UNC Basketball: Teams That Tar Heels Want to Avoid in the NCAA Tournament
As a team struggling for consistency and balance as the regular season lurches to a close, the North Carolina Tar Heels are in no position to be choosy when it comes to pending NCAA tournament opponents.
Unless they beat Duke in the regular-season finale and make a nice run through the ACC tournament, the Tar Heels will be looking at a worse seed than most fans would have expected just a few weeks ago.
However, when looking ahead to the Big Dance, there are a number of top teams UNC would be able to handle. That is because this Heels team has some very evident strengths, though they also have some clear weaknesses. The latter makes the Carolina faithful fearful of whom it might face.
The Heels are very good inside. This is especially true on offense, where UNC ranks first nationally in two-point attempts and makes. They also rank third in total rebounding.
The hypothetical worst-case foe is thus a team with size and strength to match that can also shoot. A team like that would effectively cancel out or limit the Tar Heels' strengths in the paint while also having the upper hand on perimeter.
With those factors in mind, here are the top teams UNC wants to avoid in the NCAA tournament.
Virginia Cavaliers
Assuming the Cavaliers are healthy come late March, this pack-line defense is a horror show for any opponent. UVA has the best scoring defense and the second-best field-goal percentage defense in the nation. This team is built to prevent easy buckets.
By playing at the fourth-slowest pace in America, Virginia also enhances the value of every possession on both ends of the floor. With a healthy Justin Anderson, who boasts a .480/.484/.806 slash line, this team has no weaknesses to exploit.
Arizona Wildcats
The "other" Wildcats play great defense and prevent one of UNC's biggest strengths. Arizona is allowing the third-fewest opponent offensive rebounds in the country. Those results are thanks mostly to its gigantic front line of six rotation forwards/centers measuring in at 6'7" or taller.
On offense, the Cats chip away at opponents with one of the best free-throw rates in the country while being a top-10 team in field-goal percentage.
Wisconsin Badgers
Wisconsin has a top-10 scoring defense thanks to being first in the country in opponent offensive rebounding. It limits second chances better than any other team. The Badgers also shoot 47.8 percent from the floor as a team. Astoundingly, the top three scorers on Wisconsin each individually shoot comfortably over 50 percent.
Gonzaga Bulldogs
This is the best shooting team in the country; Notre Dame with size. Gonzaga hits over 52 percent of its shots from floor and over 40 percent from three. With three players at 6'10" or taller each averaging over 20 minutes per game, the Zags hit opponents with a lethal combination.
Utah Utes
Utah is ninth nationally in field-goal percentage and fifth nationally in opponent field-goal percentage. 6'5" point guard Delon Wright is a tough cover for anyone, but what makes the Utes so formidable is their pair of 7-footers. It's no secret why Utah ranks top 10 in block percentage.
West Virginia Mountaineers
WVU is first in the nation in opponent offensive-rebounding percentage. It is also first in forced turnovers. The Mountaineers give opponents few extra chances while creating a bunch for themselves.
West Virginia may be the weakest team of this bunch, but with more than half a dozen players who can knock down threes, it is a bad matchup for Carolina all the same.
All statistics courtesy of Sports-Reference.com.
.jpg?w=600 "Jameis to Work World Cup ⚽")