UNC Basketball: Armando Bacot earns ACC honors

UNC basketball junior Armando Bacot has been on a tear here lately, putting together an impressive streak of six-straight games with a double-double for the Tar Heels. His latest big game came on Saturday in the much-needed win over the Virginia Cavaliers which ended a seven-game losing streak for the program to the ACC foe.

Bacot finished that game with 29 points and 21 rebounds, making some history along the way.

With his efforts over the past two weeks, Bacot earned some Atlantic Coast Conference honors for the week. Bacot was named the Men’s Basketball Player of the Week for January 2-8. He averaged 25.0 points and 19.5 rebounds in the two games, including that monster game against Virginia.

Bacot managed to set a new career-high with 17 rebounds in the loss to Notre Dame and then broke his own mark with 22 against the Cavaliers. He’s also the first player to have a 20-20 game in the Dean Dome since Sean May did it for the Tar Heels.

The junior has been a force this year, averaging 16.6 points per game and is averaging 11.1 rebounds. He leads the ACC in double-doubles and is second in the country in that stat here in January.

With this stretch, Bacot has established himself as a legit candidate for the ACC Player of the Year, likely battling talented Duke freshman Paolo Banchero. Bacot also became the first UNC player to earn Player of the Year honors since Cole Anthony did it back in the 2019-20 season.

For more on Bacot and other UNC basketball players, please check back with Keeping It Heel.