WATCH: Nate Santos Comes up Just Short of UNC Upset

Former Pitt wing Nate Santos had a huge moment in Dayton’s game against North Carolina that wrapped up after 2 a.m. eastern time.

The Flyers played against the Tar Heels in the Maui Invitational’s last game of day one of the event, and the game came down to the wire. After Dayton built up a 21-point lead in the beginning of the second half, the Tar Heels bounced back and climbed their way back into the game. With UNC up by three points and less than ten seconds to play, Dayton found Santos in the corner for a game-tying three-point attempt.

Toe on the line…

Nate Santos game tying 3 overturned to a 2-pointer 🙈 pic.twitter.com/zbv62ucLp6

— A10 Talk (@A10Talk) November 26, 2024

Santos drained the shot with a defender in his face, sending the crowd into a frenzy. However, after review, it was ruled that Santos’ right foot was on the three-point line, and the basket was ruled a two pointer. The Tar Heels then took home the win after some late-game fouling and a missed free throw from the Flyers.

Santos spent two seasons at Pitt before transferring to Dayton before the 2023-24 season.

Pittsburgh Panthers forward Nate Santos (5) February 21, 2023 David Hague/PSN

The Geneva, Illinois native started six games in the 2021-22 season for Pitt, playing almost 13 minutes per game. He struggled from outside at Pitt, shooting just 20% from three-point range. In his sophomore season, he appeared in 29 games but only averaged 1.6 points per contest.

Last year at Dayton, Santos was a member of the Atlantic 10 All-Conference team and averaged 11 points and six rebounds per game for the Flyers.