UNC Basketball vs. VCU: Game preview, info, prediction and more

The North Carolina Tar Heels will open up their NCAA Tournament run on Thursday night in Greenville, matched up against No. 11 VCU in the first round.

After a season in which UNC went 24-8 and 12-6 in the ACC, UNC earned a No. 6 seed in the South Region. It’s a tough region to be in for UNC especially without their best player in Caleb Wilson who is out for the year. But this team is hoping they can go on a run and shock some people.

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The Rams enter this tournament winners of the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament and would have been left out of the field if they didn’t. They are a good team with their leading scorer, Terrence Hill Jr., coming off the bench. In the first year under Phil Martelli Jr., the Rams have a deep rotation, going with 10 guys who can score and contribute throughout the game.

That’s one of their strengths. The 34 points per game from the bench is seventh in the country and they shoot the basketball well from the three-point line.

As for UNC, they are looking to avoid a second-straight first-round exit in the NCAA Tournament. They lost to No. 6 Ole Miss a year ago after beating San Diego State in the First Four in Dayton. In 55 years of being in the tournament, North Carolina has lost in the first round six times. But they have never lost in back-to-back years in that round.

This would be a historically bad stretch for UNC in terms of the tournament if they were to lose in the first round, marking the third time they would do that since 2021. They also missed the tournament in 2023 as well.

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Something to watch

Mar 12, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis in the huddle with his team during the first half against the Clemson Tigers at Spectrum Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

Can UNC set the tone early? North Carolina is the favorite but it’s just a 2.5-point spread and while they are the favorite, VCU is playing that underdog role. Letting a team like VCU hang around in the game could be…

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Publish date : 2026-03-18 11:30:00

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