Halftime Report
Only one more half stands between N. Carolina and the win they were favored to collect coming into this evening. They have jumped out to a quick 37-32 lead against Miami.
If N. Carolina keeps playing like this, they’ll bump their record up to 22-6 in no time. On the other hand, Miami will have to make due with a 15-14 record unless they turn things around (and fast).
Who’s Playing
Miami Hurricanes @ N. Carolina Tar Heels
Current Records: Miami 15-13, N. Carolina 21-6
How To Watch
What to Know
We’ve got another exciting ACC matchup on schedule as the N. Carolina Tar Heels and the Miami Hurricanes are set to tip at 7:00 p.m. ET on February 26th at Dean E. Smith Center. N. Carolina will be strutting in after a win while the Hurricanes will be stumbling in from a defeat.
Virginia typically has all the answers at home, but on Saturday N. Carolina proved too difficult a challenge. They walked away with a 54-44 win over the Cavaliers. Despite the victory, that was the fewest points N. Carolina has scored all year.
N. Carolina’s win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Armando Bacot, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 13 rebounds. Bacot has been hot recently, having posted ten or more rebounds the last six times he’s played. Cormac Ryan was another key contributor, going 6 for 11 from beyond the arc en route to 18 points and 0 assists.
Meanwhile, Miami’s recent rough patch got a bit rougher on Saturday after their sixth straight loss. They took a 80-76 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Yellow Jackets. Miami didn’t live up to their potential and found themselves falling short of the advantage oddsmakers thought they had coming into the game.
Kyshawn George put forth a good effort for the losing side as he scored 16 points along with six assists and five rebounds. He didn’t help Miami’s cause all that much against the Blue Devils on Wednesday but the same can’t be said for this matchup. Another player making a difference was Bensley Joseph, who scored 16 points along with two blocks.
The Tar Heels have been performing well recently as they’ve won 14 of their last 17 contests, which provided a nice bump to their 21-6 record this season. As for the Hurricanes, their loss was their third straight at home, which dropped their record down to 15-13.
Monday’s match is one where the number of possessions is likely to be a big factor: N. Carolina have been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 41.1 rebounds per game. However, it’s not like Miami struggles in that department as they’ve been averaging 36.6 rebounds per game. Given these competing strengths, it’ll be interesting to see how their clash plays out.
Going forward, N. Carolina is the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 14 points. This contest will be their 14th straight as the favorites (so far over this stretch they are 8-5 against the spread).
Odds
N. Carolina is a big 14-point favorite against Miami, according to the latest college basketball odds.
The oddsmakers were right in line with the betting community on this one, as the game opened as a 14-point spread, and stayed right there.
The over/under is 154.5 points.
See college basketball picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
N. Carolina has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Miami.
- Feb 10, 2024 – N. Carolina 75 vs. Miami 72
- Feb 13, 2023 – Miami 80 vs. N. Carolina 72
- Jan 18, 2022 – Miami 85 vs. N. Carolina 57
- Jan 05, 2021 – N. Carolina 67 vs. Miami 65
- Jan 25, 2020 – N. Carolina 94 vs. Miami 71
- Feb 09, 2019 – N. Carolina 88 vs. Miami 85
- Jan 19, 2019 – N. Carolina 85 vs. Miami 76
- Mar 08, 2018 – N. Carolina 82 vs. Miami 65
- Feb 27, 2018 – Miami 91 vs. N. Carolina 88
- Mar 09, 2017 – N. Carolina 78 vs. Miami 53
