What's Changed Since Then: An unproductive frontcourt has just been getting thinner. Ryan Pettinella is out at least three weeks with a dislocated knee. That leaves only six players averaging more than twelve minutes a game - and with most of the talent weighted in guards Sean Singletary and J.R. Reynolds, results in a hot and cold team that can beat Gonzaga (remember them?) but drop back-to-back games to Appalachian State and Utah. So what kind of team is going to show up in Chapel Hill?
Unsurprisingly with their guard play, Virginia is a perimeter-oriented team. They launch a higher percentage of threes than any team in the ACC save Clemson:
Team 3FGA/FGA Clemson 0.401 Virginia 0.363 Georgia Tech 0.334 Miami 0.333 Florida State 0.313 Wake Forest 0.308 Virginia Tech 0.289 NC State 0.274 North Carolina 0.265 Maryland 0.263 Boston College 0.260 Duke 0.251
Team FTA/FGA Virginia 0.485 Wake Forest 0.468 Duke 0.432 Virginia Tech 0.427 North Carolina 0.407 Boston College 0.399 Georgia Tech 0.387 Maryland 0.383 Miami 0.352 NC State 0.343 Florida State 0.314 Clemson 0.301
The bottom line is, this is the type of team for which UNC spent December turning up their perimeter defense. They shouldn't have a problem with the Cavaliers, who are pretty lax on the defensive end, with the size to control the boards and a fast-paced offense with the depth to back it up. Keep Singletary and Reynolds from having career nights, and it should be an easy time for the Heels.