March Madness Preview: Tar Heels look to knock off No. 1 seed Baylor

The UNC basketball program faces off with No. 1 seed Baylor in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday afternoon.

After their convincing victory in the opening round of the March Madness tournament, the UNC basketball program is ready to take on its next challenge on Saturday afternoon.

In this matchup, the Tar Heels will square off with not only the best team in their respective region but one of the best programs in the entire country.

The No. 1 seed Baylor Bears, the defending national champions, are looking to make another run to the Final Four, as their next task will be trying to get past Hubert Davis’ squad. However, the Tar Heels have other plans, as they hope to play “spoilers” by adding another upset victory to the board in this year’s tournament.

Before the tournament even began, headlines surrounded the Baylor men’s basketball program, as a major development made some people question whether the Bears could still make a deep tournament run. Although Baylor will be missing a key contributor, this is still a team that has been red-hot since his absence, winning six of their last seven contests.

North Carolina has been just as successful on the court, winning seven of their last eight contests. You could easily make the case that their performance in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament was their best overall game of the entire season.

In a first-time battle between two of the hottest programs in the country, who will come out on top?

Key to Victory

Baylor is one of the most experienced teams in the country, coming in with a handful of key contributors who have plenty of NCAA Tournament experience.

The Bears have been very successful at limiting their opponents from beyond the three-point line. They’ve held opposing teams to a 29.7 shooting percent from beyond the arc, as they’ve been allowing just under six triples per contest.

We all know the UNC basketball program likes to shoot the ball from deep. In fact, they are coming off a game in which they made 13 three points, thanks in large part to Brady Manek and Caleb Love.

Success from deep could be the key, and it’s a battle that the Tar Heels have to win.

Against Marquette, Hubert Davis’ squad was effective in passing the basketball to find open shots. The great passing led to a variety of open shots, which was a major key to their overall offensive success.

Baylor will provide a difficult challenge defensively, but it’s up to North Carolina to create open shots. If they can get Armando Bacot going early, it will force the Bears to focus their attention inside, which should open up the perimeter for the Tar Heels shooters to get some good looks.

Something to Watch

When Caleb Love gets off to a hot start, the UNC basketball program greatly benefits from it. Against Marquette, Love got off to a tremendous start, as he had one of the best individual first-half performances that the program has seen in quite some time.

The question is: can Love get off to another hot start?

This will be something to monitor, as they will definitely need their sophomore guard to thrive in order to win this game. If Love’s shots go through the net early on, it could be a sign of good things to come for the Tar Heels.

Projected Starting Lineup

No. 4 R.J. Davis (So., 6-0, 175) – 13.6 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.4 apg
No. 2 Caleb Love (So., 6-4, 195) – 15.6 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 3.7 apg
No. 1 Leaky Black (Sr., 6-8 200) – 5.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.7 apg
No. 45 Brady Manek (Sr. 6-9, 230) – 14.8 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.9 apg
No. 5 Armando Bacot (Jr., 6-10, 240) – 16.5 ppg, 12.4 rpg, 1.7 bpg

What You Need to Know

WHAT? Baylor Bears (25-9, 14-4 Big 12) vs North Carolina Tar Heels  (25-9, 15-5 ACC)
WHEN? Saturday, March 19, 12:10 p.m. EST
WHERE? Dickies Arena – Fort Worth, Texas
TV? CBS
RADIO? Tar Heels Sports Network
LINE? Baylor -5.5
LAST MEETING? N/A (First ever meeting)
ALL-TIME SERIES? N/A (First ever meeting)
PREDICTION? Baylor 79, UNC 74

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