UNC Basketball set to host streaky Boston College
On Tuesday night, the UNC basketball program will host Boston College at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Hopefully for the last time this season, UNC basketball fans will have to deal with the dreaded “RSN” in order to watch Tuesday night’s game.
That “RSN” which stands for Regional Sports Network, leaves fans who may not be in the Chapel Hill area a potential issue while trying to watch this game. However, we encourage everyone to plan accordingly and ahead of time to avoid missing any Tar Heels basketball!
441. 431. RSN. Tuesday, January 17, 2023. 12-6. . 7:00 PM EST. 8-10
After a convincing victory over Louisville on Saturday afternoon, North Carolina returns to the Dean Smith Center for a two-game home stretch that kicks off on Tuesday night. The Tar Heels will welcome Boston College, which has been very streaky throughout the first 18 games of the 2022-2023 campaign, to Chapel Hill.
On January 7, the Eagles almost pulled off an upset victory over Duke, but ended up losing by a single point. Since then, Boston College has struggled, as they have back-to-back double-digit losses to Miami and Wake Forest.
All three of those squads are quality opponents, but the Eagles certainly aren’t happy with how that stretch played out. Riding a three-game losing streak, they’ll come to Chapel Hill in hopes of securing their first win since January 3.
Key to Victory for North Carolina
Steady contributions all around.
In the win over Louisville, the Tar Heels had five players in double-figures, including seven players with six or more points.
Of course, the game plan doesn’t change: feed the post. However, this offense is much more efficient when the guards are hitting their shots (D’Marco Dunn is the perfect example), as they force teams to not be able to fully focus their attention on Bacot.
As Caleb Love continues to look for his groove, guys like Dunn and Puff Johnson will need to step up and provide an extra offensive boost.
Something to Watch For
Armando Bacot battled through his ankle injury, as even though he wasn’t fully healthy, he still found a way to be his dominant self.
Fortunately, with the way Saturday’s game went, the Tar Heels only needed him to play 25 minutes. It will remain to be seen just how much Bacot can go as he looks to get back to full health.
Pete Nance’s back injury is starting to be a concern as well. How long will this keep him sidelined, and how does Hubert Davis compensate for his absence?
Last Meeting
On January 26, 2022, the UNC basketball program captured its second victory of the 2021-2022 season over Boston College.
It wasn’t pretty by any means, as the Tar Heels shot just 29.1% from the floor, but they were able to hold the Eagles to just 16 second-half points en route to a 58-47 victory.
Other than RJ Davis (who was 4-9 from the floor) and Leaky Black (who made two of his three shot attempts), the rest of the Tar Heels struggled to put the ball in the basket. Caleb Love led all scorers with 16 points, while Davis finished with 13.
Armando Bacot dominated the boards, recording 18 rebounds, but struggled shooting the basketball, making just one of his 10-shot attempts.
Projected Starters
No. 4 R.J. Davis (Jr., 6-0, 175) – 16.2 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 3.3 apg
No. 2 Caleb Love (Jr., 6-4, 200) – 16.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.3 apg
No. 1 Leaky Black (Gr., 6-9 205) – 7.2 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 1.5 apg
No. 14 Puff Johnson (Jr. 6-8, 200) – 4.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 0.4 apg
No. 5 Armando Bacot (Sr., 6-11, 235) – 17.4 ppg, 10.9 rpg, 1.2 bpg
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