ACC Tournament: 3 keys for UNC to beat Notre Dame
Here are three keys for a UNC win over Notre Dame on Friday
The top-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels advanced to the ACC Tournament semi-finals on Thursday by beating the eighth-seeded Pittsburgh Panthers, 88-71.
With outstanding performances by Brice Johnson (19 pts, 10 reb) and Joel Berry (20 pts, 4 stl, 2 ast) the Tar Heels were able to break away in the second half for a comfortable victory over Jamie Dixon’s squad.
Friday evening, UNC faces stiffer competition in a Notre Dame team that is one of the most efficient offensive teams in the nation.
These three things will be the difference between winning and losing and decide who moves on to the ACC Tournament Championship game.
Turnovers
Notre Dame is a team that values the basketball very well, resulting in single-digit turnovers per game. In their first meeting of the season, the Irish turned the ball over twice. Yes, twice. The Tar Heels turned the ball over 13 times. Given the four point margin of victory for the Irish, it’s clear that the turnover discrepancy had a lot to do with the final score.
If the Tar Heels want to win tonight’s game and move on to the ACC Championship, they’ll need to focus on winning the turnover battle. They’ll need to force turnovers and avoid their own unforced errors.
Joel Berry has been an extremely active defender of late. He leads the team in steals and they will need him to be disruptive on defensive end again tonight. A few tipped passes leading to North Carolina run-outs could be the difference in this game.
Brice Johnson vs Zach Auguste
On Thursday, Zach Auguste showed the nation just how dominant he can be. He hit Duke with 19 points and 22 rebounds, dominating the Blue Devils in the paint throughout the second half of the game.
The Tar Heels, particularly Brice Johnson, will need to combat Auguste’s efforts with big
performances of their own. It’ll be important for fellow big men Isaiah Hicks and Kennedy Meeks to avoid foul trouble as well as providing Johnson with help on the defensive end. At 6-10, 240 pounds, Auguste can throw his body around in the paint with any player in the country. Johnson, Hicks and Meeks will have to play solid, fundamental defense in order to stop Auguste from having his way in the post.
In addition to sound defense, each of North Carolina’s big men will have to contribute on the offensive end of the court. Scoring down low and rebounding will come at a premium in this game. Offensive rebounds will likely lead to second chance points for the more aggressive team. The Tar Heels have to win 50/50 opportunities tonight.
Outside Shooting
As a team, the Fighting Irish shoot over 37 percent from long-range. The Tar Heels are about to complete the worst three-point shooting season in their long history, at under 32 percent. When UNC’s guards are hitting outside shots, they’re nearly unbeatable. When they’re not hitting shots, they can be beaten by almost any capable team.
To win tonight’s tilt, UNC will almost certainly have to hit some long-range shots. In addition to hitting threes, they’ll have to defend well against their opponent’s shots from behind the arc. Notre Dame’s Vasturia, Beachem and Ryan all shoot well from long distance. The Tar Heels will have to be ready to guard closely and close out quickly on shooters to prevent a shooting clinic from the Irish.
Joel Berry has emerged this season as the Tar Heels best option from three-point range. He will need to have another good shooting game, but with the help of Marcus Paige, who has struggled mightily to find his shot in 2016.