UNC faces Tough Test in Virginia

Written by Sharon Thorsland

North Carolina snapped a two-game losing streak with an impressive win over Notre Dame on Wednesday. Now the Tar Heels (15-4, 3-3 ACC) face a much tougher challenge, traveling to Charlottesville to take on #14 Virginia. The game has been moved up to a noon kick-off on Saturday because of the forecasted ice storm.

This is a new-look Virginia team. The days of slow it down, ugly ball are over in Charlottesville now that Tony Bennett retired and interim Ron Sanchez was let go after one year. Now Durham native Ryan Odom has taken over. Odom has an interesting tie to the Cavaliers – he was the head coach of UMBC when they famously became the first-ever #16 seed to upset a #1 in the NCAA tournament. Odom has this Virginia team playing well; they’re 16-2 (5-1 ACC) on the season and riding a five-game win streak.

The Cavaliers definitely play at a faster pace these days, averaging 84 points. It’s the first time since 2000-01 that they’ve put up more than 80 points a game. They’re also good on the glass, picking up 14.2 offensive rebounds per game. Forward Thijs Ridder is the go-to guy. The 6’9 freshman from Belgium leads the Cavaliers with 16.2 points per game. He teams with a pair of 7-footers in Johann Grunloh Ugonna Onyenso to form one of the most imposing front courts in the country. They’ve got the Cavaliers leading the ACC with nearly 42 rebounds per game. Malik Thomas and Chance Mallory start at the guard spots and also average double-digit points per game, but UVA features nine different players who go for at least five. Thomas has been on fire lately; he’s hit six three-pointers in each of the last two games. The good news is that UNC’s defense tightened up considerably against Notre Dame, allowing them to shoot just 36% from the field and 32% from behind the arc, an area that had plagued them the prior four games. The Cavaliers like to let if fly – they’re third in the league in 3-point attempts, making 37% of them. The Tar Heels will once again need to clamp down defensively to have a chance in this one.

Something that has carried over from the Tony Bennett days is solid defense. The Cavaliers lead the ACC holding teams to just 38% from the floor, 28% from three, and only 43.6% from two. The Cavaliers also rank third in the league in scoring defense at 67.5 points allowed per game. The Tar Heels counter with star freshman Caleb Wilson and big man Henri Veesaar, who combine for nearly 38 points and 20 rebounds a game.

The Tar Heels have struggled in true road games this season. They’re 1-3 on the road, winning at Kentucky and losing all three ACC contests. On top of that, the Heels are 1-8 in their last nine trips to John Paul Jones Arena. But they’ve won five of the last seven meetings against Virginia, including back-to-back victories in the last two seasons. It will take a near-perfect performance from the Heels to make it three in a row. Go Tar Heels!