Keeping It Heel
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UNC Basketball scheduled to face defending Champs

By Jordan Falls

NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 17: Head coach Hubert Davis of the North Carolina Tar Heels reacts during the second half of a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden on December 17, 2022 in New York City. North Carolina defeated Ohio State 89-84 in overtime. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 17: Head coach Hubert Davis of the North Carolina Tar Heels reacts during the second half of a game against the Ohio State Buckeyes in the CBS Sports Classic at Madison Square Garden on December 17, 2022 in New York City. North Carolina defeated Ohio State 89-84 in overtime. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /
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Another piece of the 2023-2024 basketball schedule has been released for the UNC basketball program as the Tar Heels are set to face UConn.

The 2023-2024 UNC basketball non-conference portion of the schedule is slowly being pieced together.

Earlier this week we heard who the opponent would be for the Tar Heels in the CBS Sports Classic. Now, according to a source first reported by Jon Rothstein, we know that the Tar Heels will face the defending 2023 National Champions, UConn Huskies next season in the Jimmy V Classic.

We have known that the Tar Heels would be part of the Jimmy V Classic in Madison Square Garden for some time now as it was announced before the 2022-2023 basketball season. The Huskies were announced as part of the field in December 2022. We still do not know who the other two programs participating will be, but we do know they will play each other.

North Carolina and UConn have a rich college basketball history between the two programs combining for 12 National Championships and 27 Final Four appearances. The Tar Heels and Huskies have gone head-to-head six times with UNC holding a 5-1 advantage on the hardwood.

The two programs played four consecutive seasons from 2002-2005 as part of a home-and-home agreement. One of those games was during Roy Williams’ first season at UNC when the no. 9 ranked Tar Heels hosted no. 1 UConn in the Smith Center. The Tar Heels upset the top-ranked Huskies 86-83 on a Rashaad McCants three-pointer with 6.2 seconds remaining.

UConn would go on to win the 2004 National Championship. The Tar Heels would also beat the Huskies the next season in 2005 by a score of 77-70 before going on to win a National Championship of their own, the first of three under Roy Williams. UNC and UConn haven’t met since, even though they came one game shy of matching up in the 2009 National Championship but UConn lost to Michigan State in the Final Four.

Playing in Madison Square Garden, and in New York, has been an emphasis for the UNC basketball program since Hubert Davis took over two seasons ago. This past season, the Tar Heels played Ohio State in MSG during the CBS Sports Classic. UNC basketball fans should expect to see a lot more of Carolina blue in New York while Davis is at the helm.

Next. UNC Basketball Recruiting offers five-star Caleb Wilson. dark

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