UNC Basketball Tabbed as Final Four Contender By College Basketball Analyst

The UNC Basketball program had a dominating victory over Atlantic Coast Conference foe Syracuse on Saturday afternoon as the Tar Heels completed their sixth straight victory to move to 5-0 in conference play.

The country is beginning to take notice of the level of play happening in Chapel Hill and recognize how the talent level of the roster that head coach Hubert Davis has constructed, with each player understanding and realizing their role. This is a completely different team than the 2022-2023 team that missed the NCAA Tournament and the Tar Heels are proving that on the court.

After the results across the landscape of college basketball on Saturday, college basketball analyst Jeff Goodman is buying into the thought that North Carolina is a Final Four contender.

Goodman references watching the Tar Heels last week at Clemson in person and then lists the reasons why he likes Hubert Davis' squad to contend for a trip to Phoenix in April. Goodman's first point on what makes this North Carolina team a contender is the way they guard and have toughness on the defensive end of the court.

UNC Basketball fans have been discussing for the past week now the level of defensive intensity that this team has reached over the previous month beginning with the Oklahoma game in Charlotte on December 20th.

The second reason Goodman lists is one that all North Carolina fans will agree on: Playing together. This is, and has been, a staple of UNC Basketball forever. Tar Heels everywhere know "Play Hard. Play Smart. Play Together." The 2023-2024 Tar Heels are putting on a clinic as of late and clicking on all cylinders by playing together and each individual player understanding their role.

The next reason that Goodman references is moving the ball when it matters. We've seen this several times in close games and in games when the outcome has already been decided. A week ago at Clemson, the Tar Heels were able to move the ball to get Paxson Wojcik a mismatch on PJ Hall that allowed him to create separation to make a three-pointer that gave North Carolina the lead for good.

Today, this play was one of the most beautiful plays you will ever see of sharing the basketball and making that one extra pass to find the open player.s

Goodman ends the segment discussing the UNC Basketball program on the Field of 68 Podcast by saying, "I love this Carolina team, and I think they are a legitimate Final Four contender right now."

Expect the currently No. 7-ranked UNC Basketball team to be in the top five of the new AP Poll come Monday afternoon due to five of the six top-five teams dropping games over the previous week, including No. 2 Houston losing two games.

What do you think, Tar Heel Nation? Do you agree with Jeff Goodman and are you buying into this North Carolina team being a Final Four contender yet? Or do you need to see more from these Tar Heels to believe that the ceiling for this team can be a trip to Phoenix, Arizona?

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