Caleb Grill scored a game-high 31 points and Iowa State knocked off No. 1 North Carolina 70-65 at the Phil Knight Invitational on Friday in Portland, Ore.
Jaren Holmes added 22 for the Cyclones (5-0), who will play No. 20 UConn in the tournament championship on Sunday night. The Huskies beat the Crimson Tide 82-67 in the tournament semifinals on Friday.
R.J. Davis led North Carolina (5-1) with 15 points, Armando Bacot had 13 points with nine rebounds and Caleb Love scored 12.
Grill made the difference late for Iowa State with vital back-to-back jumpers.
First he hit a 3-pointer to tie the game at 61 with 2:25 remaining. Gabe Kalscheur then had a steal for Iowa State and set up a jumper for Grill to give the Cyclones the lead, 63-61.
Strong defense and solid work from the free-throw line then helped Iowa State ice the victory. Iowa State led 70-63 before a layup at the buzzer by North Carolina cut the final score to five points.
North Carolina's 3-point shooting made a difference in the loss. The Tarheels went 3 for 18 from beyond the arc, while Iowa State hit 9 of 20 and used long-range shooting to fuel the upset.
The Tar Heels looked like they were in a position to cruise multiple times, but they kept getting tracked down the Cyclones.
It was 47-47 with 7:58 remaining before North Carolina went on an 11-4 run to take a seven-point lead, but Iowa State battled back.
North Carolina led 30-21 during the first half after a layup by Davis. Iowa State then closed the half on a 11-4 run to make it a two-point game, 34-32, in North Carolina's favor at halftime.
Iowa State had reached the semifinal of the invitational with an 81-79 overtime victory against Villanova. North Carolina had dispatched Portland 89-81 in that same round.
--Field Level Media
North Carolina | Iowa State | |
RJ Davis 15 | Scoring | Caleb Grill 31 |
Caleb Love 3 | Assists | Tamin Lipsey 6 |
Armando Bacot 9 | Rebounds | Aljaz Kunc 6 |
RJ Davis 4 | Free Throws Made | Jaren Holmes 4 |
Puff Johnson 2 | Steals | Gabe Kalscheur 3 |
Armando Bacot 2 | Blocks | Caleb Grill 1 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
North Carolina | 65 | 44.0 | 3-18 | 18-25 | 12 | 31 | 2 | 7 | 14 |
Iowa State | 70 | 43.9 | 9-20 | 11-15 | 17 | 25 | 2 | 8 | 10 |