Heel Tough Blog: USC Upstate Preview

@UNC_Basketball

After not having a mid-week game due to exams on campus, the Tar Heels return to action this afternoon against USC-Upstate from the Big South conference. The last time we saw Carolina, they routed Georgetown 81-61, to improve to 8-1 on the season, and 6-0 at home. That win was powered by the lethal combination of Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar, who have emerged as one of the best duos in all of college basketball, combining to average 35 points and nearly 20 rebounds. The team is still awaiting the return of senior guard Seth Trimble, who has been out since early November, but according to head coach Hubert Davis, his rehab is progressing well and should be back either the week of Christmas or the week after. 

USC-Upstate brings with them a winning record to the Smith Center, having gone 6-5 in their first 11 games, with a competitive loss on the road at a nationally ranked Nebraska team. They have struggled away from home, though, posting a 1-4 record, with losses at California Baptist, Tennessee Tech, West Georgia, and the aforementioned loss to the Cornhuskers. They have three players averaging double figures in scoring, led by Mason Bedinger, and his 16.1 points per game, on 51% shooting from the field, including 36% perimeter shooting. 

Usually, coaches are excited when they have a week off during the season, because that means they can get into the practice gym and work on things that they are already excelling at, while also fine-tuning some things. But with exams taking place on campus this week, that means there wasn’t a lot of practice time for Carolina. They had a run-and-shoot practice earlier in the week, with formal prep for USC-Upstate beginning on Wednesday. 

This game qualifies as one where Carolina is obviously the more gifted team, and the expectation is for them to win and to win comfortably. Now, whether that happens or not remains to be seen, but what might be just as important as the margin on the scoreboard is the level of execution Carolina achieves on both ends of the floor, especially offensively. Here’s what to keep an eye on during today’s game: 

1. Be Ready to Play: This game is always one that worries coaches the most, given the fact that you don’t get much time to practice leading up to the game. Combined with the fact that the holiday season is in full effect, you never know what the energy in the building will be like leading into the game and during the game. That means Carolina may be responsible for bringing their own energy into the game, something that will be tougher to do against a mid-major opponent, as opposed to when playing the likes of Kansas or Georgetown at home. How Carolina approaches and handles this game will tell us a lot about the maturity of this group, something we believe is where you expect a Carolina team to be, after the way they responded following the big road win at Kentucky last week. 

2. Play Inside-Out: As you could imagine, Carolina will have the upper hand on the interior in terms of size, strength, and athleticism, and they need to exploit that early and often in this game. USC-Upstate only has a handful of players 6-7 or taller on their roster, let alone having multiple bigs to handle Wilson and Veesaar down low. The two combined to score 38 points and grab 29 rebounds in the win over the Hoyas last Sunday. It’s fair to expect similar numbers, if not more production, against a smaller, less talented team in the Spartans. 

3. Build Off Georgetown Performance: In the win over the Hoyas, Carolina scored over 80 points, and shot nearly 50% & from the field, while making 9 three pointers. That performance was needed after the slugfest win at Kentucky earlier in the week, and now they need to build off that because they need to start playing a higher level of offense as we get closer to the start of conference play. Kyan Evans had good moments, and he needs to build off that while staying out of foul trouble. Same thing for Derek Dixon, who scored 14 points on 5-7 shooting. Now it’s important to remember that Carolina’s offense will change once Seth Trimble returns from injury, but until then, they need to play a way that complements what they are doing defensively, and the best way to do that is to feast on an overmatched opponent, like USC-Upstate from the Big South. 

Series History: 

• This is the first-ever matchup between UNC and USC-Upstate. 

KenPom: 

• North Carolina - 24th overall. Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 117.9 (40th) Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 96.5 (19th) 

• USC-Upstate - 258th overall. Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 101.4 (281st) Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 109.3 (209th) 

NET: 

• North Carolina - 16th. 

• USC-Upstate - 196th. 

TV Info: 

• Today’s game will tip at 2 PM on the CW Network. 

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