Jay Bilas examines North Carolina at Duke, Tar Heels' ceiling
Jay Bilas is a believer in North Carolina, even if their season has been a roller coaster thus far.
Joining SportsCenter on Saturday morning, the ESPN analyst evaluated the Tar Heels and their ceiling ahead of their highly-anticipated showdown with Duke.
“I still think that North Carolina has the highest ceiling of any team in the ACC,” started Bilas. “They’re starting to defend at a higher level. Their last seven games, they’ve held their opponents under 70 in each of those games. I think the issue is when they continue to play inside-out. When they get the ball in to Armando Bacot, their offense runs better. He doesn’t shoot it every time he gets it. He kicks it back out. When they play that inside-out, and when they attack the paint. I mean, Carolina shoots and makes 18 free throws a game. You have to play really physical defense against them, protect the paint and do it without fouling, because you put them at the free throw line, I mean, RJ Davis is leading the ACC in free throw accuracy. They make their free throws when they get there.
“When’s all said and done in this game, this game is going to be decided on the backboard. The game starts when a shot goes up, and it’s going to have to be physical rebounding. Duke’s a great offensive rebounding team. Armando Bacot’s one of the best rebounders in the country and Carolina’s all time leading rebounder. This game is going to be about rebounding. Pat Riley said once, ‘No rebounds, no rings.’ In this game, no rebounds, no win.”
Alas, Bilas laid it all out for North Carolina. Now, can the Tar Heels do what they need to find victory over the Blue Devils? All eyes will be on the famed ACC matchup on Saturday.
UNC vs. Duke: How to watch, odds, picks, final score predictions from ESPN, KenPom
Duke and North Carolina are set to renew college basketball’s most iconic rivalry Saturday evening. Here is everything you need to know ahead of the blockbuster, blue-blooded battle.
How to watch UNC vs. Duke
Tip-off: 6:30 p.m. ET
Location: Cameron Indoor Stadium
Channel: ESPN
Vegas odds
Duke is a 2.5-point favorite over North Carolina on Saturday, according to VegasInsider. The over-under is set at 144.5 points.
ESPN BPI prediction
Predicted winner: Duke
Win probability (for Duke): 68.9%
ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) is a tool that measures team strength and uses that to predict outcomes of future performances.
KenPom prediction
Predicted final score: Duke 73, UNC 70
Win probability (for Duke): 64%
KenPom is another tool that provides advanced analysis across college basketball. Like ESPN, KenPom projects that Duke comes away with a victory over North Carolina.
On3’s Barkley Truax contributed to this article.