After back-to-back home games, the Tar Heels are back on the road, as they are set to travel to Chestnut Hill, to take on Boston College. Carolina is 14-3, 6-0 in the ACC, and is on a seven-game winning streak, which has vaulted UNC inside the AP top 5 this late in the season for the first time since 2018-19. This will be Carolina’s first road action since winning three straight road games at Pittsburgh, Clemson, and NC State after the new year, and is the first leg of the Saturday-Monday turnaround, with Carolina set to host Wake Forest on Monday night, making this the most difficult road trip so far.
Boston College is 11-6 on the season and is 2-4 in conference play, and while neither record will blow you away, they do sport the best player in the country, nobody knows about. Quinten Post is an All-ACC caliber player, and he leads Boston College in scoring and rebounding. Post is one of four Eagles to average double figures scoring, as they feature a balanced offensive attack. Earl Grant’s squad may not have the size or the depth to compete with the best in the ACC, but they play as hard as any team in the league and will be fired up to play in front of a sold-out Conte Forum.
Despite beating Louisville 86-70 on Wednesday night, Hubert Davis wasn’t thrilled with his team’s effort on the defensive end of the floor, their worst defensive effort in over a month. They’ll be motivated to respond and get back to the dominance we’ve seen from them as of late.
The Tar Heels are 6-0 in ACC play for the first time since 2015-16, when they started 8-0, on their way to winning the regular season conference title. Kind of like the Louisville game earlier in the week, there’s nothing for Carolina to gain, but a loss could prove costly when the dust settles on the regular season in March. Here’s how Carolina can avoid dropping their first conference game this season:
Win Battle of Interior: Armando Bacot has taken his game to another level in ACC play, and that’ll need to be the case tomorrow afternoon, as he goes up against Quinten Post. We saw Bacot get the better of PJ Hall (Clemson) and DJ Burns (NC State), in earlier conference tilts, and he’ll look to continue that against Post. Post is a modern big, that can stretch the floor, and knock down perimeter shots, as he shoots over 40% from behind the arc. If Bacot struggles, Hubert Davis can always go to Jalen Washington off the bench to help slow down Post, as his length could prove to be a problem. In the recent hot streak, UNC has done a great job at limiting the impact of the opponent’s best player. That needs to be the case tomorrow afternoon.
Limit Turnovers: Carolina has done a good job since the Kentucky loss taking care of the basketball, and valuing possessions. With this game coming on the road, it makes it all the more important that they continue to do that. Conte Forum will be sold out and will be the best environment Boston College has played in front at home this season if Carolina commits careless turnovers that lead to easy buckets in transition for the Eagles, it’s only going to take that arena to another level.
Defend 3 Point Line: After holding four straight opponents to under 30% from behind the arc, Louisville shot 44% from deep on Wednesday and was the biggest reason why the Cardinals were still in the game in the second half. Boston College’s top two scorers both shoot over 40% from deep, which means that Carolina needs to be connected defensively, to make sure neither player gets hot from deep.
Series History:
Carolina is 22-6 all-time against Boston College and has won 16 of the last 17 contests. Since the Eagles joined the conference, UNC is 20-5. In Conte Forum, Carolina is 9-1, and has won seven straight since losing their in 2010.
KenPom:
North Carolina - 8th overall. Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 118.5 (16th) Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 92.9 (5th)
Boston College - 92nd overall. Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 113.7 (57th) Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 105.0 (153rd)
NET:
North Carolina - 9th.
Boston College - 86th.
TV Info: Tomorrow’s game will tip at 2:15 on The CW.
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