Seth Trimble is the headliner from Saturday night in Chapel Hill, as he should be. His three-pointer with 0.4 seconds left gave North Carolina its first lead of the night — and it was the only one that mattered.

The Tar Heels won, 71–68.

Trimble finished with 16 points, while Derek Dixon — whose pass to Trimble won’t be talked about enough — added eight points and four assists. But the game only reached that moment because of the play of two projected top-five NBA Draft picks who carried their respective teams for long stretches.

We knew all eyes were going to be on Caleb Wilson and Cameron Boozer because of their pedigree. And outside of Trimble’s heroics, Wilson made the biggest statement.

Duke sprinted out to an 18–5 lead with contributions coming from everywhere around Boozer, which ended up being the largest margin of the night. North Carolina made it a point early to limit Boozer’s touches, doubling him whenever possible, and he was more than willing to move the ball. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels couldn’t find any offensive rhythm.

So they turned to Wilson.

He responded with 17 of North Carolina’s final 24 points in the opening frame, stabilizing a team that was teetering and preventing the game from getting away. In the process, he showcased exactly why he’s projected to be such a high selection in June’s draft.

He hit heavily contested fadeaways. He punished overplays with step-through counters. He brought the ball up the floor, knocked down perimeter shots, and played high-level defense. Wilson got what he wanted even as the rest of UNC’s roster struggled to get going. His 5-for-7 shooting in the first half helped offset a brutal 4-for-20 showing from his teammates.

“He basically put us on his back in the first half,” head coach Hubert Davis said. “For whatever reason, we were a little too amped up. Because of that, we were making mistakes on both ends of the floor. He’s the one that kept us close. His confidence is unreal.”

Much like Darryn Peterson did against AJ Dybantsa a week earlier, Wilson made it a point to go directly at Boozer. That mentality — paired with his NBA-ready athleticism and increasingly polished skill set — is exactly what’s going to have front offices debating whether he belongs ahead of Boozer on some draft boards.

Wilson cooled off in the second half, scoring six points on just five shot attempts as others found their footing, but his impact never faded. He made his presence felt defensively, where his length and athleticism altered shots and disrupted Duke at the rim.

After shooting well in the first half, the Blue Devils went just 12-for-32 from the field after the break.

“He doesn’t talk about ‘me,’” Davis said of Wilson. “He’s always talking about ‘we’ and about the University of North Carolina men’s basketball program. When you have that, along with his ability, you have something special.”

For as much as Wilson made things difficult, Boozer remained steady — as he always is. Duke needed him to be. Without him, the Blue Devils wouldn’t have stayed afloat as long as they did.

The 6-foot-9, 250-pound forward scored 15 of his game-high 24 points in the second half, finishing 7-for-15 from the field while showcasing his full repertoire. He powered past Henri Veesaar to get to the rim, used ball fakes to slip by Wilson and Jarin Stevenson, and punished defenders who sagged off him by knocking down shots from deep (2-for-4 from three).

While Wilson flashed tantalizing upside, Boozer methodically went about his work. And it was almost enough.

The lasting image of this game will be Trimble’s game-winner — a moment that will live in Chapel Hill lore forever. Plenty will also be made about the chaos afterward, including the court storm and its fallout.

But the underlying storyline was always about these two stars — and the subtle way Wilson began to separate himself.

What separated Wilson from Boozer on this night wasn’t production — Boozer had the cleaner box score — but difficulty. Everything Wilson generated came against a defense entirely keyed on stopping him, in a game where North Carolina had no margin for error and very little help early. He didn’t wait for opportunities to appear; he created them, again and again, through length, pressure, and constant attention.

Boozer, for all his brilliance, operated within a structure that worked. Duke stretched the floor, created advantages, and when the Blue Devils needed stabilizing buckets late, Boozer delivered like the seasoned player he is. There’s real value in that. It’s why he’s been etched near the top of draft boards for years.

But Wilson’s first half was something else entirely — a takeover that bent the geometry of the game and forced Duke to abandon its original plan.

That’s the separator scouts will linger on. Wilson didn’t just score; he rescued a struggling team, dictated matchups, and imposed himself physically and creatively in ways that translated directly to winning. The defense followed. The confidence followed. And when the moment arrived for someone else to land the final blow, the game was still there to be won because Wilson dragged it there.

Trimble will — and should — be remembered forever for the shot. But if this night quietly nudges front offices to reshuffle their boards, it will be because Caleb Wilson looked like the player who could bend a game to his will — not merely survive it.