No. 19 North Carolina won its 20th game of the season Saturday but it wasn’t easy, the Tar Heels holding on for a 48-46 home victory over Boston College.

Tyler Zeller scored 16 points to lead North Carolina (20-6, 10-2 ACC), which nearly blew a 15-point second-half lead. Boston College (16-10, 6-6) was led by 13 points each from Joe Trapani and Reggie Jackson.

The Tar Heels pulled within one game of idle Duke for the ACC lead. Duke plays host to Georgia Tech on Sunday.

North Carolina led 45-32 with 7:37 to play, but Boston College outscored the Tar Heels 14-3 to get within 48-46 on Jackson’s 3-pointer with 1:15 remaining. The Eagles had a shot to win in the closing seconds, but Jackson missed a contested 3-pointer with five seconds to go.

Ahead just 21-20 at halftime, North Carolina opened the second half with a 18-4 run. Zeller’s three-point play kick-started the surge and the 7-0 footer scored the first seven Tar Heels’ points of the second half.

The Eagles slipped five games behind Duke, tied with Clemson for fifth place.