UNC at Miami (FL): Game preview, prediction and more
The UNC men’s basketball team looked sluggish, slow and unprepared during Tuesday’s rare home loss to Clemson.
North Carolina star center Armando Bacot and power forward Harrison Ingram even said so in Tuesday’s postgame presser. Head coach Hubert Davis highlighted the practices between the Duke win and Clemson loss weren’t great.
It’s tough to think of many positives, but despite the letdown, UNC still is first place in the ACC. There’s much less margin for error, but all is well again if the Tar Heels beat the University of Miami (Florida) on Saturday afternoon.
The Hurricanes were one of March Madness’ greatest surprises last year.
After winning the ACC regular-season title for just the second time, Miami lost in its second game of the ACC Tournament to eventual champion Duke. The Hurricanes hit the reset button en route to an historic run, making their first Final Four appearance in school history.
Miami still has stars Norchad Omier, Nijel Pack and Wooga Poplar from last year’s run, but it hasn’t played at the level many expected. Wins over a formerly-ranked Clemson and a tough Kansas State squad will certainly help its case come NCAA Tournament time, but a win over North Carolina Saturday is likely needed, too.
How can the Tar Heels avoid yet another letdown?
Key to victory for UNC
There’s a couple of different directions we could roll with UNC’s key to victory, but I think it’ll boil down to how UNC starts Saturday’s game.
If the Tar Heels could play at 100%, like they did throughout most of the victory over Duke, that’d be even better.
North Carolina started extremely slowly in the loss to Clemson. The visiting Tigers jumped to a 15-2 lead behind Joe Girard and PJ Hall’s hot shooting. UNC climbed all the way back to tie things in the second half, but failed to take its first lead on multiple occasions.
If Miami gets hot early, the Tar Heels have to counter. That could start with leading scorer RJ Davis, who – despite passing Michael Jordan on the all-time scoring list and breaking his own personal 3-point record, only made 7-of-22 shots from the field.
Something to watch
We all want to know which version of UNC are we going to see? The one that played a complete game and dominated Duke, or the one that looked sluggish and unprepared for Clemson?
Knowing North Carolina head coach Hubert Davis, he’ll have his players ready. I expect to see the Tar Heels play pissed off on Saturday, with everyone from RJ to Paxson Wojcik making some sort of key contribution.
A win will not be easy for UNC, though. The Watsco Center is sold out. The Tar Heels will have to deal with a raucous, expectedly Hurricanes-heavy crowd.
What you need to know
WHAT? UNC (18-5, 10-2 ACC) vs. Miami (15-8, 6-6)
WHEN? Saturday, Feb. 10 at 4 p.m. ET
WHERE? Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Florida.
TV? ESPN (Watch and stream the game live on WatchESPN)
RADIO? Sirius XM (Channel 81 or 193)
LINE? N/A
LAST MEETING? Miami won 80-72 in Chapel Hill on 2/13/23
ALL-TIME SERIES? UNC leads, 26-10
PREDICTION? UNC 85, Miami 82
