UNC-Alabama named a Top 10 Game of the Week by famed college basketball analyst

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LAHAINA, HAWAII – NOVEMBER 27: Ian Jackson #11 of the North Carolina Tar Heels lines up to dunk the ball during the first half of the Maui Invitational against the Michigan State Spartans at the Lahaina Civic Center on November 27, 2024 in Lahaina, Hawaii. (Photo by Darryl Oumi/Getty Images)

After a disappointing result in the famed Maui Invitational, the North Carolina Tar Heels are very happy to be playing basketball again at the Dean Dome.

There’s just one problem for UNC: its next opponent is a National Championship contender.

On Wednesday, Dec. 4 at 7:15 p.m., North Carolina will face Alabama in a rematch of April’s Sweet 16 battle. The Crimson Tide (6-2) have two wins against Top 25 opponents, while the Tar Heels have lost to both ranked opponents they faced.

When UNC and Alabama tip off Wednesday, they’ll be doing so in one of college basketball analyst Andy Katz’ Top 10 Games of the Week. Katz ranked Wednesday’s ACC-SEC Challenge clash third in his Top 10, between Marquette-Iowa State (second) and Baylor-UConn.

North Carolina beat Dayton in a thriller to open up its Maui Invitational run, then trailed for the entirety of its semifinal clash with Auburn. The Tar Heels forced a solid Michigan State team into overtime, but lost 94-91.

The Crimson Tide started 2024 with five straight wins before losing their first game, an 87-78 defeat at Purdue on November 15. Alabama beat ranked Illinois (#25) and Houston (#6) squads in its next two games, topped Rutgers 95-90, then lost to Oregon in the Players Era Festival Championship.

UNC plays significantly better at home, where it is already 2-0 in 2024 games against Elon and American. I’m willing to bet Tar Heel Nation will show up in full force – and if fans don’t have their tickets already, they’ll be hard-pressed to find available ones.

If North Carolina beats the Crimson Tide on Wednesday, we’ll all feel significantly better about the direction of its current season.

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/unc-alabama-named-top-10-025246988.html

Author : Tar Heels Wire

Publish date : 2024-12-03 02:52:00

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