CHARLOTTE — UNC basketball had a second chance with a second-half surge, but second-chance opportunities for Florida were the difference in a 90-84 loss for the Tar Heels at the Jumpman Invitational. 

The Tar Heels (6-5, 1-0 ACC) rallied from a 17-point deficit in the first half to take a four-point lead against the seventh-ranked Gators (11-0) with four minutes, but UNC didn’t score in the final two minutes on Tuesday at Spectrum Center in Charlotte. 

UNC is 2-7 in the regular season against top-10 nonconference opponents under fourth-year coach Hubert Davis. The Heels play No. 18 UCLA (9-1) on Saturday (3 p.m., CBS) in the CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

Here are three observations from UNC’s loss to Florida in the Jumpman Invitational.

Florida basketball’s second-chance points beat UNC

Florida had four points on its second-chance opportunities down the stretch to take the lead, finishing the game on an 11-2 run, including an 8-0 stretch to cue the celebration at the final buzzer. UNC allowed 16 offensive rebounds, which the Gators turned into 21 second-chance points. The Tar Heels have allowed an average of more than 91 points in their five nonconference losses this season. UNC had a four-point lead with just over four minutes left, but Florida had an 8-2 rebounding edge the rest of the way, including four offensive rebounds. The Gators also made each of their eight free throws in that stretch.

RJ Davis, Seth Trimble, Ian Jackson get Tar Heels back in it 

RJ Davis finished with 29 points and eight rebounds, Seth Trimble added 11 points and seven rebounds, and Ian Jackson scored all 11 of his points after halftime to help the Heels get back in the game. Davis and Trimble combined for seven of UNC’s 11 steals. Offensively and defensively, UNC was much sharper in the second half. But Florida won the final four minutes, and the game.

UNC basketball sticks with first-half script 

For the sixth time this season, UNC trailed by double digits in the first half of a game as Florida sprinted out to a 16-6 lead in the first four minutes. For the fifth time in the last seven games, the Tar Heels allowed an opponent to reach 40 points in the first half. The Gators led by as much as 17 in the first half and had a 12-point lead at halftime. It was bad across the board for UNC, which missed 14 of 16 attempts from 3-point range and shot 30% overall. 

Rodd Baxley covers Duke, North Carolina and N.C. State for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his ACC coverage on X/Twitter or Bluesky: @RoddBaxley. Got questions regarding those teams? Send them to[email protected].