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A brief look at the numbers for UNC-Davidson later today.
North Carolina | Davidson | |
Record | 6-1 | 5-0 |
Conference | ACC | B1G |
KenPom Rank | #9 | #52 |
Points per game | 82.4 | 76.3 |
Adj. Off. Efficiency(Rank) | 115.6(5th) | 112.5(20th) |
Ad. Def. Efficiency(Rank) | 94.3(22nd) | 102.3(181st) |
Tempo(Rank) | 73.9(39th) | 76.5(9th) |
Offensive eFG% | 53.9% | 54.1% |
Defensive eFG% | 49.5% | 47.4% |
Field Goal % | 49.0% | 45.4% |
2P FG% | 53.8% | 54.2% |
3P FG% | 36.1% | 35.6% |
FT% | 68.9% | 73.5% |
Offensive Reb Rate | 35.9% | 21.0% |
Defensive Reb Rate | 77.3% | 64.9% |
TO Rate | 15.7% | 9.6% |
FT Rate | 34.4% | 42.6% |
3PA% | 27.1% | 48.0% |
When discussing UNC's long standing defensive weakness, this game is a bit of a nightmare for the Tar Heels. Davidson attempts almost half its field goal attempts from three(48%) and is hitting 35.6% as a team. The Wildcats have big men who can step outside to shoot threes which will tax the Tar Heel interior players. There is also "that guy" Jack Gibbs who dropped 41 points in his last outing and is 11-26 from three on the season. Not to mention, Davidson is well coached and will execute at a high level on the offensive end. In some ways this might be UNC's toughest challenge of the season defensively.
On the flip side, Davidson is not great on the defensive end nor do the Wildcats rebound particularly well. Davidson's offensive rebounding rate of 21% is one of the worst in college basketball. The defensive boards aren't much better allowing teams to collect 35% of their own misses. Davidson is likely to eschew offensive rebounding in the name of getting back on defense.
Also of note is Davidson is not a slow team. The Wildcats are averaging 76 possessions per game which is ninth nationally. UNC is up to 39th with almost 74 possessions per game. If Davidson opts to play at this pace, it benefits UNC since most teams that try to run with the Tar Heels often find it difficult.