UNC Basketball: ACC Opener vs. Florida State Game Preview

After starting the season 6-1, the UNC Basketball program begins conference play and will welcome the Florida State Seminoles to the Smith Center.

Isn’t it weird to have Atlantic Coast Conference games being played on the first Saturday in December?

Well, the UNC Basketball program, coming off a big home win over No. 10 Tennessee, will begin ACC play as they welcome the Florida State Seminoles into Chapel Hill on Saturday, December 2nd.

Florida State enters the game 4-2, with an impressive 77-71 win over No. 18 Colorado. Both of their losses have come to SEC opponents in Florida and, most recently, in the ACC/SEC Challenge, Georgia.

Key to Victory for North Carolina

Defense. The Seminoles average 80.3 points per game, which will be the second-best offense the Tar Heels have seen this season (Arkansas averages 80.6 ppg). Coming off a game in which Carolina allowed Tennessee to score 92 points, the defense needs to be an emphasis in this game.

Florida State is relatively balanced in their scoring, as they only have two players averaging in double figures. The Tar Heels should look to dominate the battle on the boards with rebounding as well. The Seminoles’ leading rebounder is Jamir Watkins, with 5.8 rebounds per game.

Armando Bacot and Harrison Ingram, 11.6 and 6.9 rebounds per game, respectively, both average more than that and could take advantage to dominate the rebounds in this game.

Something to Watch For

Jamir Watkins is a key piece for Leonard Hamilton’s squad. He is second on the team in scoring, with 13 points per game, and steals (1.7 per game), and first in rebounding and assists (3.8 per game).

The Tar Heels will need to limit Watkins, a six-foot-seven junior, in any way they can, especially offensively. For the previous three games, an opposing player has scored 34 (or more) points against the UNC Basketball defense, and improving upon that will be important in the first ACC game of the 2023-2024 season.

Last Meeting

This will be the 70th all-time matchup between the Seminoles and Tar Heels, with North Carolina holding a 53-16 record. The two teams last met on Monday, February 27th, in Tallahassee, with the Tar Heels coming out victorious with a 77-66 win.

North Carolina had four players score in double figures that night, with RJ Davis leading all scorers with 19. Leaky Black followed it up with a career night, scoring 18 points. While Caleb Love and Pete Nance contributed 16 and 15 points respectively.

Projected Starters

No. 2 Elliot Cadeau (Fr. 6-1, 180) 7.1 ppg, 1.4 RPG, 4.1 apg

No. 3 Cormac Ryan (Gr. 6-5, 195) 11.5 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.2 apg

No. 4 R.J. Davis (Sr. 6-0, 180) 19.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 2.6 apg

No. 5 Armando Bacot (Gr. 6-11, 240) 16.7 ppg, 11.6 rpg, 1.1 apg

No. 55 Harrison Ingram (Jr. 6-7, 235) 15.0 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 2.3 apg

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