Under three seconds left against the defending National Champions, Andrew Goudelock skirted by North Carolina’s defender Deon Thompson with his dribble-penetration and sank a long-range 3-pointer to catapult the College of Charleston Cougars into overtime against the Tar Heels.

Nearly four minutes and 44 seconds later, Donavan Monroe sank two free throws to give the Cougars some breathing room.

But it wasn’t until Monroe intercepted an inbounds pass by Ed Davis that sealed the deal for the College’s 82-79 upset victory over the ninth-ranked Tar Heels in front of 5,072 at the Carolina First Arena.

Hundreds of fans stormed the John Kresse Court to cheer on their team as the College improved to 8-6 overall.

“It was a blessing for me. I think every kid who plays basketball has dreams like this,” Goudelock said after the game. “For it to happen to all of us on this day, it’s a loss for words.”

Goudelock finished with 24 points and terrorized the Tar Heels from 3-point range, shooting 4-for-8.

Coach Bobby Cremins contemplated calling a timeout during the final seconds but saw that his star guard was calm and focused. Sure enough, Goudelock delivered.

The key to this game, Cremins said, was “recruiting Andrew Goudelock.”

With the loss, North Carolina falls to 11-4 overall as they prepare to host Virginia Tech this coming Sunday.

This was the third time that Charleston has upset North Carolina. Under former coach John Kresse, the College defeated third-ranked UNC 66-64 in the 1998 Food Lion MVP Classic and also beat an unranked team 66-60 at the Tournament of Champions in 2001.

Goudelock got plenty of help from his teammates. Monroe and Casaan Breeden finished with 15 points apiece while Jeremy Simmons and Tony White, Jr. scored 13 each.

North Carolina used its size to its advantage with 44 points in the paint. The 6-foot-9-inch Thompson and fellow teammate 6-foot-10-inch Davis led the team with 17 and 19 points, respectively.

It wasn’t enough though, North Carolina coach Roy Williams said.

His team only shot 38 percent from the field and did not make a single 3-pointer until there was one minute left in overtime when Larry Drews II sunk a bucket from the outside.

During the first half, the College did not give up. With the exception of the first basket, the Cougars held a lead until the final six minutes when the score went back and forth between the teams.

But thanks to a Goudelock bucket with 32 seconds left and a blocked shot by Rashad Wright at the buzzer, the College went into halftime with a 37-36 lead.

“I liked where we were. I told them at halftime, I think we can play better,” Cremins said. “The first five minutes are the key. So give everything you can for 20 minutes. You’re off tomorrow and you won’t have to talk to me for 48 hours.”

Even 15 minutes after the game, White couldn’t express his emotions.

“It feels great. I got asked the same question on the court, and i didn’t know how to answer,” White said. “It is great to do it this year with this group of guys. I couldn’t have asked for anything else.”

White had a career-high eight rebounds, and for a team that always gets outrebounded, he said, they did everything they could to come away with a win.

“That’s nothing new to us. We find some way to win. We’re not that big inside. We’re starting three small guards on the perimeter. It’s a group effort,” White said.

Williams was appalled. His team outrebounded Charleston 56-36 and his players made 23 free throws, but North Carolina couldn’t stop Charleston’s shooters.

“It was a bizarre game. At halftime, I felt like we were so lucky. I felt like we should have been down by 15,” Williams said. “We wanted to go inside, but we didn’t get it in enough.”

North Carolina’s 3-point shooters Marcus Ginyard and Will Graves were sidelined with foot injuries, but Williams said the rest of the team has to make some shots, too.

Now, Charleston focuses on conference play. The team won three straight in December against Georgia Southern, Davidson and UNC Greensboro. The team will take on cross town rivals, the Citadel, this coming Saturday, and that game is what is most important, Cremins told his players at the half.

“Coach made a good point in the locker room. He said no matter what happens tonight, the Citadel is the bigger game,” White said. “Coming from him, the ACC coach, that was a big statement. The conference wins matter, but we got the win tonight so now we can focus on the Citadel.”

Cremins said he and his team will remember and cherish this win for a long time, but after the night’s celebrations, it’ll be time to get focused.

“Those kids are in another world right now. I know what’s coming. We gotta get ready because now we’re going to be a target. We’re really going to be a target.”

Geoff Yost and Jason Parker contributed to this report. Audio of the Post-Game press conference will be on CisternYard.com tomorrow.