The UNC Tar Heels play host to the Miami Hurricanes on Monday night in a crucial ACC showdown from the Dean E. Smith Center. The Hurricanes come in only a game back atop the ACC, while the Tar Heels are hoping to move into the top half of the standings themselves. Miami hits the road as winners of four in a row, while UNC was able to get back into the win column the last time out. These two are yet to meet this season, though with Miami winning the lone meeting last season, they'll be looking to keep that good fortune coming this season.
Miami has been one of the best stories of the last few years in NCAA basketball and have been able to build off of its impressive Elite 8 run last season to work its way toward the top of the ACC this season. Four wins in a row have turned some heads but there's no doubt that the last few weeks of games have marked the lightest part of their schedule. A road trip to UNC is always going to be a difficult game and considering they haven't won in Chapel Hill since 2018, a win on Monday would mark an impressive result. Miami has struggled on the road this season though, as they sit with only a 5-4 record in true road games. With their recent run of success and their eyes firmly on getting a top seed come to the NCAA Tournament, a win on the road against UNC would go a long way toward impressing and building up their resume.
One advantage that Miami has had this season has been its ability to remain relatively heal thy. They don't have any injuries to report as they hit the road on Monday and with depth being a clear advantage in this one for the Hurricanes, they'll certainly be excited to showcase that against the Tar Heels.
Big numbers from Zay, Norchad & Nijel!
It was the first time three Canes scored 20+ points in a game since January 2022. pic.twitter.com/MI9yjjv48n
— Canes Men's Basketball (@CanesHoops) February 12, 2023
The offensive side of things has been where Miami has found the majority of its success this season and they'll need that to continue to be the case on Monday. They rank 29th nationally in scoring and 18th in field goal percentage, which is likely to be a key metric to keep an eye on as they go up against a UNC defense that has struggled at times. One of Miami's other key advantages is their strong free throw shooting and getting to the line, which will be interesting, especially if they can get the Tar Heels into foul trouble. Having four double-figure scorers has been instrumental to their success this season and with Isaiah Wong (16.2 ppg) leading the way, they have one of the best backcourt players in the ACC at their disposal. The x-factor though, remains Norchad Omier (14.1 ppg, 10.0 rpg), as his rebounding ability will be key towards neutralizing Bacot on the other side.
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