If you’re looking for ways to kick off your last weekend before the busy Thanksgiving week, might we suggest attending or watching some UNC basketball on Friday, Nov. 17?
The Tar Heels will be hosting Big West school UC-Riverside for an 8 p.m. EST tip-off. This allows plenty of fans to get home from work, eat dinner and take care of their pets before heading into Chapel Hill.
Despite a couple of slow starts against Radford and Lehigh, UNC is 2-0. The Tar Heels have shown an ability to close out games in dominant fashion, something we hardly saw last year. Armando Bacot continues climbing up the all-time scoring list, R.J. Davis continues showing why he’s UNC’s best shooter, while transfers Harrison Ingram and Cormac Ryan have brought some much-needed scoring reinforcements.
UC-Riverside already has one win under its belt, 76-69 against NAIA school Cal-Merced on Tuesday, Nov. 7. The Highlanders have struggled against Division-I competition, though, getting 29-pieced by Utah and 11-pieced by Portland U. (Oregon).
It’s too early to tell how good a team is this early in the season, but Riverside has five guys averaging at least five points. Its top two scorers, Barrington Hargress and Isaiah Moses, both average double-digits.