Is Wake Forest Basketball's Frontcourt in Trouble Against North Carolina?
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Wake Forest will certainly be in for a test when they travel to Chapel Hill for a Big Four battle against the North Carolina Tar Heels. The Tar Heels are 13-2 so far this season. They are ranked 17th in the AP poll, 27th at KenPom, and oh, did I mention, they have one of the best players in college basketball in freshman Caleb Wilson.
Last season, Wake Forest and North Carolina split their matchups. Wake won the first one in Winston-Salem in a 67-66 rock fight. North Carolina got the last laugh, though, winning 68-59 in the ACC Tournament, ending Wake Forest's season and NCAA Tournament hopes.
This North Carolina team is much improved from last year's team. They have returning senior guard Seth Trimble leading the way offensively, but the strength of this team lies in the frontcourt. They have one of the best one-two punches in college basketball with Caleb Wilson and Henri Veesaar. Wilson is averaging a double-double with 19.3 points and 10.9 rebounds per game, and Veesaar is not far off, averaging 16.3 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. Both also average over a block per game.
On the other hand, Wake Forest has a frontcourt that has struggled in big games. For example, in the last game against Miami, Wake got very little production offensively from the frontcourt and got outrebounded by 17. Against Oklahoma earlier this year, the Deacs got outrebounded by 18. So clearly, the Deacs will have their work cut out for them against the imposing frontcourt of UNC.
The leader of the frontcourt is senior Tre'Von Spillers, who has had some great games against lesser competition but has yet to put it all together against Power Five competition. He did have a solid game against Virginia Tech, but then had only four points on 1-6 shooting against Miami. He looks a little rushed on his shots. Steve Forbes commented on his play, mostly attributing it to the fact that Spillers is tasked with playing the five instead of playing the four like last year, next to Efton Ried. This is a challenging endeavor for him being undersized.
Omaha Biliew has been a bright spot for this group, showing flashes in big moments. Still, he suffered an injury against Virginia Tech and was not himself as a result against Miami. This team needs him to get healthy.
Cooper Schwieger and Marqus Marion looked like they would play large roles going into the season. However, Schwieger has looked a step slow, struggling to adjust to the high-major level. He does have a good outside shot, but does not shoot it frequently been getting beat on the boards. Marqus Marion showed some good things defensively, but struggled on the offensive end and has been shifted out of the rotation. We'll see if he can work his way back in.
The Reason for Optimism
Despite the grim outlook recently, the Deacs still have a reason to be optimistic. Earlier in the year, Wake battled the most dominant team in the country, Michigan, all the way down to the buzzer in overtime. Michigan is probably the most physically imposing team in the country with their size and athleticism.
Despite that tall task, the Deacs battled the Wolverines admirably and put themselves in position to win the game. To beat the Tar Heels, the Deacs will need to lean on the gameplan they used to be successful against Michigan. They need to try to limit the production from the Carolina bigs and compete hard offensively.
How to Watch?
The game will take place on Saturday in Chapel Hill at 6 pm. The game will be televised on ACC Network. Anything is possible in these rivalry games, and I bet the Demon Deacons will come out ready to play Saturday. Go Deacs!
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Justin is a student at Wake Forest University. He is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and aspiring finance major interested everything sports. In his freshman year, Justin completed an internship with the Wake Forest Ticketing Department where he gained some valuable insight into the sales and operations aspects of collegiate athletics. Before working with Wake Forest On SI, Justin was a contributing writer for Wake Forest’s student publication The Old Gold and Black. Currently, Justin serves as a student manager on the Wake Forest Men’s Tennis team. In his free time Justin enjoys spending time with his family and friends on the golf course and traveling.