What could’ve been a heavyweight matchup Wednesday night has turned into a little less than that, unfortunately. North Carolina has lost four of its last five, including against unranked Wofford on Sunday, and has now lost All-American guard Cole Anthony to an injury for a while.
No. 2 Gonzaga comes in 11-1, with its only loss coming against Michigan in late November. North Carolina lost to Michigan the night before Gonzaga did and is currently 6-4 overall.
The Tar Heels are only 1-3 against ranked opponents this season, while Gonzaga is 3-1 when playing a ranked opponent. The Tar Heels have had a major issue scoring the ball this season, as they rank 257th in the country in points per game.
Gonzaga ranks third in the nation in scoring, which could turn into a serious issue for North Carolina. The Bulldogs are favored by 13.5 points, with the over/under at 145.5 headed into the matchup.
Topsy Turvy
It’s been an odd start, to say the least, for the Tar Heels after starting the season projected as one of the top teams in the country and now falling to Wofford and out of the AP Top 25. This team can block and rebound, but unfortunately, can’t do much else. It’s been all Anthony offensively, with no one to help him out with the scoring. Anthony is averaging 19.1 points and 3.4 assists per game.
In a super unfortunate series of events, Anthony will now be sidelined for a good while, as he had surgery on his right knee for a partially torn meniscus. He’s expected to miss at least four to six weeks.
How can the Heels survive without Anthony? Well, they may be able to, but not likely against an opponent as highly ranked as the Bulldogs are. Some of the Tar Heels’ role players have to play big over the next month.
The Standard
In my opinion, the Bulldogs have been the standard for basketball quality over the past decade; America’s college basketball team. This season has been no different than the past for the Bulldogs, as Mark Few has his team off to another phenomenal start.
The Bulldogs’ offense is one of the best in the nation, and their defense bends but doesn’t break, and when it does, the offense will just run up the score on you.
Led by Filip Petrusev and Corey Kispert, this team has been a fun one to watch. Petrusev is averaging 15.8 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, while Kispert is adding 14.1 points and 4.3 rebounds.
Freshman forward Drew Timme is averaging 10.1 points and 5.3 rebounds off the bench, as the Bulldogs have been consistent and consistently deep all season. They don’t look to slow down now.
Classic Pick
In past years, betting this game may have been more exciting, although the 13.5-point spread does even it out a bit. Gonzaga is 7-5 against the point spread this season, while North Carolina is an abysmal 2-8 against the spread. If there’s a spread to cover, the Tar Heels have likely fallen short against said spread this season.
While I believe that the Tar Heels could cover with a healthy Anthony, without him, this game gets ugly. The pick here is the Bulldogs to win and cover in extravagant fashion.
