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The Tar Heels are set up nicely for a very big win tonight in Charlotte.
In the first of two crucial games this week, UNC has the de facto home court advantage at the Spectrum Center. The opponent is undefeated Florida, which is 10-0 and ranked 7th behind No. 2 Auburn and No. 6 Alabama, which both beat the Heels by double digits.
The Gators have had a far softer schedule than Carolina, which has also lost to No. 8 Kansas and No. 20 Michigan State. The Tar Heels have the eighth hardest schedule in the country, while Florida is No. 52 after playing four unranked Power conference schools.
The on-court match-up is also favorable for the Heels. Florida starts a three-guard lineup which like Carolina is the Gators’ strength with good, perhaps better, outside shooting.
Their two best players are 6-3 senior Walter Clayton, averaging 19 points and shoots 92 percent from the foul line. Next highest scorer is 6-2 senior Alijah Martin, who averages 15 points. They should not be able to outscore R.J. Davis, Elliot Cadeau and Seth Trimble.
Up front, their leading rebounder with 7 a game is 6-11 sophomore Alex Condon, who will not dominate the paint against Hubert Davis’ rotating and fresh postmen. Florida’s second-best big man who does not start is a 6-10 sophomore who averages 5-plus points and 6-plus rebounds a game. The UNC bigs are combining for 15 boards per outing.
The Gators shoot slightly better from the floor and 3-point range, which can be attributed to average accuracy of late by Davis, Cadeau and Trimble, all battling inconsistency early in the season. Cade Tyson has shown he can help with more minutes to feel comfortable.
Charlotte has always been the Tar Heels’ second home, and a sellout is expected to provide a substantial advantage. This is a major game for them, almost a must-win and definitely their best shot to beat a Top 10, Quad 1 team that will be their biggest victory of the season after the rough scheduling start.
Both teams like to run and average 86 points per game. So it should be a contest at a fast pace, which Carolina prefers with a lot of noise in their favor. If the Tar Heels win, it will look very big because of Florida’s record and ranking; losing will be equally damaging.
Coach Davis used the same starters for his first seven games but has since gone to a four-guard lineup with 6-6 freshman Drake Powell and 6-8 transfer Ven-Allen Lubin inside. And, at least against La Salle, the Heels were more successful using all five players moving better, penetrating and passing to create ball screens and good looks.
Hubert also introduced a full-court press, which he might test tonight and likely Saturday against 18th-ranked UCLA in New York City, another Quad 1 game.
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Featured image via Todd Melet
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
Chansky’s Notebook: First of Two Chapelboro.com.
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