North Carolina continues to drop 80+ on all of its opponents. Although Notre Dame gave the Tar Heels their biggest scare yet, UNC responded by going on a 12-0 run after the Irish went up by a point early in the second half and never looked back. Now North Carolina will face a team it has already beaten twice this season in the Syracuse Orange for a trip to the National Title Game.
College Basketball Odds at BookMaker.eu
Syracuse Orange +9.5
North Carolina Tar Heels –9.5
Over/Under 148.5
HOW THE NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Brice Johnson cannot be stopped! Johnson totally dominated the Fighting Irish in the paint, nailing 10-of-15 shots and grabbing 12 rebounds in a game where Notre Dame managed just 14 rebounds as a team. His efforts were a big part of the reason why UNC put this game away and led to the Tar Heels outrebounding Notre Dame by 17. UNC’s effort on the glass was so dominant that the Tar Heels almost had as many offensive rebounds as Notre Dame had total rebounds as well.
Marcus Paige didn’t shoot as well as he did against Indiana on Friday night, but North Carolina is deep and Justin Jackson and Joel Berry II picked up their play in his stead. Jackson and Berry combined to go 8-of-14 from the floor for 22 points with 10 assists between them.
UNC’s depth and the roster’s ability to have anyone be able to carry the team for part of the game is in stark contrast to Cuse.
HOW THE SYRACUSE ORANGE CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Syracuse was down 15 points with 10 minutes left to play against Virginia and looked like its run was over. However, magic happened, as suddenly Malachi Richardson couldn’t miss from the floor and spurred Syracuse on a 23-4 run in just five minutes to allow the Orange to claim the lead and pull the shocking upset. Richardson ended the day just 6-of-16 shooting, but he was ice cold in the first half and scored 21 of his 23 in the second half.
Richardson and Michael Gbinije will need to put forth better efforts to beat North Carolina. These two shooters hit just 35 percent of their attempts from the floor against Virginia and if it wasn’t for an ungodly hot streak from Richardson paired with a Virginia choke for the ages, Syracuse would be at home right now.
Tyler Roberson is probably the most important piece for Syracuse’s hopes against North Carolina. He is by far the best rebounder Syracuse has, but often plays undisciplined and fouled out against Virginia by running into the back of a Cavalier player. He will need a big game to help Syracuse win the battle of the paint.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
The Orange have had a good run, but how can you not like the Tar Heels here? North Carolina is deeper, more talented and a better shooting team. The Tar Heels haven’t been flustered by the Syracuse 2-3 zone all season and there’s no reason to think they’ll be stopped by it now.
If Paige plays well, Syracuse would have to shoot the lights out to keep pace with UNC, but that’s not how this Syracuse team is built. The Orange are built to grind out slow, sloppy games and North Carolina is anything but.
Grab the Tar Heels all day long here!
North Carolina 82, Syracuse 70
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BookMaker's live betting platform means you always have access to odds and lines to every sporting event. Click here and start wagering today! The game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Syracuse Orange is scheduled for Saturday, April 2, 2016 at 8:49 p.m. ET at the NRG Stadium in Houston. The game will be televised nationally on TBS.
