The Pittsburgh Panthers (9-4, 2-0 ACC) will try to slow down one of the nation’s top scoring teams when they play host to the No. 25 North Carolina Tar Heels (9-4, 1-1 ACC) on Friday.
North Carolina topped the Michigan Wolverines 80-76 at Spectrum Center on December 21, their fourth win in a row. Armando Bacot was a top performer with 26 points.
Pittsburgh won their third in a row in a close one on December 20 at JMA Wireless Dome, beating the Syracuse Orange 84-82. Blake Hinson had 25 points and 13 rebounds, leading the team. The Panthers fell to second in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
It’s the only meeting of the season between the teams. Pittsburgh came out on top in the only game between the teams last season 76-67 at Dean E. Smith Center on February 16. Ithiel Horton led the Panthers with 19 points. Caleb Love had 19 points in the losing effort.
Love (18.3 ppg), Bacot (16.8), and RJ Davis (15.9) have led the Tar Heels in scoring this season. Bacot also has grabbed 10.2 rebounds per game, while Love has dished 3.7 assists per game.
Hinson (17.2 ppg) has supplied much of the Panthers’ offense. Hinson also has pulled down 7.4 rebounds per game. Nelly Cummings has distributed 4.8 assists per game.
The Tar Heels rank as one of the top scoring offenses in the nation, 27th-best with 81.5 points per game. In the last 10 games, North Carolina is 6-4 with an average margin of +5.5 (81.6-76.1). Pittsburgh has an 8-2 record over the last 10, scoring 78.9 points per game on average while holding opponents to 64.7 (+14.2 margin).
TAR HEELS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Tyler Nickel: 6.8 | 3.6 | +3.2
Points per game:
Leaky Black: 4.8 | 6.5 | -1.7
Assists per game:
Caleb Love: 4.8 | 3.7 | +1.1
PANTHERS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Federiko Federiko: 18.8 | 11.5 | +7.3
John Hugley IV: 4.8 | 8.3 | -3.5
Points per game:
Federiko Federiko: 11.2 | 6.1 | +5.1
Rebounds per game:
Federiko Federiko: 6.8 | 4.9 | +1.9
SportsTips’ College Basketball Pick:
UNC (-275)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
