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

The UNC basketball program is hoping to get back on track following a tough loss on the road Wednesday in South Bend against Notre Dame. But the task won’t be easy.

Coming into Chapel Hill on Saturday is the Virginia Cavaliers, a team that is 9-5 overall and 3-1 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. They are riding a two-game win streak fresh off wins over Syracuse and Clemson. While the Cavaliers got off to a slow start including a season-opening loss to Navy, they are playing better basketball.

They have also been UNC’s kyrptonite.

The Hoos have won the last seven meetings between the two programs and the Tar Heels just haven’t been able to solve them. Virginia has been the better team for most of those games including the double-digit win last year but the Feb. 15th, 2020 matchup between the two teams might have been the biggest heartbreaker for UNC as Virginia won at the buzzer.

This might be UNC’s best chance to beat Virginia in a few years but coming off a disappointing loss, how will the Tar Heels play?

Sitting at 2-1 in conference play, UNC needs to win this game as it’s the home opener in conference play and then have a week off before taking on Georgia Tech. Stacking wins now is key and this certainly feels like a game that can change the direction of a team’s season and potentially get a monkey off their back.

Something to Watch

Will the Tar Heels give more run to their freshmen? With Dawson Garcia and Kerwin Walton out for Saturday’s game, there’s an opportunity for both D’Marco Dunn and Dontrez styles, two players that haven’t seen a lot of action yet. The duo combined to go 0-for 3 in the loss to Notre Dame with all three shots attempted as three-pointers.

Dunn played 8 minutes while Styles logged 3 in the loss.

It’s not easy for a freshman to come in and play good minutes right away especially for a team that is loaded with depth. But with these injuries, a new opportunity has come about and UNC needs someone to step up.

Key to Victory

Caleb Love. Plain and simple. Armando Bacot and R.J. Davis led the way against Notre Dame and while Love finished with 15, most of that came in the second half. He had a very slow first half, which has happened before this season, and can’t wait to turn it on in the second half in this one.

Virginia brings back Kihei Clark and Reece Beekman for their backcourt and along with R.J. Davis, UNC needs their guards to win that battle. The Tar Heels have historically struggled to score against Virginia and if that happens on Saturday again, the Tar Heels will have no shot.

They need a third scorer to step up and that needs to be Love.

Projected Starters

No. 4 R.J. Davis (So., 6-0, 175) – 13.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 3.3 apg
No. 2 Caleb Love (So., 6-4, 195) – 15.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 3.3 apg
No. 1 Leaky Black (Sr., 6-8 200) – 4.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 4.2 apg
No. 45 Brady Manek (So. 6-9, 230) – 12.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg
No. 5 Armando Bacot (Jr., 6-10, 240) – 15.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg, 1.6 bpg

What You Need to Know

WHAT? Virginia Cavaliers (9-5, 3-1 ACC) AT North Carolina Tar Heels (10-3, 2-0 ACC)
WHEN? Saturday, January 8 – 1:00 p.m. EST
WHERE? Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina
TV? ESPN
RADIO? Tar Heels Sports Network
LINE? N/A
LAST MEETING? Virginia beat UNC 60-48 on Feb. 13, 2021
ALL-TIME SERIES? UNC leads all-time series 103-41
PREDICTION? UNC 72, Virginia 67

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