Tar Heels Visit Notre Dame Saturday

• Carolina is 13-4 overall and 2-2 in the ACC. The Tar Heels are coming off a 96-66 home win over Boston College.
• UNC is 3-2 on the road this year – 3-0 in non-conference games and 0-2 in league play.
• UNC has posted a winning record in ACC road games in each of the last seven seasons and 11 of 14 seasons under Hall of Fame head coach Roy Williams.
• UNC has not lost three consecutive ACC road games since 2014 (Wake Forest, Syracuse and Virginia).
• Carolina is 20th in the Associated Press poll. This is the 71st straight week UNC is ranked in the AP top 25.
• Two of Carolina's four losses were to Virginia and Michigan State, ranked third and fourth, respectively, in the current AP poll.
• Five other UNC opponents are ranked this week – Duke (7), Miami (18), Clemson (19), Tennessee (23) and Florida State (24).
• Luke Maye (18.2) and Joel Berry II (17.6) lead Carolina in scoring. The last time two Tar Heels averaged 17 points or more in the same season was 1983-84, when Michael Jordan (19.6) and Sam Perkins (17.6) were UNC's top scoring duo.
• Berry is third in the ACC in free throw percentage (.887), fifth in three-pointers per game (2.6) and sixth in scoring. Maye is second in the league in rebounding (10.8), tied for fourth in scoring and 10th in field goal percentage (.508).
• Luke Maye is sixth in the country in defensive rebounds (8.3), 12th in rebounding (10.8) and 14th in double-doubles (9).
• Roy Williams has won 829 games, one shy of tying Mt. St. Mary's Jim Phelan for seventh place in wins by a Division I head coach.
• Joel Berry II and Luke Maye are among 25 mid-season candidates for the John R. Wooden Award presented by Wendy's.
• Maye is one of five players who are on the mid-season list who were not among the 50 players on the preseason watch list.
• Carolina is one of four schools that have two players on the mid-season list and Berry and Maye are among the five ACC players on the list.
• Berry is one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award (Tyler Hansbrough won the award in 2009)

UNC-NOTRE DAME SERIES
• Carolina leads the series, 21-7. UNC has won the last three games against Notre Dame.
• UNC is 5-3 against Notre Dame since the Irish joined the ACC, including 1-1 in the ACC Tournament (2015 championship game and 2016 semifinal) and 1-0 in the NCAA Tournament (2016 East Regional final).
• The Tar Heels are 4-2 against the Irish in South Bend with wins in the 1963, 1985, 1994 and 2014 seasons and losses in 1987 and 2016.
• Roy Williams is 6-3 against Notre Dame, all as UNC's head coach.
• The Irish beat second-ranked UNC, 80-76, on 2/6/16, the last time the teams played at Notre Dame. Carolina led by nine at the break, but the Irish out-scored UNC, 50-37, in the second half. Notre Dame committed only two turnovers, fewest by a UNC opponent since 1978.
• Joel Berry II had 10 points and five assists in the 2016 game at Notre Dame. Luke Maye, Theo Pinson and Kenny Williams played but did not score.

LAST YEAR (FEB. 5, 2017)
UNC 83, NOTRE DAME 76
• Justin Jackson led six Tar Heels in double figures, Carolina out-rebounded Notre Dame by 19 and went on a late 8-0 run to beat the Irish, 83-76.
• The game was postponed a day and played at the Greensboro Coliseum (an hour from UNC's campus) because of a water shortage in Chapel Hill that closed the university for nearly 48 hours.
• UNC led by 15 with 12 minutes to play, but Notre Dame cut the lead to 75-73 before a jump shot by Joel Berry II and a steal by Nate Britt/dunk by Jackson ignited an Tar Heel 8-0 run.
• Carolina out-rebounded the Irish, 44-25, including a 17-7 edge in offensive rebounds, and scored 19 second-chance points.
• Carolina out-scored the Irish, 40-18, in the paint.
• Kenny Williams made three 3FGs and had 11 points.
• Theo Pinson did not play due to a leg injury. He returned the lineup the next game and played in every game the rest of the season.

GAME 17: UNC 96, BOSTON COLLEGE 66
• It was UNC's 400th win in the Smith Center (now 400-69 in all games, 202-53 against the ACC).
• Carolina shot 50 percent from the floor. It was the seventh time this year UNC shot 50 percent or better.
• The Tar Heels came into the game ranked third in the country in rebounds and rebound margin and out-rebounded the Eagles 58-23.
• The 58 rebounds, 23 offensive rebounds and +35 rebound margin were season highs.
• Carolina grabbed 23 offensive rebounds; the Eagles had 15 defensive rebounds.
• Carolina scored 48 points in the paint (had 48 combined in the two losses at Florida State and Virginia).
• Carolina scored 24 second-chance points, second most this season (25 at Davidson on 12/1).
• Carolina scored 19 fastbreak points (had zero at Virginia and 15 in the previous three games), its most since 21 vs. Western Carolina on 12/6.
• Carolina had first-half scoring runs of 16-0 and 10-0 and a second-half run of 13-0.
• Carolina started with a different lineup for the first time since the second game of the season. Cameron Johnson made his first start as a Tar Heel (he started 34 games while a Pitt Panther).
• Luke Maye had career highs in points (32), rebounds (18), field goals (13) and field goal attempts (20) and tied his career high with four three-pointers.
• It was the 23rd 30-point game by a Tar Heel in the 33-year history of the Smith Center and the first since Tyler Zeller scored 30 against Maryland in 2012.
• The 32 points were the most by a Tar Heel since Justin Jackson had 34 against Kentucky on 12/17/16 in Las Vegas.
• The 32 points were the most by a Tar Heel in the Smith Center since Wayne Ellington had 34 against Maryland on 2/3/09.
• It was the first 30-point/15-rebound game by a Tar Heel in the Smith Center since Antawn Jamison had 36 & 16 vs. Maryland in 1998.
• Maye had 21 points and 10 rebounds in the first half (his third double-double in a half this season) and 11 points and eight boards in the second half.
• It was Maye's ninth double-double of the season and 10th of his career.
• Maye had scored 20 points in the two previous games (14 at FSU and six at Virginia).
• Johnson had his second career double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds and he added five assists with no turnovers. He had 17 points and 11 rebounds against Virginia Tech last year while playing for the University of Pittsburgh. He tied his career high with 11 rebounds.
• Johnson had six offensive rebounds, doubling his previous career high.
• Theo Pinson and Johnson shared the team lead in assists with five. It was the 11th time this year Pinson topped the Tar Heels in assists. It was the first time since the season opener vs. Northern Iowa Pinson did not commit a turnover. Pinson's eight rebounds were the most since he had nine at Tennessee six games ago.
• It was the first time since the Arkansas game on 11/24 that Joel Berry II did not commit a turnover.

THE RPI
• Carolina is No. 9 in the nation in the NCAA's RPI behind Duke, Virginia, Villanova, Oklahoma, Clemson, Xavier, Purdue and Kentucky.
• Carolina's strength of schedule is No. 6 in the country. UNC's non-conference schedule was the 10th most difficult in the nation )(UNC went 11-2).
• Carolina's first 17 opponents have an average RPI of 95, which is the third highest in the country.

TRENDING...
• Joel Berry II is averaging 24.4 points in Carolina's five road games. He's scored 29 at Stanford, 27 at Davidson, 21 at Tennessee, 28 at Florida State and 17 (of UNC's 49 points) at Virginia.
• Berry has scored 31.4 percent of UNC's points in its five road games and 16.8 percent of UNC's points in the other 11 games in which he has played.
• Berry has scored 20 or more points 18 times in his career – four times in the Smith Center and 14 times on the road or at neutral sites.
• Luke Maye's 13 field goals against Boston College were the most by a Tar Heel this year and tied the second-most by a Tar Heel in Roy Williams' 15 years. Tyler Hansbrough and Sean May both made 13 field goals twice. Brice Johnson made 14 at Florida State in 2016.
• Maye has made 10 or more field goals in a game five times this season – 13 vs. Boston College, 11 vs. UNI, Arkansas and Michigan and 10 at Davidson. Last year, the Tar Heels combined to make 10 or more field goals four times in 40 games – Justin Jackson twice and Joel Berry II and Kennedy Meeks one time each. Berry has also made 10 field goals twice this year.

10 OR MORE FIELD GOALS IN A GAME, 2017-18
Luke Maye– 13 vs. Boston College
Luke Maye– 11 vs. UNI
Luke Maye– 11 vs. Arkansas
Luke Maye– 11 vs. Michigan
Luke Maye– 10 at Davidson
Joel Berry II– 10 at Stanford
Joel Berry II– 10 at Florida State

10 OR MORE FIELD GOALS IN A GAME, 2016-17
Joel Berry II– 12 at Clemson
Kennedy Meeks– 11 vs. Oregon
Justin Jackson– 10 vs. Kentucky
Justin Jackson– 10 vs. Virginia Tech

• After out-rebounding Boston College 58-23, the Tar Heels lead the country in rebounds per game (44.6) and rebound margin (13.4).
• Carolina's rebound margin is 1.1 ahead of last year when UNC set a school record at 12.3 per game.
• Carolina has had a plus-10 or more rebound margin four previous times in its history – three of those four seasons have come in the Roy Williams era (2007-08, 2011-12 and 2016-17 under Williams and the undefeated season in 1956-57).
• Roy Williams' teams have finished in the top 10 nationally in rebound margin in 14 of his previous 29 seasons as a head coach, including ninth, ninth and first in the last three seasons.
• Carolina is sixth in the country in protecting its defensive backboards. The Tar Heels' opponents are rebounding only 21.6 percent of their own misses. Only Boise State, Liberty, Creighton, Milwaukee and Vermont are allowing a lower percentage of offensive boards.
• On the offensive end, Carolina is fifth in the country in rebounding. The Tar Heels are pulling down 38.1 percent of their own missed shots.
• Carolina is hitting 8.0 three-pointers per game, which is the second most in school history. The record is 8.3 per game in 2002-03. Last year, UNC made 7.1 per game.

MOST THREE-POINT FIELD GOALS MADE PER GAME
8.3 in 2002-03
8.0 in 2017-18
7.8 in 1994-95
7.6 in 2012-13
7.6 in 2001-02

• Carolina has scored 85 or more points 11 times (all wins), 90 or more points six times, 100 points twice and has averaged just 62.2 points in its four losses.
• The Tar Heels have shot 50 percent from the floor seven times. UNC is shooting 46.1 percent for the season. That includes 49.8 percent in its 13 wins and 33.2 percent in the four losses.
• Carolina ranks 20th nationally in KenPom's adjusted offensive efficiency and 12th in adjusted defensive efficiency ratings.
• Carolina has scored 28.8 percent of its points on three-point field goals. That's the second-highest percentage in Roy Williams' 15 seasons as UNC's head coach.

SCORING FROM THREE-POINT FGs (last 15 seasons)
29.3 percent – 2012-13
28.8 percent – 2017-18
26.2 percent – 2005-06
25.5 percent – 2004-05
25.3 percent – 2016-17

• The opponents have out-scored UNC in points off turnovers in seven of the last 10 games, including an 94-60 edge in the last six games. That includes a 24-12 advantage for the Tar Heels in the 81-80 loss at Florida State and a 25-3 margin for Virginia.
• The Tar Heels have made seven more free throws (256) than the opponents have taken.
• Joel Berry II leads UNC in defensive player of the game awards with six. Berry has won the award in the last three games after Kenny Williams won in four of the previous five games. Williams is second on the team with five for the season.

IN THE POLLS
• Carolina is 20th in the Associated Press poll and 18th in the USA Today/Coaches poll.
• Carolina is ranked in the AP poll for the 71st consecutive week (last four weeks in 2013-14, all 19 weeks in 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 and the first 10 weeks this season).
• Carolina is ranked in the AP poll for the 887th time, most in college basketball history.
• The 2017-18 season is the 55th (out of 70) the Tar Heels have been ranked in the top 10.
• Carolina was No. 9 in this season's preseason AP poll. It was the 12th time in Roy Williams' 15 seasons as head coach the Tar Heels entered the year ranked in the top 10.UNC has finished the year in the AP top 10 nine times in Williams' first 14 seasons.

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Players Mentioned

Joel Berry II

Nate Britt

Justin Jackson

Cameron Johnson

Luke Maye

Kennedy Meeks

Theo Pinson

Kenny Williams