UNC basketball vs. Lehigh: Scouting report, prediction for Tar Heels

Coming off its best offensive output in a season opener since 2017, North Carolina basketball will aim to continue that production against Lehigh.

The 19th-ranked Tar Heels (1-0) host the Mountain Hawks (0-1) at 2 p.m. Sunday in a game that will be televised on ACC Network. The only previous game between UNC and Lehigh was a 62-58 win for the Tar Heels at Woolen Gym in 1941.

Coming off an 86-70 win against Radford at the Dean E. Smith Center, UNC will have one more home matchup (UC Riverside on Nov. 17) before traveling to the Bahamas for the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament.

Here’s a look at some things to know and a score prediction for UNC’s second meeting with Lehigh.

Keeping an eye on UNC basketball’s assists, defense

After finishing last season with assists on just 45.8% of their baskets, UNC had 18 assists on 32 shots (56.2%) against Radford in the 2023-24 opener. The Tar Heels were a bit careless out of the gate with six turnovers in the first 10 minutes, but they finished with five the rest of the way. Along with offensive improvement, UNC saw its defense go from bad to good against the Highlanders. After a hot start by Radford, UNC limited the Highlanders to 42.4% shooting overall.

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Solid starts for Elliot Cadeau, Jalen Washington

Freshman guard Elliot Cadeau came off the bench in his UNC debut, dishing out a team-best six assists in 19 minutes. Cadeau’s numbers were the best in a freshman debut since Bobby Frasor had seven in 2005. Sophomore forward Jalen Washington also showed promise off the bench with eight points and four rebounds in 10 minutes. As a freshman, Washington had more than six points once in 19 games.

Armando Bacot closing in on another Tyler Hansbrough record

Fifth-year veteran Armando Bacot is UNC’s all-time leader in double-doubles and rebounds, but he can snag another record Sunday. Following a 25-point, 13-rebound performance that included five offensive rebounds, Bacot is two offensive boards shy of passing Tyler Hansbrough for the program’s all-time record.

UNC vs. Lehigh score prediction

UNC 90, Lehigh 66: The Mountain Hawks were picked to finish second in the Patriot League preseason poll and Tyler Whitney-Sidney is one of the top players in the league. But CJ McCollum isn’t coming to Chapel Hill on Sunday.

Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: UNC basketball vs. Lehigh: Scouting report, prediction