The North Carolina Tar Heels’ men’s basketball program returns to action on Friday in the winner’s bracket of the Phil Knight Invitational. And after surviving a scare against Portland, the test gets a little tougher.
Up next for the Tar Heels is Iowa State, fresh off a win over Villanova in overtime.
The Cyclones improved to 4-0 with the win over the Wildcats, holding the lead for most of the second half before it went to overtime. They got the job done in the extra session and will now face its toughest test yet in No. 1 North Carolina.
UNC used a late run in the second half to avoid being upset by Portland as the Pilots gave the Tar Heels all they could handle. It was a back-and-forth game until UNC was able to pull away late thanks to the play of Pete Nance and Caleb Love.
Iowa State is led by guard Jaren Holmes who is averaging 16.8 points per game this season. He will be someone that can give UNC fits in the backcourt if they aren’t careful. Where the Cyclones can have the advantage is on the boards. They enter this game averaging 40 rebounds per game, two more than UNC this season. Let’s see if Armando Bacot and Pete Nance can limit the rebounding in this one.