By R.L. Bynum
No. 11 North Carolina (19–4, 6–3) at Miami (18–5, 7–3)
When: 7 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Watsco Center, Coral Gables, Fla. It is an “orange out” game.
Officials: A.J. Desai, Tommy Morrissey and Paul Szelc
TV: ESPN: Wes Durham play-by play, Dennis Scott and Debbie Antonelli analysts
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Network (affiliates list; streams on the Varsity Network app); Jones Angell play-by-play, Tyler Zeller analyst
Line: UNC -1½
Moneylines: UNC -120, Miami +100
Over/under: 156½
Coaches: Jai Lucas (18–5 in first season at Miami 23 in fourth season; former Duke assistant/associate coach) and Hubert Davis (120–49 overall and 64–27 in the ACC in fifth season, all at UNC; was 228–95 in nine seasons as a UNC assistant coach)
Series: UNC leads 29–10 (see list below), including 11–4 in the facility now called the Watsco Center. UNC has won the last three meetings.
Quad designation: Miami’s NET ranking is 37, making this the first of six remaining regular-season Quad 1 games.
Common opponents:
— Both lost to BYU: UNC 78–76 in an exhibition in Salt Lake City on Oct. 24, Miami 72–62 in Kissimmee, Fla., on Nov. 27.
— Both beat Georgetown: Miami 78–65 on Nov. 28 in Kissimmee, Fla., UNC 81–61 at home on Dec. 7
— Both beat Wake Forest: Miami 81–77 on the road on Jan. 7, UNC 87–84 at home on Jan. 10.
— Both beat Georgia Tech: Miami 91–81 at home on Jan. 10, UNC 91–75 on the road on Jan. 31
— Both beat Notre Dame: Miami 81–69 on the road on Jan. 13, UNC 91–69 at home on Jan. 21.
— UNC won 79–66 at home Dec. 30 against Florida State, Miami lost 65–63 Jan. 20 at home.
— Both beat Syracuse: Miami on the road 85–76 on Jan. 2, UNC at home 87–77 on Feb. 2
— UNC lost 95–90 on Jan. 14 at Stanford, Miami won 79–70 at home on Jan. 28
— Both lost to California: UNC 84–78 on the road Jan. 17, Miami 86–85 at home on Jan. 31.
Miami resume
— 37 NET ranking
— 2–3 in Quad 1 games: wins at Wake Forest and Syracuse; losses at No. 20 Clemson and on neutral sites against No. 14 Florida and No. 22 BYU
— 4–1 in Quad 2 game: home win vs. Stanford, road wins vs. Ole Miss and Notre Dame and at neutral site vs. Georgetown; loss vs. California
— 3–1 in Quad 3 games: home wins vs. Pittsburgh and Georgia Tech, road win vs. Boston College, home loss to Florida State
— 9–0 in Quad 4 games: home wins vs. Florida International, Elon, Southern Miss, Bethune-Cookman, Jacksonville, Stetson, North Florida, Louisiana-Monroe and Delaware State
— 0–3 against teams currently ranked
Usual Miami starting lineup
No. 5 | F | Malik Reneau (top photo; pronounced “Muh-LEEK reh-NEW”) | 6–9, 238 | senior | Indiana transfer
— Team-leading 20.0 points (3rd in ACC), 56.5 FG% (6th in ACC), 33.6 3P%, 79.4 FT% (14th in ACC), 6.5 rebounds (17th in ACC); totals of 49 assists, 61 turnovers, 20 blocks (0.9 per game; 21st in ACC) and 19 steals
— Has scored at least 25 points in six career games, including a career-high 34 on Dec. 29, 2023, for Indiana against Kennesaw State and a season-high 28 on Dec. 30 this season for Miami against Pittsburgh.
— Has scored at least 20 points in four consecutive games, including 23 on Saturday against Boston College (highlights below)
— Has 12 career double-doubles, including five this season, topped by 22 points and 11 rebounds against Florida.
— Is averaging 21.8 points and 7.5 rebounds in the last four games.
No. 3 | PG | Tre Donaldson | 6–3, 198 | senior | Michigan transfer
— 15.9 points (12th in ACC), 46.5 FG% (13th in ACC), 35.0 3P%, 76.5 FT% (18th in ACC), 3.6 rebounds, 2.9 assist-to-turnover ratio (3rd in ACC); totals of team-high 142 assists (6.2 per game, 4th in ACC), 49 turnovers, 5 blocks, 30 steals (1.3 per game; 21st in ACC)
— Played his first two seasons at Auburn and last season at Michigan
— Six of his top seven scoring games have come this season at Miami, topped by 27 points and 10 assists on Jan. 10 against Georgia Tech (highlights below), when he had a career-high 28.8 game score.
— Has five career double-doubles, all this season and all with assists, topped by 12 assists against Louisiana-Monroe (18 points) and against Florida International (10 points).
No. 7 | F | Shelton Henderson | 6–6, 240 | freshman
— 14.5 points, 61.5 FG% (3rd in ACC), 32.4 3P%, 57.9 FT%, 4.7 rebounds; totals of 49 assists, 41 turnovers, 7 blocks, 25 steals
— Scored career-high 30 points on Dec. 16 against Florida International and an ACC-high 22 points on Jan. 17 at Clemson (highlights below).
No. 10 | G | Tru Washington| 6–4, 204 | junior | New Mexico transfer
— 11.9 points, 46.1 FG%, 30.3 3P%, 73.2 FT%, 4.0 rebounds; totals of 35 assists, 36 turnovers, 37 steals (1.9 per game; 4th in ACC)
— His top six scoring games were all while at New Mexico, topped by 25 points and four 3-pointers on Feb. 16, 2025, against Utah State
— Season-high is 18 points against Elon on Nov. 20, and ACC-high is 11 on Dec. 30 against Pittsburgh
No. 8 | C | Ernest Udeh (pronounced “OOH-day”) Jr. | 6–11, 266 | senior | TCU transfer
— 6.9 points, team-high 72.5 FG%, 51.9 FT%, team-high 9.6 rebounds (2nd in ACC); totals of 8 assists, 11 turnovers, team-high 27 blocks (1.3 per game; 10th in ACC), 20 steals
— Played first season at Kansas and the last two seasons at TCU.
— Career-high is 16 points, both last season at TCU, at Baylor on Jan. 19 and vs. UCF on March 1.
— Season-high is 14 points against Jacksonville on Nov. 3 and against Louisiana-Monroe on Dec. 13.
— Has 11 career double-doubles, including four this season.
— Pulled down a career-high 18 rebounds for TCU on Jan. 1, 2024, against Texas A&M-Commerce and a season-high 17 on Jan. 17 at Clemson.
— UNC, which won five games in a row, including two on the road, has four wins over current Top 25 teams (vs. Kansas, at Kentucky, at Virginia and vs. Duke)
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More on Tar Heels
— UNC rises to season-high rank in AP Top 25
— UNC jumps up in NET rankings after big win, has loss upgraded to Quad 1
— Wilson’s first-half surge steadied Heels, set up ‘crazy’ night
— A half-second to glory, legendary moment for Trimble
— Trimble shoots down Duke in instant classic
UNC’s keys to the game
Control the pace — Miami wants to speed the tempo up and turn it into a track meet. UNC needs to play at its tempo — fast when it’s there, but not reckless. Smart possessions will matter.
Win the rebounding battle — It should be another physical game with UNC’s two big men battling Miami’s two big men. UNC has to dominate the boards, especially offensive rebounds, to create extra chances. Miami leads the ACC in opponent rebounding (29.8 per game) and is third in rebounding margin (+8.8). UNC coach Hubert Davis said that the Hurricanes “dominate points in the paint, through post penetration, offensive rebounds,” and that their physicality creates foul trouble for opponents. UNC must match, and ideally exceed, Miami’s interior toughness.
Take care of the ball — Miami thrives on turnovers leading to easy buckets. UNC can’t afford sloppy passes or rushed decisions — valuing each possession is huge in an away environment. The Hurricanes are fifth in the ACC with 7.96 steals per game.
Defend the perimeter — Miami can get hot from 3-point range in a hurry. The Canes have double-digit 3-pointers in four games, but are 12th in the league in 3-point shooting percentage at 34.2% and last in 3-pointers per game (6.7). UNC must close out under control and contest every outside shot without overhelping. Davis said that the Hurricanes “have the ability to get hot and make a number” in spurts.
Get production beyond the big three — The Heels will need scoring contributions to supplement the production of Caleb Wilson, Henri Veesaar and Seth Trimble.
Miami ACC statistical ranks
| Statistic | Rank | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Field goal percentage | 1st | 51.1% |
| Opponent rebounds | 1st | 29.8 |
| Rebounding margin | 3rd | +8.8 |
| Assists | 3rd | 17.22 |
| Scoring offense | 4th | 84.2 |
| Scoring margin | 4th | +14.2 |
| Steals | 5th | 7.96 |
| Scoring defense | 5th | 64.1 |
| Rebounding | 6th | 38.6 |
| Offensive rebounding | 6th | 12.0 |
| Defensive rebounding | 6th | 26.6 |
| Assist-to-turnover ratio | 7th | 1.49 |
| Turnover margin | 8th | +1.7 |
| Three-point percentage | 12th | 34.2% |
| Field goal percentage defense | 12th | 42.9% |
| Blocks | 12th | 3.35 |
| Free-throw percentage | 15th | 68.1% |
| Defensive three-point percentage | 18th | 35.3% |
| Three-point field goals per game | 18th | 6.7 |
Notes
— In the transition after the end of Jim Larrañaga’s time as head coach, with former Duke assistant/associate coach Jai Lucas taking over as head coach, Miami didn’t return any players from last season’s roster. The defections were one of many good reasons Lucas left the Duke staff before its run to the Final Four. Jalil Bethea transferred to Alabama and Austin Swatz to Creighton.
— Incoming transfers include Tre Donaldson (from Michigan), Marcus Allen (Missouri), Malik Reneau (Indiana), Tru Washington (New Mexico) and Ernest Udeh Jr. (TCU). Freshmen include Shelton Henderson, a former Duke commit who flipped to Miami, and Dante Allen, the son of Miami Heat assistant coach Malik Allen. The Canes also added Noam Dovrat, who played professionally in Israel.
— Washington missed the last two games because of personal issues. Lucas said Monday that he’s “integrated back into the group,” but that his status for the UNC game was unknown. If he doesn’t play or doesn’t start, Allen will probably take his spot in the lineup. Washington is listed as probable on the ACC injury report, while Allen and Treyvon Mddox are listed as out.
— On the ACC injury report, Isaiah Denis is listed as probable, and both James Brown and Ivan Matlekovic are listed as out.
— Miami has won three of its last four games, winning 74–68 Saturday at Boston College.
— Caleb Wilson is the Naismith Trophy National Player of the Week after combining for 45 points and 13 rebounds in two games last week. He is also the ACC Rookie of the Week, becoming the first Tar Heel to win the award three times since Coby White won it three times in the 2018–19 season.
— Wilson and Allen were AAU teammates on the Nightrydas team.
— Wilson and Henri Veesaar are combining to average 36.8 points and 18.7 rebounds per game, with 59 blocks and 110 assists, while shooting 60.3% from the floor and attempting 270 free throws.
— Veesaar leads the team in field-goal percentage (62.6%) and 3-point shooting percentage (46%) and is second in scoring (16.6), rebounding (9.1) and blocks (29). He leads the ACC and is ninth in the country with 13 double-doubles.
— The Miami students bought their full allotment of tickets, which is rare for the program. When UNC played at the Watsco Center two seasons ago, many seats reserved for students were empty.
— UNC, which has won five games in a row (two on the road), has four wins against current ranked teams (vs. No. 9 Kansas, at No. 25 Kentucky, at No. 15 Virginia and vs. No. 4 Duke), which are also Quad 1 wins.
— Since ACC play began on Jan. 2, UNC is fourth in the country in offensive efficiency but 113th in defensive efficiency. In the last five games, the Tar Heels are fifth in offensive efficiency and 61st in defensive efficiency.
— Jaydon Young scored a career-high 27 points last season for Virginia Tech against Miami with five 3-pointers.
— UNC is 14–0 at home and 5–0 at home in league play, but home teams are 51–45 (53.1%) in ACC play this season. That is on pace to be the second-lowest home winning percentage in league history behind 1955 (52.7%, 29–26).
UNC season statistics
All games
ACC games
Miami season statistics
All games
ACC games
Statistical comparison
All games/ACC games
| Category | UNC | Miami |
| NET ranking | 22 | 37 |
| Points per game | 82.6/84.2 | 84.2/77.4 |
| Scoring defense | 70.5/79.5 | 70.0/73.0 |
| Scoring margin | +12.1/+4.7 | +12.2/+4.4 |
| FG% | 48.0/48.7 | 51.1/49.4 |
| 3P FG % | 34.7/36.0 | 34.2/30.8 |
| 3P per game | 8.7/9.0 | 6.7/5.6 |
| FT% | 68.6/68.9 | 68.1/70.2 |
| FG% defense | 40.5/41.1 | 42.9/37.6 |
| 3FG% defense | 34.2/41.1 | 35.3/37.6 |
| Opponent 3P/game | 8.1/10.6 | 8.2/8.0 |
| Rebounds per game | 39.4/35.7 | 38.6/35.8 |
| Offensive rebounds/game | 11.3/10.4 | 12.02/10.3 |
| Rebounding margin | +5.5/+1.7 | +8.8/+7.5 |
| Assists per game | 16.8/16.3 | 17.2/13.7 |
| Turnovers per game | 9.4/8.6 | 11.6/11.4 |
| Assist-to-turnover ratio | 1.8/1.9 | 1.5/1.2 |
| Turnovers forced/game | 9.7/9.6 | 13.3/11.0 |
KenPom comparison
| Category | UNC | Miami |
| Overall ranking | 27 | 43 |
| Offensive efficiency | 123.5 (18) | 119.3 (52) |
| Defensive efficiency | 101.1 (48) | 100.7 (42) |
| Possession length | 16.4 (66) | 16.3 (55) |
| Effective FG% | 55.3 (46) | 56.7 (19) |
| Turnover % | 13.6 (14) | 16.4 (147) |
| Offensive rebound % | 33.1 (103) | 36.9 (22) |
| FTA/FGA | 39.8 (71) | 39.5 (79) |
| 3FGA/FGA | 41.9 (135) | 32.6 (322) |
| Assist/FG% | 58.5 (54) | 55.9 (94) |
| Strength of schedule | 57 | 118 |
Series: UNC 29, Miami 10
| Team | League | Overall | NET* | WAB* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 1 Duke | 17–1 | 29–2 | 1 | 2 |
| No. 10 Virginia | 15–3 | 27–4 | 13 | 11 |
| Miami | 13–5 | 24–7 | 32 | 28 |
| No. 19 North Carolina | 12–6 | 24–7 | 23 | 19 |
| Clemson | 12–6 | 22–9 | 36 | 33 |
| No. 24 Louisville | 11–7 | 22–9 | 14 | 25 |
| N.C. State | 10–8 | 19–12 | 35 | 45 |
| Florida State | 10–8 | 17–14 | 69 | 74 |
| California | 9–9 | 21–10 | 65 | 49 |
| Stanford | 9–9 | 20–11 | 59 | 51 |
| SMU | 8–10 | 19–12 | 39 | 50 |
| Virginia Tech | 8–10 | 19–12 | 53 | 52 |
| Wake Forest | 7–11 | 16–15 | 64 | 81 |
| Syracuse | 6–12 | 15–16 | 83 | 92 |
| Pittsburgh | 5–13 | 12–19 | 109 | 146 |
| Notre Dame | 4–14 | 13–18 | 93 | 121 |
| Boston College | 4–14 | 11–20 | 159 | 217 |
| Georgia Tech | 2–16 | 11–20 | 167 | 210 |
* — Through Sunday games
Saturday’s results
No. 1 Duke 76, No. 19 North Carolina 61
Boston College 77, Notre Dame 69
Clemson 79, Georgia Tech 76
No. 24 Louisville 92, Miami 89
Florida State 92, SMU 78
Stanford 85, N.C. State 84
Wake Forest 80, California 73
Pittsburgh 71, Syracuse 69, OT
END OF REGULAR SEASON
ACC tournament
Spectrum Center | Charlotte
Tuesday through Saturday
| Date | Month/day | Scores | Opponent/event (current ranks) | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October | ||||
| 24 | Friday | L, 78–76 | vs. BYU in SLC | Exhib. |
| 29 | Wednesday | W, 95–53 | vs. Winston-Salem St. | Exhib. |
| November | ||||
| 3 | Monday | W, 94–54 | vs. Central Arkansas | 1–0 |
| 7 | Friday | W, 87–74 | vs. No. 17 Kansas | 2–0 |
| 11 | Tuesday | W, 89–74 | vs. Radford | 3–0 |
| 14 | Friday | W, 97–53 | vs. N.C. Central | 4–0 |
| 18 | Tuesday | W, 73–61 | vs. Navy | 5–0 |
| Fort Myers Tip-Off | ||||
| 25 | Tuesday | W, 85–70 | vs. St. Bonaventure | 6–0 |
| 27 | Thursday | L, 74–58 | vs. No. 11 Michigan State | 6–1 |
| December | ACC/SEC Men’s Challenge | |||
| 2 | Tuesday | W, 67–64 | at Kentucky | 7–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 7 | Sunday | W, 81–61 | vs. Georgetown | 8–1 |
| 13 | Saturday | W, 80–62 | vs. USC Upstate | 9–1 |
| 16 | Tuesday | W, 77–58 | vs. ETSU | 10–1 |
| CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta | ||||
| 20 | Saturday | W, 71–70 | vs. Ohio State | 11–1 |
| ————————— | ||||
| 22 | Monday | W, 99–51 | vs. East Carolina | 12–1 |
| 30 | Tuesday | W, 79–66 | vs. Florida State | 13–1, 1–0 ACC |
| January | ||||
| 3 | Saturday | L, 97–83 | at SMU | 13–2, 1–1 |
| 10 | Saturday | W, 87–84 | vs. Wake Forest | 14–2, 2–1 |
| 14 | Wednesday | L, 95–90 | at Stanford | 14–3, 2–2 |
| 17 | Saturday | L, 84–78 | at California | 14–4, 2–3 |
| 21 | Wednesday | W, 91–69 | vs. Notre Dame | 15–4, 3–3 |
| 24 | Saturday | W, 85–80 | at No. 9 Virginia | 16–4, 4–3 |
| 31 | Saturday | W, 91–75 | at Georgia Tech | 17–4, 5–3 |
| February | ||||
| 2 | Monday | W, 87–77 | vs. Syracuse | 18–4, 6–3 |
| 7 | Saturday | W, 71–68 | vs. No. 1 Duke | 19–4, 7–3 |
| 10 | Tuesday | L, 75–66 | at No. 25 Miami | 19–5, 7–4 |
| 14 | Saturday | W, 79–65 | vs. Pittsburgh | 20–5, 8–4 |
| 17 | Tuesday | L, 82–58 | at N.C. State | 20–6, 8–5 |
| 21 | Saturday | W, 77–64 | at Syracuse | 21–6, 9–5 |
| 23 | Monday | W, 77–74 | vs. Louisville | 22–6, 10–5 |
| 28 | Saturday | W, 89–82 | vs. Virginia Tech | 23–6, 11–5 |
| March | ||||
| 3 | Tuesday | W, 67–63 | vs. Clemson | 24–6, 12–5 |
| 7 | Saturday | L, 76–61 | at No. 1 Duke | 24–7, 12–6 |
| 10–14 | Tues.-Sat. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte | |
| 12 | Thursday | L, 80–79 | Quarterfinals: vs. Clemson | 24–8 |
| NCAA tournament | ||||
| 19 | Thursday | L, 82–78, OT | First round: vs. VCU in Greenville, S.C. | 24–9 |
Photo via @CanesHoops
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