Pitt Vs. No. 8 North Carolina Preview: Everything You Need to Know

On Tuesday night, Pitt will host North Carolina in front of a national audience on ESPN.

Let’s dive in to the preview for Pitt Vs. No. 8 UNC.

PITT’S OUTLOOK

Pitt sits at 9-4 (0-2 ACC) after blowing a double-digit second-half lead to Syracuse on the road over the weekend. The Panthers earned big contributions from Bub Carrington (17 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists), Guillermo Diaz-Graham (14 points, 5 rebounds), and others, but turned the ball over 15 times and shot less than 50% from the free-throw line, letting the Orange back into the ball game. Behind Quadir Copeland, Judah Mintz, and company, Syracuse stormed back and handed Pitt its second ACC loss of the year.

Tuesday, Pitt has an opportunity to move on from the loss and earn a massive win in front of its home fans. The Tar Heels of North Carolina are back on the front lines of the college basketball world, ranking in the top ten once again after a let-down season last year.

NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS (9-3, 1-0 ACC)

HEAD COACH

Hubert Davis (2nd Season)

Davis and the Tar Heels missed the NCAA Tournament last season, but they are back with a vengeance this year. Caleb Love transferred to Arizona, but veterans RJ Davis and Armando Bacot are back again and leading ‘Carolina to a strong start to the season so far.

LEADING SCORERS

#4 RJ Davis

Davis is averaging 21.7 points per game for the Heels this year. The former Pitt target is shooting 44% from the field and 38% from three. Davis is also hitting free throws at a remarkable rate (95%) this season.

#5 Armando Bacot

Bacot will once again be a handful for the Panthers inside. This year, he is averaging 14/8 points and 10.8 rebounds per game. He posted two double-doubles against Pitt last season in the Panthers’ wins over UNC.

#55 Harrison Ingram

Ingram transferred in from Stanford, and is averaging 13.9 points and 6.3 rebounds per game for the ‘Heels in his first season in Chapel Hill. He is shooting 45% from three-point land this year.

TEAM STATS

North Carolina has hit 46% of its field-goal attempts this year, including 36% of its threes. In addition, the Tar Heels are averaging 37.7 rebounds per game, as well as 13.8 assists, 9.2 steals, and 5.2 blocks per game.

Pitt is shooting 45% from the field, including 35% from three. The Panthers are averaging 42.2 rebounds, 15.5 assists, 5.9 steals, and 4.5 blocks per game as a team.

METRICS

Pitt is ranked No. 45 (no change after loss to Syracuse) in KenPom.com’s ratings, and No. 41 in the NET rankings. UNC is ranked No. 12 in Kenpom.com’s rankings, and No. 20 in the NCAA NET Rankings.

GAME TIME

Pitt Vs. North Carolina tips off at 7 p.m. est on Tuesday night.

SPREAD

North Carolina is favored by 4.5 points on DraftKings (updated – Monday night). The over/under is hovering around 157 points.

TV

You can find Tuesday’s game on ESPN.