Tar Heels Head To Virginia For Saturday Matinee

Saturday, February 24

Charlottesville, Va.

4 PM

North Carolina

Virginia

Seth Trimble

Photo by: HELEN MCGINNIS

February 23, 2024 | Men's Basketball

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• Two of the top three teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference will play when the Tar Heels visit Virginia on Saturday at 4 p.m. on ESPN.
• UNC is 20-6 overall and has share of first place in the ACC with Duke at 12-3. Virginia is 20-7 and third in the conference standings at 11-5.
• The 10th-ranked Tar Heels are playing for the first time in a week, their longest break between games since Christmas. Last Saturday, Carolina beat Virginia Tech, 96-81, in the Smith Center. Armando Bacot had 25 points and 12 rebounds, RJ Davis had 20 points and five assists, Harrison Ingram grabbed 17 rebounds and Cormac Ryan hit four threes in the win.
• The win was Carolina's 20th of the season. This is the 64th season in which UNC has won at least 20 games. That is the most 20-win seasons by any ACC team. Duke is second with 58.
• Hubert Davis and Bill Guthridge (1997-2000) are the only individuals to win 20 or more games in each of their first three seasons as UNC head coach.
• The Tar Heels are 6-2 on the road this season, all of which have been ACC games. Carolina has won at Pittsburgh, Clemson, NC State, Boston College, Florida State and Miami.
• Virginia is 14-1 this season in John Paul Jones Arena, where the Cavaliers have defeated the Tar Heels eight straight times. Pittsburgh beat UVA, 74-63, in Charlottesville on February 13.
• Carolina is the top scoring team in the ACC in all games (82.8) and league play (79.8), while Virginia allows the fewest points in the league both overall (58.6) and in ACC games (61.8).
• The Cavaliers and Tar Heels rank one-two in the league in field goal percentage defense, while UNC is first by percentage in defending the three and Virginia is third.
• RJ Davis leads the ACC in scoring at 21.3 points per game and is second in three-pointers per game (3.2). Davis has made 82 threes in 26 games, which is on pace to set single-season school records for most threes (105 by Justin Jackson in 2016-17) and most 3FGs per game (2.71 by Shammond Williams in 1996-97).
• Davis is ninth in the nation in scoring – third among players in the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12 and SEC.
• Carolina leads the ACC in rebounding. Armando Bacot and Harrison Ingram rank one-two in all games, while Ingram leads and Bacot is second in league action. They are the first pair of Tar Heels to average nine or more rebounds since John Henson and Tyler Zeller in 2011-12.
• The Tar Heels return to action on Monday, when they host Miami in the Smith Center at 7 p.m.

GAME 27 NOTEBOOK
• The Tar Heels are 5-2 against AP-ranked opponents this season with wins over No. 20 Arkansas, No. 10 Tennessee, No. 7 Oklahoma, No. 16 Clemson and No. 7 Duke (rankings when UNC played those teams).
• ESPN ranks UNC's strength of record No. 9 in the country.
• Carolina's schedule is ranked 12th in the country by both KenPom and ESPN.
• The Tar Heels are one of eight teams in the ACC, Big East, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac 12 and SEC with six or more road wins.
• Among the 39 teams in the country with 20 or more wins, only Purdue and Kansas have a stronger strength of schedules than UNC per ESPN.
• The Tar Heels are No. 10 in the country in defensive efficiency (94.6 points allowed per 100 possessions) and No. 18 in offensive efficiency (118.6 points scored per 100 possessions).
• Overall, KenPom ranks UNC No. 10 in the country.
• From January 6-22 Carolina won seven straight ACC games by double digits, most since winning 10 straight in 1992-93.
• Carolina's defense has held ACC opponents to 40.5% from the floor and 28.6% from three-point range.
• The Tar Heels have held ACC opponents below 70 points in 21 of the last 33 games.
• Carolina has out-rebounded its opponents in 15 straight games and is plus 156 on the boards in those games, 12 of which were victories.
• Carolina's 75-68 win at Florida State on January 27 was UNC's 750th regular-season ACC win, becoming the first program to win 750.
• Carolina has six players who have started 50 or more college games (157 by Armando Bacot, 111 by Cormac Ryan, 107 by RJ Davis, 88 by Harrison Ingram, 67 by Jae'Lyn Withers and 58 by Paxson Wojcik).
• Should the Tar Heels start the same lineup against Virginia it has started the last 19 games (Elliott Cadeau, Ryan, Davis, Ingram and Bacot) that group would have a combined 489 career starts.

UNC-VIRGINIA
• The Tar Heels lead the series, 134-62. The teams played three times last season, each winning on their respective home court and the Cavaliers winning the third game in Greensboro in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals.
• Carolina is 44-38 in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers have won the last eight games in John Paul Jones Arena from 2013-23.
• The eight straight games are the most consecutive losses for Carolina at any one arena or at any opponent's home court. The previous high was seven at Duke from 1951-56 (played twice at Duke in the 1951-52 season).
• UNC is 4-8 in John Paul Jones Arena, winning in 2008, 2009, 2011 and 2012. UNC's most recent win in Charlottesville came on 2/25/2012. ACC Player of the Year Tyler Zeller scored a game-high 20 points and John Henson added 15 points and 11 rebounds.
• Carolina averaged 68.5 points in four wins at John Paul Jones Arena from 2008-12. The Tar Heels averaged 54.0 points in the eight losses from 2013-23, with a high of 74 in 2016, then scoring 43, 49, 47, 48 and 58 points in the last five games in Charlottesville.

LAST TIME VS. VIRGINIA
2023 ACC QUARTERFINAL IN GREENSBORO
VIRGINIA 68, UNC 59
• RJ Davis led UNC with 24 points on 8 of 14 shooting from the floor (4 of 8 from three).
• Armando Bacot played 21 minutes (only five in the second half, none in the final 10 minutes) and scored four points on 2 of 4 shooting after spraining his left ankle vs. Boston College one night earlier.
• Carolina scored the final six points of the first half to pull within 25-24, but the Cavaliers began the second half on a 10-3 run.
• The Tar Heels cut the lead to 57-55 with 1:55 to play.
• Virginia then scored nine straight points, seven from the free throw line, to pull away.
• Carolina shot 29.6% from three-point range (8 of 27).
• Virginia forced 11 turnovers and committed only six, out-scoring the Tar Heels, 14-2 in points off turnovers.
• Carolina attempted 27 three-pointers and 26 from inside the three-point line.

LAST YEAR IN CHAPEL HILL
UNC 71, VIRGINIA 63
• The Tar Heels never trailed in beating sixth-ranked Virginia, 71-63, in Chapel Hill on 2/25/2023. Carolina improved to 6-1 when it scored 70 or more points against a Tony Bennett-coached UVA team.
• Carolina made nine three-pointers in the first half and shot 57.7% from the floor in building a 42-26 lead at the break.
• UNC won despite not scoring a single fastbreak point or point off turnover.
• Pete Nance scored 22 points and RJ Davis had 16 points and 10 rebounds.

LAST TIME IN CHARLOTTESVILLE
@VIRGINIA 65, UNC 58 (JAN. 10, 2023)
• Virginia overcame UNC's 29-27 halftime lead and a six-point Tar Heel advantage early in the second half.
• UNC led 37-31 with 15 minutes to play before the Cavaliers scored 11 straight points as part of a 21-5 run to take a 10-point lead.
• Caleb Love 's two three-pointers pulled Carolina within three points twice in the final 2:48, but an Isaac McKneely three and a driving layup by Reece Beekman thwarted the Tar Heel comeback.
• Armando Bacot sprained his left ankle while grabbing an offensive rebound and left the game without returning just 1:18 into the game. He did not score and had one rebound.
• Carolina also played without starting power forward Pete Nance.
• Jalen Washington played 27 minutes (had played 19 all season) and scored a season-high 13 points and had six rebounds. He scored 12 of UNC's 29 first-half points.
• RJ Davis led three Tar Heels in double figures with 16 points but had one assist and four turnovers.
• The Tar Heels had eight assists on 12 field goals in the first half (.667) but only one on nine field goals in the second (.111).
• Carolina held Virginia to 37.5% shooting from the floor in the first half, but the Cavaliers shot 53.6% in the second half.
• Ben Vander Plas came off the bench for Virginia to score 14 of his team-high 17 points in the second half.

WINS/LOSSES
• The Tar Heels allow 68.0 points in their 20 wins, while the opponents are scoring 82.8 per game in the six losses. UNC has given up 80 or more points in five of the six losses, including 86 at Syracuse.
• Carolina is shooting 46.1% from the floor in the wins and 42.3% in the losses.
• The opponents are making 6.5 threes per game and shooting only 28.6% from three in UNC's wins. In the losses, the opponents are averaging 8.5 threes per game at 35.4%.
• The Tar Heels are shooting 76.8% from the free throw line in the wins and 69.6% in the losses.
• The Tar Heels make 7.3 more free throws per game in their wins, while the opponents have made 3.5 more per game in the losses.
• UNC has a positive rebound margin of 9.1 per game in the wins and a margin of 0.2 per game in its six losses.
• Carolina has shot a higher three-point percentage than its opponents in 12 of its last 17 games. It won all 12 games in which the Tar Heels shot a higher percentage from three and lost four of the five games (Kentucky, Georgia Tech, Clemson and Syracuse) in which the opponents shot a better percentage from three. That includes the loss at Syracuse, when the Tar Heels shot 44.4% from three but the Orange converted 47.1%, the highest rate by an opponent in any game all season.
• The only game in the last 17 the Tar Heels won when an opponent shot better from three was the win at Florida State.
• RJ Davis, Armando Bacot, Harrison Ingram and Cormac Ryan have combined to score 68.3% of Carolina's points in the 20 wins and 80.8% in the losses.
• During Carolina's 10-game winning streak from December 20-January 27 the Tar Heels held the opponents to 36.5% from the floor. In the last six games when UNC has gone 3-3, the opponents are shooting 45.6%, which includes Duke shooting 50.7% in the Tar Heels' 93-84 victory.
• In the 10-game winning streak, the Tar Heels held the opponents to just 24.9% from three-point range. In the last six games the opponents are making 33.8% from beyond the arc, which includes 41.% by Georgia Tech, 39.7% by Clemson and 47.1% by Syracuse in three wins over UNC.

MILESTONE WATCH
• Armando Bacot has scored 2,188 points, third most all-time by a Tar Heel ... needs 103 to pass Phil Ford (2,290) for second.
• Bacot passed Wake Forest's Len Chappell and Maryland's Greivis Vasquez for 20th in ACC scoring ... needs six points to pass Georgia Tech's Mark Price (2,193) for 19th and 21 to pass Wake Forest's Randolph Childress (2,208) for 18th.
• Bacot has 1,603 rebounds, most ever by a Tar Heel and second most in ACC history ... Bacot is 14th in rebounds in NCAA history ... needs four to pass San Francisco's Bill Russell (1,606) for 13th and 15 to pass Louisville's Charlie Tyra (1,617) for 12th place.
• Bacot is seventh in NCAA history with 81 double-doubles ... Syracuse's Derrick Coleman and La Salle's Lionel Simmons (83) are tied for fifth.
• Bacot fourth in UNC history with 817 field goals ... needs nine to pass Al Wood for third.
• RJ Davis has scored 1,858 points ... needs six points to pass Walter Davis (1,863) for 11th.
• Davis has made 243 three-pointers, the third most all-time by a Tar Heel ... Marcus Paige is first (299) and Joel Berry II is second (266).
• Davis has 397 assists, 19th most in UNC history ... needs three to Shammond Williams (399) for 18th.
• Davis needs eight rebounds for 500 ... currently he is one of three Tar Heels (with Paige and Berry) with 1,800 career points, 200 three-pointers and 300 assists ... Davis has 492 rebounds and would be the first of those three players with 500 rebounds.
• Harrison Ingram scored his 1,000th career point in the win over Virginia Tech ... Bacot, Davis and Ingram all have 1,000-plus points.

STOP THE BALL
• Carolina leads th ACC in three-point percentage defense and is second in field goal percentage defense.
• Carolina is holding its opponents to 41.1% shooting from the floor, lowest by the opponents since 2014-15 (39.8%).
• Carolina is holding its opponents to 30.3% shooting from three-point range. That is the second-lowest percentage ever by the opponents in a season (only lower was 30.0% in 2014-15).
• ACC opponents are shooting 28.6% from three-point range. Opponents have shot under 30% in nine of the 15 conference games (UNC 9-0) and better than 40% five times (UNC 3-2 with wins over Florida State twice and Louisville and losses to Georgia Tech and Syracuse).
• In six of the nine games when the opponents shot under 30%, Carolina held those teams below 25% from three-point range – 5.6% by Clemson, 10.0% by NC State, 15.0% by Wake Forest, 17.2% by Pittsburgh, 17.6% by Boston College and 21.1% by Syracuse.
• The Tar Heels are 14-2 this season (losses to Villanova and Syracuse) when they make more three-pointers.
• Carolina has held the opponents below 40% from the floor in 27 of 52 halves and 11 of 26 games this season.
• Carolina has held ACC opponents under 30% shooting in a half five times.
• Carolina held Pittsburgh, Clemson and NC State under 60 points on their home courts in early January, the first time UNC did that in three straight road wins since 1998-99.
• UNC has held six teams without a fastbreak point and seven others have scored three or fewer fastbreak points.