CHAPEL HILL, N.C. –– North Carolina (15-3, 7-0 overall) has been hot all month coming in at first place overall in the ACC and fourth in the nation per the AP Top 25 Poll.
The Tar Heels have won six straight ACC games and will host Wake Forest (13-5, 5-2) at the Dean Dome tomorrow night at 7 p.m.
UNC beat Boston College on their homecourt Saturday afternoon and have a quick turnaround with tomorrow night’s contest.
In that game the Tar Heels won 76-66, with senior RJ Davis supplying 16 points and Cormac Ryan having another hot run to contribute 14 points.
Forward Harrison Ingram once again dominated the boards with 13. Across the past four games, he’s totaled 46. He’s been key in turning around UNC’s previous rebounding weaknesses. Currently North Carolina leads the ACC in both rebounding categories.
This upward trend is bound to continue tomorrow night against the Demon Deacons. They went on a nine-win streak early on in the season, but ran into a loss at Florida State on Jan. 9. Since then, they’ve won two of their last three, with victories over Virginia and Louisville and a drop at NC State.
Wake Forest is in a three-way tie with the Wolfpack and Seminoles for second in the conference. With a 5-2 conference record and 1-3 road record, this game doesn’t favor the Deacons, but does prove an important challenge for UNC to face to establish true dominance over the ACC.
Both the Deacons and the Tar Heels have high-powered offenses with each having a talented starting core and deep bench. The Deacs specifically have a bunch of guys who can shoot from downtown—leading the ACC in team makes from the 3-point line (39.3 percent).
In what’s sure to be a high-scoring thriller, UNC has home court advantage leading 80-18 versus the Deacs all time and 169-69 in the all-time series. This includes 25-5 at Dean Dome. Head coach Hubert Davis is 1-2 against them, but UNC has yet to give one up to them at home since 2010.
Who: North Carolina (15-3, 7-0) vs. Wake Forest (13-5, 5-2) When: Monday, January 22nd, 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Dean Smith Center, Chapel Hill, NC
Last Meeting: Wake Forest, 92-85
All-Time: UNC leads the series 164-69