Points of Emphasis: Louisville vs. North Carolina
(Photo of Kenny Williams, Christen Cunningham: Jamie Rhodes/USA TODAY Sports)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Barring any additional setbacks caused by COVID-19, the Louisville men's basketball program is gearing up to retake the court for the first time since Feb. 1. Next up for the Cardinals (11-4, 6-3 ACC), they will hit the road to face North Carolina (13-7, 7-5 ACC) at the Dean Smith Center. Tipoff is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 20 at 6:00 p.m. EST on ESPN.
Outside of Louisville's lengthy COVID pause and related topics, such as likely absences, here are a couple of the more significant storylines to follow ahead of Cardinals' matchup with the Tar Heels:
Board Men Get Paid
North Carolina has been able to rebound from their 14-19 season a year ago, and currently sit at 13-7 and 7-5 in the ACC. The biggest reason for this turnaround has been their absolute domination on the glass.
The Tar Heels haul in 42.75 rebounds per game, which is third in Division behind only Buffalo (43.0) and Coastal Carolina (42.78), and their rebound margin of 11.0 is the best in the nation. UNC is particularly adept at grabbing offensive rebounds, tallying 15.05 per game, second in D1 behind only Houston (15.15).
The reason being, is because North Carolina is one of the longest teams in college basketball, as their average height in 78.9 inches - the seventh-tallest in D1. Oddly enough, the Tar Heels are actually the fourth-tallest team that Louisville will have faced this season, behind FSU (79.6), Seton Hall (79.2) and Kentucky (78.9).
When it comes to rebounding, UNC doesn't rely on just one guy. Armando Bacot, Garrison Brooks and Day'Ron Sharpe all average over 7.0 boards per game - the only team in the ACC with three players that average 7.0+ rebounds per game.
Shooting Woes
If it was not for North Carolina's ability to rebound the ball at an elite level, especially on the offensive end, the Tar Heels might have arguably one of the worst offenses in the ACC.
UNC shoots the ball from the field at just a 43.5% clip, a mark that ranks 207th out of the 340 active D1 teams. Push it out to the perimeter, and North Carolina is even worse, as they connect on just 31.0% of their three-pointers, good for 290th in D1 and second-worst in the ACC behind Miami's 29.0%. They even struggle at the free throw line, shooting just 66.0% - the worst in the conference.
However, North Carolina, even with with the shooting struggles everywhere on the floor, still manages to put up 73.2 points per game. This both in part by the amount of second chance points they get from offensive rebounds, and the fact that they operate at the second-fastest tempo in the ACC (Boston College).
Sneaky Good Defense
At face value, you might not think that UNC has all that great of a defensive presence, as they surrender 69.5 points per game, a mark that ranks around the middle of the pack when it comes the ACC and nationally.
However, as the saying goes, 'the whole is greater than the sum of its parts', and that is something that statistically rings true for North Carolina.
According to KenPom, when it comes to holding opponents off the offensive glass, limiting trips to the free throw line, two-point shooting defense, and forcing blocks and steals, the Tar Heels are above the D1 average. The only defensive metric in where they are clearly struggling is their three-point defense (36.5%).
As a result, North Carolina actually has a top 30 defense and the third-best defense in the ACC, with an adjusted defensive efficiency of 92.7 that ranks 28th in D1.
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