Opposites clash as the Huskies and Tar Heels meet in Round Three
The Washington Huskies were considered by many to be wooly at best, while the North Carolina Tar Heels continued the tradition of being seeded high in the NCAA Tournament at No. 2.That’s the backdrop for this third round contest on Friday in Charlotte.
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#7 Washington (23-10, 11-7 Pac-10) vs#2 North Carolina (26-7, 14-2 ACC)
Date/Time: Sunday, March 20, 12:15 PM ET
Venue: Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, NC.
Broadcast: CBS
Money Line: Washington +160, North Carolina -180
Spread: North Carolina -4
Over/Under: 157.5
The Huskies reached the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season, but were considered by many to be a bubble team down the stretch of the season.
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They proved the skeptics wrong winning four straight and nine of their past 12 games overall, including a thrilling 68-65 in over the 10th-seeded Bulldogs on Friday night in the second round of the East regional.
Isaiah Thomas led the Huskies with 19 points and seven assists as Washington staved off Georgia’s late rally, and held their breath as Thomas broke up a long pass in the final seconds that could have led to a game-tying 3-pointer.
Washington advances to the round of 32 for the fifth time in as many appearances in the NCAA tournament, and earned a spot opposite of No. 2 seed North Carolina.
Back from their NIT bid in 2010, just one season after winning the NCAA title, the Tar Heels picked up its 103rd NCAA tournament win, tying Kentucky for the most in Division I history, with a convincing 102-87 victory over scrappy Long Island University on Friday night in the East Regional.
John Henson (28) and Tyler Zeller (32) both scored career highs while Harrison Barnes added 24 points for North Carolina. But the Tar Heels were far from perfect, and were downright sloppy at times, with 18 turnovers, but made up for it by shooting 51 percent from the field.
The Huskies finished third in the country in scoring, averaging 83.5 points per contest and are led by Thomas with 16.8 points per game. Thomas reached double figures for the 91st time in 104 career games for Washington on Friday.
Still, this is North Carolina we are talking about. The Tar Heels are 24th in the nation in scoring at 76.7 points per contest, and led the entire country as a team in rebounds (42.5 RPG).
The Huskies don’t match up well inside in this one, and I expect North Carolina to use its hulking size to edge out a win in this one.
The odds makers have the North Carolina Tar Heels as a -4 point favorite with an over/under of 157.
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