North Carolina played the first of two exhibition games ahead of the 2025-26 season on Friday night, heading to Utah to face off against No. 8 BYU. And it was a good test for the Tar Heels despite losing 78-76.
While the two teams went back-and-forth for most of the game, the Tar Heels actually took the lead late in the second half. But BYU went on a run and held a two-point lead before Seth Trimble’s shot near the rim didn’t go, giving the Cougars the win.
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Following the game, we broke down some key points for the Tar Heels.
Caleb Wilson looks the part
Oct 4, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Caleb Wilson (8) with the ball in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
It’s only an exhibition game, but in the first action we have seen from the talented freshman, Caleb Wilson looked the part. He was good defensively and helped the Tar Heels on the boards, giving them a legit option at the forward position.
Wilson is expected to have a huge role early on for the Tar Heels and in his first action, he stood out. The freshman finished with a double-double, scoring 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in the game. He should be the go-to guy for the Tar Heels in this offense moving forward.
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Henri Veesaar is already an upgrade
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – OCTOBER 24: AJ Dybantsa #3 of the Brigham Young Cougars blocks a shot by Henri Veesaar #13 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during the first half of their exhibition game at the Delta Center on October 24, 2025 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
One of the biggest issues for the Tar Heels last season was the center position. North Carolina didn’t get any consistency from the position, shuffling through guys until Ven-Allen Lubin eventually broke out. But he’s now at NC State and UNC looks like they have found their center.
Transfer center Henri Veesaar will be the starter and if he looks like he did on Friday night, UNC is in good shape for the season. Veesaar was arguably UNC’s best player on the court Friday night. That’s a great sign moving forward.
Three-point shooting was a problem
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – OCTOBER 24: Seth Trimble #7 of the North Carolina Tar Heels grabs a high pass away from AJ Dybantsa #3 of the Brigham Young Cougars during the first half of their exhibition game at the Delta Center on October 24, 2025 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
Something that hurt the Tar Heels a year ago reared its ugly head in the first exhibition game of the year. UNC finished the game just 4-of-19 from the three-point line, shooting 21 percent there. Jarin Stevenson hit two of three attempts and was the only starter to make a three-pointer.
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UNC is going to need that three-point shooting if they want to be better this season on offense.
This was a good test for UNC…
SALT LAKE CITY, UT – OCTOBER 24: Kyan Evans #0 of the North Carolina Tar Heels calls out a play during the second half of their exhibition game against the Brigham Young Cougars at the Delta Center on October 24, 2025 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images)
Exhibition games give coaches the chance to see what they have in their roster early on. With so many big non-conference games being scheduled early on in the season, these are a great opportunity to help your team prepare.
For UNC, they have a game against Kansas in the first week of the year while BYU has Villanova that same week.
So getting these two together was a good thing. The Tar Heels went out to Utah to face off against the No. 8 Cougars and held their own with what should be one of the better teams in the country. Yeah, the preferred result is a win but to hang in there and only lose by two isn’t a terrible thing.
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UNC is going to need Luka Bogavac
Oct 4, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Luka Bogavac (44) shoots in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
North Carolina received good news when Luka Bogavac was cleared by the NCAA to play earlier in the week.
But the bad news was that he wasn’t cleared by the university and there’s no timetable on when that will happen for him. Bogavac was able to travel with the team to Utah but he couldn’t dress and play. UNC really needs to get this figured out as Bogavac is expected to be a starter. With UNC’s shooting struggles from the perimeter, getting Bogavac eligible will be very important.
All we can do is wait as we are under 10 days until the start of the season.
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Takeaways from loss to BYU
