UNC basketball vs. Louisville game preview

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Dec 29, 2024; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard Ian Jackson (11) reacts with forward James Brown (2) and guard Drake Powell (9) in the second half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The North Carolina Tar Heels are fresh off exactly the type of result they needed on the basketball court, dominating Campbell University by a 97-81 mark on Sunday, December 29 in one final tune-up for ACC play.

UNC (8-5, 1-0 ACC) played its most balanced, efficient brand of basketball we’ve witnessed through its young season, with all five starters scoring in double-figures. North Carolina shot a scorching 57.1 percentage from the field, while RJ Davis became the Tar Heels’ 3-point king by surpassing Marcus Paige.

UNC’s schedule is about to increase drastically in difficulty, as it now hops into an entirely-ACC schedule in 2025. North Carolina’s next conference test will be at the Louisville Cardinals on Wednesday, January 1 at 6 p.m. ET to open the New Year. Louisville (8-5, 1-1 ACC) looks significantly improved in its first year under new head coach Pat Kelsey, already matching its 2023-2024 win total.

Unless you count neutral site games, the Tar Heels haven’t played a true road game since Saturday, November 23 at Hawaii. UNC beat the Rainbow Warriors, 87-69, for its first road victory in two tries.

Both North Carolina and the Cardinals enter their New Year’s Day clash with momentum, with each program winning their past two games. The Tar Heels upset UCLA and dominated Campbell, while Louisville beat Florida State comfortably and held off Eastern Kentucky.

If matchup history is any indication of how Wednesday’s game will play out, UNC has a big advantage, winning the past five clashes. North Carolina last beat the Cardinals, 86-70, on January 17 in Chapel Hill, while the Cardinals’ last win over the Tar Heels came in February 2020.

Let’s take a deeper dive into UNC’s second ACC game – and Louisville’s third. The Cardinals aren’t an ACC…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/unc-basketball-vs-louisville-game-120200213.html

Author : Tar Heels Wire

Publish date : 2024-12-31 12:02:00

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