Tar Heels face SDSU in Opening Round
by Sharon Thorsland
North Carolina squeaked its way into the NCAA Tournament, earning an 11 seed and a play in game against San Diego State. This is the first time the Tar Heels have ever played in the First Four, and they’ll face a tough Aztecs team. The Heels (22-13) are coming off a near upset of top ranked Duke in the semi-finals of the ACC tournament, while SDSU (21-9) lost to Boise State in the opening round of the Mountain West tourney. Tip-off is set for 9:10 tonight on WBT.
While UNC features a high-powered offense, the Aztecs are a defensive-minded team. And they will likely get a boost tonight with the return of freshman center Magoon Gwath, the Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year who set a conference record with 2.7 blocks per game, that’s 7th in the country. Gwath has missed the past five game with a knee injury but is reportedly available for the tournament. If he plays, that could pose plenty of problems for a smaller UNC lineup that struggled to stop Duke big man Khaman Maluach on Friday. But Heels big man Ven-Allen Lubin should have plenty of confidence heading into this one. He had three straight double-doubles in the ACC Tournament, averaging 15.6 points and 11 rebounds per game. If Lubin can keep that up, the Heels will have a chance in this one.
The Tar Heels have a veteran team but the Aztecs are a young group, as five of their top players are underclassmen. Senior guard Nick Boyd leads the team with 13.4 points, sophomore Miles Byrd adds 12.6. They are the only players averaging in double figures. One thing to note – the Aztecs foul a lot. Their opponents shoot over 20 free throws per game. And the Tar Heels are elite at getting to the line, shooting 73% when they get there. Look for the Heels to push the tempo and get the Aztecs in foul trouble tonight.
These teams have only played twice before, most recently way back in 1990, UNC won both of the matchups. The Tar Heels are hot coming into this one, winning eight of their last 10 games. And this is the last hurrah for UNC senior RJ Davis, who no doubt would like to make a run in his final NCAA Tournament. And Jae’Lyn Withers is definitely looking for redemption after committing a lane violation in the Duke game that negated the game-tying free throw. This UNC team should be highly motivated to show people that they belong in the tournament with a demonstrative win and move on to Milwaukee. Go Tar Heels!