No. 3 North Carolina (16-3 SU, 12-7 ATS, 8-0 ACC) travels to Tallahassee to take on Florida State (12-7, 11-8 ATS, 6-2 ACC) in a battle for ACC supremacy on Saturday at 2pmET from the Donald L. Tucker Center.
These teams met on Dec. 2 with Carolina winning 78-70 as a 12.5-point favorite at home.
Earn more by utilizing our sportsbook promo codes.
North Carolina has been so good lately, that Jerry Palm has them listed as a number-one seed with Purdue, Houston and UConn. That would be far-fetched a few weeks ago, but since then, UNC has won nine straight, with their last loss coming against Kentucky (87-83) on Dec. 16. They've also covered all but one of those games and that was a 16-point win over Louisville as a 21-point favorite. In their last win on Monday over Wake Forest, R.J. Davis threw in a career-high 36 points on 14-of-23 shooting (4-of-8 3pt). Harrison Ingram, a 6-7 Stanford transfer, added 10 points and 14 rebounds.
??: Win Column ?? Wake Forest pic.twitter.com/IM6ntQSK5z
— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) January 25, 2024
According to KenPom, UNC is ranked 6th with an Adjusted Defensive Efficiency ranking of 4th. That's been the key to this team, because they usually have players who can score. Last year, they were 46th in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency, and the year before, 35th. Davis (6-0, 185) has been spectacular, averaging 21 points and 3.4 assists, while shooting 44.5% from the field, 93.8% from the line, and 41.7% from beyond the arc. Armando Bacot (6-11, 240) adds size and production with 14.1 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks.
Overall, the Tar Heels are averaging 83.5 points per game on 45.9% shooting and 35.6% from long range. They allow 69.1 points per game on 39.5% shooting (19th) and just 28.5% (14th) from beyond the arc. They also rank 19th in rebounding % rate at 54.9%).
Feeling stale with your basketball picks? Try our NCAAB Betting picks and make a score!