UNC Basketball vs. Louisville: Game preview, info, prediction and more

The UNC basketball program will host the Louisville Cardinals in Chapel Hill on Saturday as they hope to get back on track in conference play. The Tar Heels will look to build upon a strong showing Wednesday night against Northeastern.

Louisville has not played since February 1st, having their last 4 games postponed due to COVID-19 protocol and contact tracing occurring in the Cardinals program, notably Louisville coach Chris Mack was diagnosed with COVID-19 on February 7th. Most recently, the Cardinals game against the Syracuse Orange scheduled for February 17th was postponed.

This, unfortunately, does not bode well for the Tar Heels as of now. The Cardinals are struggling with COVID-19 related issues, and there is potential for postponement of their game with the Tar Heels on Saturday.

The Cardinals are currently 11-4 and 6-3 in ACC play. Louisville has only played 9 conference games, the least out of any member. Louisville was a sure NCAA Tournament team last season and even with the loss of leading scorer Jordan Nwora, the Cardinals are on pace to make the tournament this season, barring any more postponements.

Louisville is led by senior guard Carlik Jones, who transferred last season from Radford. Jones is averaging 17.6 points per game, as well as 4.9 assists per game. He has garnered respect in the ACC, earlier in the season he joined Gonzaga’s Jalen Suggs as the only players added to the midseason Wooden Award nominee list.  Another budding star for the Cards is sophomore guard David Johnson who leads the team in 3-point percentage, sitting at just over 42% from behind-the-arc.

Key to victory for UNC Basketball

The Tar Heels are much bigger than the Cardinals. Louisville’s starting front court includes freshmen Jae’lyn Withers and Dre Davis along with sophomore Samuel Williamson. None of these 3 players are taller than 6’8″. UNC should have the advantage there.

On offense, Carolina will need to feed the ball into Armando Bacot and Garrison Brooks, who are both 6’10” and physically larger, while on defense the Tar Heels will need to be physical on the boards preventing second-chance points.

The backcourt for Louisville will need to be contained, both Carlick Jones and David Johnson are great scorers. The Tar Heels’ backcourt defense has struggled to contain excellent guard play, most recently when Northeastern’s Tyson Walker scored 25 against the Heels on Wednesday.

With the scoring ability of Louisville’s guards, Carolina will need to dominate the paint both scoring and rebounding. The Cardinals rank 2nd in the ACC in offensive rebounds per game, the only team better is the Tar Heels.

Something to watch for

As mentioned before, the Cardinals have not played since February 1st.

Louisville could be rusty, both physically and mentally. Coming off a 16-day hiatus, at the peak of the season, is going to difficult for any team. How aggressive will the Cardinals be? If the Tar Heels’ are able to get up early, the Cardinals may not be as prepared to play from behind as they would like.

Watch for Roy Williams to loosen up his half-court sets and see if he can get Louisville on their toes with Carolina’s signature up-tempo offense.

What you need to know

WHAT? North Carolina Tar Heels (13-7, 7-5 ACC) vs. Louisville Cardinals (11-4, 6-3 ACC)

WHEN? Saturday, February 20th @ 6:00 PM EST

WHERE? Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

TV? ESPN

RADIO? Tar Heels Sports Network

LINE? Not Available

LAST MEETING? Louisville defeated UNC 72-55 on February 22, 2020, in Louisville

ALL-TIME SERIES? UNC leads 15-7

PREDICTION? UNC 73, Louisville 67

For more on this game including a recap, please check back with Keeping It Heel.