourth on Tar Heels' all-time scoring list

Updated Nov. 23, 2024 11:05 a.m. ET

Associated Press

HONOLULU (AP) — R.J. Davis scored 14 of his 18 points in the first half and No. 10 North Carolina pulled away from Hawaii 87-69 on Friday night.

Elliot Cadeau had 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting, Seth Trimble scored 11 of his 13 points after halftime and Ian Jackson added 11 for the Tar Heels (3-1).

Davis, an All-American guard, moved into fourth place on North Carolina’s all-time career scoring list. He overtook Sam Perkins with his free throw at the 11:59 mark of the first half.

Gytis Nemeiksa led Hawaii with 16 points and had 10 rebounds. Akira Jacobs made three 3-pointers and scored 13 points off the bench. Tanner Christensen had 10 points and 10 rebounds and Marcus Green added 10 points for the Rainbow Warriors (4-1).

North Carolina never trailed and led by as many as 21.

Takeaways

North Carolina: Despite being outrebounded 40 to 27, the Tar Heels turned it over just five times and limited Hawaii to five points off turnovers.

Hawaii: The Rainbow Warriors used a 12-4 run late in the first half to make it a one-possession game at 35-32 but weren't able to overcome its cold perimeter shooting (8 of 23 on 3-pointers).

Key moment

Hawaii cut North Carolina’s lead to 41-36 with Christensen’s bucket 27 seconds into the second half, but Jalen Washington ignited a 19-4 run for the Tar Heels with his answer on the other end. Drake Powell’s easy basket inside, off an assist from Washington, capped the run and stretched it back to a 60-40 cushion.