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The Atlantic Coast Conference is guaranteed two spots in the Final Four. The top-seeded Tar Heels will meet sixth-seed Notre Dame in the East Region final to determine one. UNC blasted the Irish by 31 points in the ACC tournament, but Notre Dame pulled out a narrow victory during the regular season. The winner of the rubber game gets the biggest prize.
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HOW THE NOTRE DAME FIGHTING IRISH CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Notre Dame is back in the Elite Eight for the second straight year thanks to arguably the second most impressive comeback of March Madness, storming back to beat Wisconsin with an 8-0 run in the final 19 seconds to win 61-56.
Point guard Demetrius Jackson didn’t play his best through much of the game, but he made the biggest plays of the game in the final 30 seconds with two layups, two steals and two free throws that allowed the Irish to advance.
The defensive effort will be much needed against the Tar Heels, who are averaging nearly 90 points in three Tournament games. But the Irish need to start making some shots or it won’t matter.
The big guns on offense must get back to their pre-Sweet 16 style of play. Jackson and Zach Auguste shot a combined 22 of 30 in the first two tournament game then went 3 of 16 in the first half on Friday.
HOW THE NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
North Carolina walloped Indiana 101-86 in the Sweet 16 on Friday night because the Tar Heels essentially did whatever they wanted on offense. They had 52 points at halftime and 75 points eight minutes into the second half.
When UNC wanted to go inside, Kennedy Meeks and Brice Johnson combined for 35 points on only 20 shots. When Indiana converged on the paint and left shooters free, Marcus Paige and three other Tar Heels combined for 11 of 20 from beyond the arc.
On the off chance North Carolina missed a shot or two, the Heels were still able to collect 15 offensive rebounds despite their torrid shooting.
Buoyed by its top players, the Tar Heels were efficient on both ends of the floor. All five starters reached double figures and even had time late in the game to take a breather. Paige, who struggled shooting at times earlier in the season, went 6 of 9 from three-point range and is shooting 53.4 percent from beyond the arc in the tournament.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Standing in the way of North Carolina’s 19th all-time Final Four is ACC rival Notre Dame, a team the Tar Heels dismantled by 31 points earlier this month in the semifinals of the conference tournament. The Irish did, however, win the lone regular season matchup between the two teams. It’s easier to envision the rubber match resembling the second meeting than the first one because North Carolina has been a different team since the postseason began. Not only are the Tar Heels gashing opponents in transition and on the offensive glass as has been their trademark all season, now they’re also defending with urgency and knocking down open perimeter shots.
Notre Dame’s once most efficient offense has been non-existent since scoring just 47 points against UNC in the conference tournament. The luck of the Irish could be with Notre Dame as they’ve won the last three by a combined 13 points, but there is no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow in this one.
North Carolina 77, Notre Dame 69
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