Northern Iowa Panthers at North Carolina Tar Heels
· NCAA Men's Basketball
42 - 85
Meeks leads No. 8 UNC past Northern Iowa, 85-42
Meeks scored 10 of his 18 points during the Tar Heels' dominant second half, leading them past the Panthers 85-42 on Wednesday night.
"He was the difference in the game," Hall of Fame coach Roy Williams said.
Justin Jackson added 12 points while Joel Berry II and Isaiah Hicks finished with 11 apiece for the Tar Heels (11-2).
Bennett Koch scored 10 points before fouling out with 7:19 left for the Panthers (5-6), who have lost two straight and six of eight.
A big reason for that was Meeks, who said he caught an earful from Williams after Klint Carlson reeled off five consecutive points and it "woke me up a little bit."
BIG PICTURE
"Just gave up too many offensive rebounds," said Jeremy Morgan, the team's lone returning starter. "You've got a good team like this, you can only afford to give them one opportunity, and we gave them too many second chances."
North Carolina: Meeks controlled the paint all night long for the Tar Heels, and wound up with his highest-scoring game against a Division I opponent this season. His season high of 20 points came against Division II Chaminade last month in the Maui Invitational.
INJURY REPORT
STAT SHEET
Northern Iowa shot 33 percent. The Panthers are 5-0 when shooting 40 percent or better, and 0-6 when they're at 39 percent or worse.
UP NEXT
Northern Iowa: Returns home to face Missouri State on Dec. 28 in its Missouri Valley Conference opener.
North Carolina: Plays host to Monmouth on Dec. 28 in its final nonconference game.
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Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 42 - 85 |
| 2nd 0:08 | Seventh Woods made Dunk. | 42 - 85 |
| 2nd 0:08 | Seventh Woods Steal. | 42 - 83 |
| 2nd 0:08 | Rafael de Souza Turnover. | 42 - 83 |
| 2nd 0:11 | Seventh Woods made Dunk. | 42 - 83 |
Statistics
 UNI |
 UNC |
|
|---|---|---|
| 16-48 | FG | 34-65 |
| 33 | Field Goal % | 52 |
| 6-24 | 3PT | 7-19 |
| 25 | Three Point % | 37 |
| 4-8 | FT | 10-16 |
| 50 | Free Throw % | 63 |
| 24 | Rebounds | 42 |
| 3 | Offensive Rebounds | 11 |
| 21 | Defensive Rebounds | 31 |
| 6 | Assists | 20 |
| 3 | Steals | 12 |
| 2 | Blocks | 2 |
| 17 | Turnovers | 5 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 1 |
| 17 | Total Turnovers | 5 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Points Off Turnovers | 0 |
| 0 | Fast Break Points | 0 |
| 0 | Points in Paint | 0 |
| 15 | Fouls | 14 |
| 4 | Largest Lead | 43 |
Game Information
Location: Chapel Hill, NC
Capacity:
2025-26 Missouri Valley Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belmont | 16-4 | - | 26-6 |
| Bradley | 13-7 | 3 | 21-13 |
| Illinois State | 12-8 | 4 | 23-13 |
| Murray State | 12-8 | 4 | 20-13 |
| UIC | 12-8 | 4 | 19-16 |
| Northern Iowa | 11-9 | 5 | 23-13 |
| Valparaiso | 11-9 | 5 | 18-15 |
| Southern Illinois | 10-10 | 6 | 16-16 |
| Drake | 6-14 | 10 | 14-20 |
| Indiana State | 4-16 | 12 | 11-21 |
| Evansville | 3-17 | 13 | 7-25 |
2025-26 Atlantic Coast Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Duke | 17-1 | - | 35-3 |
| Virginia | 15-3 | 2 | 30-6 |
| Miami | 13-5 | 4 | 26-9 |
| North Carolina | 12-6 | 5 | 24-9 |
| Clemson | 12-6 | 5 | 24-11 |
| Louisville | 11-7 | 6 | 24-11 |
| NC State | 10-8 | 7 | 20-14 |
| Florida State | 10-8 | 7 | 18-15 |
| California | 9-9 | 8 | 22-12 |
| Stanford | 9-9 | 8 | 20-13 |
| Virginia Tech | 8-10 | 9 | 19-13 |
| SMU | 8-10 | 9 | 20-14 |
| Wake Forest | 7-11 | 10 | 18-17 |
| Syracuse | 6-12 | 11 | 15-17 |
| Pittsburgh | 5-13 | 12 | 13-20 |
| Notre Dame | 4-14 | 13 | 13-18 |
| Boston College | 4-14 | 13 | 11-20 |
| Georgia Tech | 2-16 | 15 | 11-20 |