Caleb Wilson watched on as the North Carolina Tar Heels finished the 2025-26 college basketball regular season with a 24-7 overall record and 12-6 in conference play, earning the No. 4 seed in the ACC Tournament. But their conference tournament run ended quickly, falling to RJ Godfrey and the No. 5 seed Clemson Tigers in the quarterfinals.
Now, UNC will turn its attention to the NCAA Tournament, where it earned the No. 6 seed in the South region. To begin March Madness play, the Tar Heels will face Terrence Hill Jr. and the No. 11 seed VCU Rams, who won the Atlantic 10 title, in the opening round. The game will be played at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina.
Wilson ranked as one of the top prospects in the 2025 recruiting class. Not only was he a five-star recruit, but he also ranked as the eighth-best player in the class, along with the third-best power forward and the top prospect from the state of Georgia (247Sports). Wilson proved his value during his freshman season, averaging 19.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.4 blocks per game, all of which led North Carolina.
But during a practice in early March, Wilson suffered an injury on a dunk attempt, breaking his right thumb, which happens to be on his shooting hand. The freshman forward was ruled out for the remainder of the season, forcing him to miss not only the ACC Tournament, but the upcoming NCAA Tournament as well.
Still, despite the injury, Wilson played well enough to earn AP second-team All-American honors. And, as per North Carolina tradition, with the honor, the Tar Heels will be hanging Wilson’s No. 8 jersey in the rafters at the Dean E. Smith Center. He will join many other UNC legends who made an All-American team, including Michael Jordan, Tyler Hansbrough and RJ Davis.
“Another jersey in the rafters 🙌,” Carolina Basketball wrote on X. “@CalebWilson2025 has been named @AP Second Team All-American.”
Another jersey in the rafters 🙌@CalebWilson2025 has been named @AP Second Team All-American. pic.twitter.com/0jiIWDcbkZ
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) March 17, 2026
North Carolina will take on VCU on Thursday at 6:50 p.m. ET.
Related: Jon Scheyer, Duke Receive Good Injury News Before NCAA Tournament
This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Mar 17, 2026, where it first appeared in the College section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.