Card Falls to Tar Heels in Maui Semis

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) -- Playing in a hard-fought battle that included eight lead changes and 10 ties, No. 14 North Carolina hold off Stanford 67-63 in Tuesday's semifinals at the relocated Maui Invitational.

Freshman Caleb Love scored 16 points to lead the Tar Heels (3-0), who did just enough down the stretch to stay unbeaten. UNC shot 50% after halftime and won despite committing 24 turnovers, which led to 22 points for Stanford.

Daejon Davis led the Cardinal with a game-high 18 points, while dishing four assists and recording four steals. Oscar da Silva (13), Bryce Wills (12) and Ziaire Williams (10) joined Davis in double figures, with Jones and Wills tallying three steals apiece.

Leaky Black finished with 10 points and seven rebounds as one of five players in double figures for North Carolina. He came through with his biggest play when he drove into the paint and scooped in a layup to increase UNC's lead to 66-63.

Then, after Spencer Jones missed a straightaway 3 for the tie with about 10 seconds left, Black grabbed the rebound and was fouled. He missed the first free throw but hit the second to make it a two-possession lead and all but ensure UNC would advance to the Maui title game.

The game featured a matchup for UNC coach Roy Williams against one of his former players and assistants in Stanford's Jerod Haase, who beat his mentor while head coach at UAB but had lost the other four meetings.

The tournament is being played in the North Carolina mountains instead of its traditional Hawaii setting due to the coronavirus pandemic. It's a home-state game for the Tar Heels in the city where Roy Williams grew up and played in high school, though with fan cutouts in the stands and crowd noise pumped in.

The Cardinal will face Indiana in Wednesday's third-place game, scheduled for 10:30 a.m. PT on ESPN.