After a big win over nationally ranked Virginia on Saturday night, the UNC basketball program hits the road for its final regular season road game.
It’s hard to believe, but we’ve officially reached the final week of the 2022-2023 college basketball regular season.
The UNC basketball program has one road game remaining, as they’ll be in Tallahassee, Florida on Monday night to take on the Florida State Seminoles.
This upcoming matchup is a battle between two programs that are coming off big-time victories.
For the Tar Heels, they just knocked off top-10 ranked Virginia at home in what could be a crucial victory on the team’s NCAA Tournament resume. After falling behind by 25 points, the Seminoles battled back to defeat Miami.
Now, these two teams will square off for the first time this season, as the stakes are a bit different for each side. However, both teams aim to finish the regular season on a strong note, as this game could be a nice momentum booster not only heading into the final game of the regular season later in the week but also looking ahead to next week’s ACC Tournament in Greensboro.
Key to Victory for North Carolina
North Carolina has a major size advantage in the post when looking at the potential starters for Florida State, as they need to capitalize on it.
However, the key to this one is to slow down Matthew Cleveland, the Seminoles’ leading scorer.
Insert Leaky Black.
Not only does Black possess the size to match Cleveland, but has the defensive skillset to get the job done. Known as a defensive stopper, it’s likely that Hubert Davis will rely on his top defender to keep the Seminoles’ top scorer at bay.
Something to Watch For
Pete Nance is coming off back-to-back strong performances. His outing against the Cavaliers was simply dominant and much-needed for the Tar Heels to pull off the victory.
Can Nance continue this success?
His production is huge for this team moving forward. It will be interesting to see how Nance follows up on these performances and whether or not he can keep up the very strong production on both ends of the floor.
Last Meeting
On February 12, 2022, the UNC basketball program defeated Florida State in convincing fashion 94-74 at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Four Tar Heels scored in double-figures, including Caleb Love who had a game-high 18 points. Armando Bacot was dominant in the post, recording a 17-point, 14-rebound double-double performance, while Brady Manek and RJ Davis each contributed 16 points in the win.
Projected Starters
No. 1 Leaky Black (Gr., 6-9 205) – 7.0 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.4 apg
No. 2 Caleb Love (Jr., 6-4, 200) – 16.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.7 apg
No. 4 R.J. Davis (Jr., 6-0, 175) – 15.7 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 3.3 apg
No. 5 Armando Bacot (Sr., 6-11, 235) – 17.0 ppg, 10.9 rpg, 1.0 bpg
No. 32 Pete Nance (Gr. 6-11, 230) – 10.2 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 1.6 apg