With only five games and three home outings left on their regular season schedule, fourth-year UNC basketball head coach Hubert Davis and his Tar Heels (16-11, 9-6 ACC) host the Virginia Cavaliers (13-13, 6-9 ACC) at 4 p.m. ET Saturday (ESPN2).

North Carolina took the court on Saturday facing another 'can't lose' game in terms of their NCAA Tournament chances. With a Virginia team that has hovered around .500 in the ACC all season long, this was a game the Tar Heels needed to take care of business.

Overall, UNC is 26-6 against Virginia at the Smith Center. The Tar Heels are coming off a 24-point win against N.C. State, arguably UNC's best game from start to finish this season. RJ Davis scored 21 points to lead four UNC players in double figures.

UNC led from the start and never really looked back, dominating Virginia from the opening tip as they took down the Cavaliers 81-66. It was the third-straight win for UNC as they currently sit on the 'first four out' line on Joe Lunardi's latest Bracketology.

The North Carolina Tar Heels have now won three-straight games after beating Virginia 81-66 on Saturday afternoon. The wins are coming at the right time for the Tar Heels as they are still on the NCAA Tournament bubble with a few weeks left in the regular season.

Keep this page refreshed and bookmarked for live score updates and game highlights from UNC vs. Virginia at the Smith Center. UNC basketball vs Virginia score updates . Live score

In fact, they have to win this game, because at this point they can’t afford to lose another game that isn’t against Duke. What I’m the most curious about going into this one is whether or not UNC will be able to rediscover the defensive intensity that they had in the first half against NC State.