The calendar turns to February as Carolina takes its three-game winning streak to
Louisville to play the Cardinals on Tuesday, February 1, at 8 p.m. (ACC Network). The game was originally scheduled for January 31 but was moved back a day due to other re-scheduled ACC games following previous Covid-related postponements.
The Tar Heels are 15-6 overall, 7-3 in the ACC. Louisville is 11-10, 5-6 in league play. The Cardinals, playing under interim head coach Mike Pegues, are coming off a 74-65 home loss to Duke, a game that was tied at 60 with just over eight minutes to play.
About UNC
- UNC finished a sweep of a three-game homestand on Saturday with a 100-80 win over NC State. The Tar Heels made 10 first-half threes to build a 25-point lead at the half and finished with season highs in points (100), field goals (34), three-pointers (15) and fastbreak points (25) in beating the Wolfpack for the fourth straight time at the Smith Center and 51st time in the last 63 games.
- Caleb Love (21 points, five assists), Armando Bacot (18 points, 13 rebounds, six blocks), Brady Manek (17 points, five threes) and RJ Davis (17 points, four assists) led the Tar Heels over the Pack. Carolina was 15 for 27 from three for the game and shot 62.5% from the floor in the opening half when it built a 56-31 lead.
- Carolina’s last seven games have been decided by 10 or more points, the first time that has occurred since a 10-game stretch of double-digit outcomes to start the 2017-18 season.
- Since a five-point loss at Notre Dame, Carolina has defeated Virginia by 16 and Georgia Tech by 23, lost to Miami by 28 and Wake Forest by 22, and beat Virginia Tech by 10, Boston College by 11 and NC State by 20.
- Carolina’s wins over Virginia Tech (1/24), Boston College (1/26) and NC State (1/29) mark the first time UNC followed consecutive losses by 10 or points with at least three straight wins by double figures since the 2000-01 season.
- UNC is 12-0 at the Smith Center this season and 22-1 over the last two seasons.
- UNC is 3-6 away from the Smith Center this season, 3-3 in true road games and 0-3 on neutral courts.
- The Tar Heels have road wins this season at the College of Charleston, Georgia Tech and Boston College and losses at Notre Dame, Miami and Wake Forest. Five of the six games have been decided by 11 or more points (three by 20 or more).
- The Tar Heels are out-shooting their hosts from the floor (45.5% to 43.0%) and out-rebounding them (43.0 to 32.7) on the road, but the home teams have a higher three-point percentage than UNC (38.4% for the home teams, 34.3% for the Tar Heels).
- RJ Davis, Caleb Love and Kerwin Walton are making 42.6% of their threes on the road, but the rest of the team is shooting 26.4% from beyond the arc.
- The big statistical difference on the road is assist-turnovers. Carolina has 89 assists and 79 turnovers in the six games, while the home teams have 75 assists and only 49 turnovers. That’s 30 fewer turnovers (5.0 per game) by the home teams.
About Louisville
- Louisville has won its last seven and 18 of the last 19 games played on February 1.
- El Ellis came off the bench to lead the Cardinals with 18 points against Duke. It was his fourth game this season leading UofL in scoring, his seventh in double figures, and his third with 18 or more. He had scored a combined 13 points in his previous three games. He is averaging 9.5 points per game over the last eight games (11-of-26 threes in that stretch, .423).
- Louisville made 8-of-22 three-pointers vs. Duke, its ninth game this season and third straight with at least eight made threes. UofL made a high of eight threes in a game three times last year.
- Louisville has averaged 28.3 points per game from its bench this season. The Cardinals have had 24 double-figure scoring efforts off the bench this season, including 18 points from El Ellis vs. Duke. Louisville’s bench has contributed 30 or more bench points on 10 occasions this season (28 vs. Duke). The Cards are 20th in the nation in bench minutes (41.3 percent).
- Louisville’s leading scorer has come from the bench nine times this season , including the last three straight.
- Malik Williams registered his 11th career double-double and sixth this season (third in the ACC) with 10 points and 12 rebounds against Duke. He has grabbed at least eight rebounds in 13 of his 20 games and is third in the ACC in rebounding (8.7 rpg) and 23rd in the nation in defensive rebounding (6.8 per game). Williams has made 9-of-21 three-pointers over the last five games (.429).
- Louisville made 8-of-22 three-pointers vs. Duke, its ninth game this season and third straight with at least eight made threes. UofL made a high of eight threes in a game three times last year.
- Louisville committed nine turnovers, its third straight game, and fourth in the last five, that the Cardinals have finished with single digit turnovers. Â The Cards have averaged just 8.6 turnovers over its last five.
- Louisville is 8-2 this season when out-rebounding its opponent, 10-1 when shooting better from the field than the opposition, and 8-1 when shooting more free throws than its opponent.
- Louisville has held 12 of its 21 opponents under 43 percent from the field this season and seven under 40 percent. However, seven of UofL’s last eight foes have exceeded that mark, with two over 50 percent (NC State .561, Notre Dame .633) against the Cardinals. Louisville is fifth in the ACC and are 100th nationally in field goal percentage defense (.415).
UNC vs Louisville
- The Tar Heels lead the series, 16-7, including 7-4 since the Cardinals entered the ACC.
- UNC is 2-5 against the Cardinals in Louisville, including 2-3 at the KFC Yum! Center.
- Carolina is 2-1 in Louisville against the University of Kentucky and is 0-4 in Louisville in NCAA Tournament action.
- The Tar Heels won back-to-back games at the Yum! Center in 2018 and 2019, but lost, 72-
55, in their most recent visit on 2/22/2020.
- Carolina won the only matchup last season, 99-54, in the Smith Center on 2/20/2021. The 45-point win was UNC’s largest ever against UL and equaled the fourth-largest by UNC in an ACC game.
- The Tar Heels shot a season-high 60.9% from the floor, delivered a season-high 29 assists and got a school-record 73 points from freshmen. Day’Ron Sharpe led UNC with 21 points and 11 boards and Kerwin Walton made five threes and scored a season-best 19 points.
How to Watch
Time: 8:00 p.m. (ET)
TV: ACCN ((Dave O’Brien, Cory Alexander)
Stream:Â WatchESPN
Radio:Â Tar Heel Sports Properties (Jones Angell, Eric Montross, Adam Lucas)
Per Release
