UNC vs. Florida State: Game Thread

We are just moments away from the North Carolina Tar Heels facing off against the Florida State Seminoles in the Dean Smith Center. It looks like the Heels will be going into this one as an 8.5-point favorite, though this game is certainly going to be a tricky one. The Noles once again return a team with a lot of size, and their defense has been a bit more impressive than their offense has been. However, despite their size, UNC is the better rebounding team, which could indicate that Leonard Hamilton hasn’t been able to get the results out of his four seven-footers that he would’ve hoped for. It should be a good game, but of course that largely depends on which UNC team shows up. I know, broken record and such.

What we now know for sure is that the Heels are another man down, as Dawson Garcia will not be returning to the team this season. This means that Armando Bacot and Brady Manek are going to have to play extremely clean, disciplined basketball, or UNC will have to go small. Like, Leaky Black playing at the five small. That could be something that works out in the Heels’ favor if they’re able to spread the floor, but things haven’t gone well in that department lately. Hubert Davis desperately needs Caleb Love to get out of his shooting funk today, and help take pressure off of the interior. If he is unable to, it not only heightens Manek’s importance of staying in the game, but RJ Davis will have to be lights out in this one as well. I’m not afraid to say it: this game feels like a trap, but it’s at least a trap that I feel like the Heels can avoid.

As always, we’ll be back following the game with post-game analysis and takes. Until then, Go Heels!