Cade Tyson’s first two outings in the 2024-25 UNC basketball regular season didn’t yield what many folks expected. After finishing No. 2 in the country with his 46.5 shooting percentage beyond the arc as a sophomore at Belmont last season, he sat 1-for-7 from the field, including an 0-for-3 clip from deep, while totaling only two points through the Tar Heels’ 1-1 start, albeit in only 8.8 minutes per game off the bench.

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And in the first half of UNC’s blowout win over the visiting American Eagles (1-3, 0-0 Patriot League) on Friday night, it looked as though Tyson’s relative inactivity in the scoring department might continue. The 6-foot-7, 200-pound guard/forward from Monroe, N.C., posted only one stat in his nine minutes before the break: a turnover.

But just over seven minutes into the second half, Tyson connected on a three from the corner, drawing the following highlight post from the UNC basketball social media team:

His 3-point bucket led to a confident driving layup in transition a few minutes later.

Plus, with under 10 minutes remaining in the contest, Tyson knocked down two more threes in a span of 54 seconds.

He finished with 11 points, two rebounds, and two turnovers in 21 minutes of action, shooting 4-for-8 overall and 3-for-7 from 3-point range.

Sure, that isn’t a brilliant box score. Nevertheless, in light of his previous games, there’s doubt that the effort against American on Friday night is an encouraging sign for what the Tar Heels might enjoy from the 21-year-old Cade Tyson this season.

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