The No. 11 North Carolina Tar Heels welcome the Appalachian State Mountaineers to Dean E. Smith Center. Action begins at 7:00 pm ET on Monday, Dec. 21 and can be seen on ES2 and ES3.
The Tar Heels enter this game hoping for similar success after topping UCLA 89-76 on Saturday. Brice Johnson was the game’s leading scorer with 27 points on 11-for-12 shooting. The Mountaineers, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their 82-66 loss against Charlotte on Saturday. Frank Eaves led the team in scoring with 24 points.
Eaves has been hot over the last five games for the Mountaineers, averaging 26.4 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 1.2 steals, and 5.2 three-pointers.
The Tar Heels could have their way today, as their prolific offense faces off against one of the nation’s worst defenses. They currently rank 15th in offensive efficiency while Appalachian State ranks 328th in defensive efficiency.
This one isn’t expected to be close when North Carolina, a substantial 29-point favorite, takes on Appalachian State. According to the oddsmakers, the Over/Under (O/U) is currently 160 points. The Tar Heels have gone 9-2 Straight Up (SU) and 4-5-2 Against The Spread (ATS). The Tar Heels have no trouble scoring as they rank 17th in the nation in offense with 85.6 points per game. North Carolina is one of the best passing teams in the nation with an average of 19.6 assists per game. Teams usually don’t get many offensive rebounds against the Tar Heels, who are one of the top defensive rebounding teams in the country with an average of 28.5 per game. Not making mistakes with the ball is a staple of the North Carolina offense, which averages just 10.5 turnovers per game.
Over on the other bench, the Mountaineers have 2-8 SU and 3-3 ATS records. The Mountaineers convert their three-pointers at a high percentage, ranking 38th in the nation at .391.
Predictions: SU Winner – UNC, ATS Winner – UNC, O/U – Over
Notes
North Carolina is 2-5-2 ATS in its last 9 games.
The total has gone OVER in 5 of North Carolina’s last 6 games.
North Carolina is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home.
North Carolina is one of the top-scoring teams in the nation, averaging 85.6 points per game (ranked 17th). Appalachian State, on the other hand, allows 76.7 points per game (ranked 280th).
Ranked 15th, the North Carolina Tar Heels have an offensive rating of 119.3. The Appalachian State Mountaineers rank 328th with a defensive rating of just 112.1.
The North Carolina Tar Heels have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking 18th in the nation with a FG% of 49.8%. When their opponents record a similar or higher FG%, the Appalachian State Mountaineers are winless with a 0-5 record.
The North Carolina Tar Heels rank higher based on their field goal percentage (18th) than their effective field goal percentage (43rd). The Appalachian State Mountaineers rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (261st) than their field goal percentage (308th).
The North Carolina Tar Heels rank seventh in assists per game with an average of 19.6. The Appalachian State Mountaineers are among the worst in the country with 11.1 assists per game (ranked 315th).
North Carolina, the 84th-ranked team in blocked shots, records an average of 4.5 per game. Appalachian State does worse, ranked 186th with 3.4.
Appalachian State ranks 150th in offensive rebounds, while North Carolina ranks at 46th in defensive rebounds.
Opponents have had an average turnover percentage of 18.1% when playing Appalachian State this season. North Carolina is undefeated this season (2-0) when its TO% is 18.1% or higher.
