The North Carolina Tar Heels are in their final four games before ACC play, and are looking at two straight tune-ups at the Smith Center in Chapel Hill.
First up is the Big South’s USC Upstate Spartans.
Here are a few key factors to keep an eye on when Carolina hosts USC Upstate on Saturday afternoon.
USC Upstate’s Defensive Strengths
With 5.5 blocks per game, the Spartans lead the Big South and rank 21st in the nation. With 60 blocks in 11 games, USC Upstate has the sixth-most blocks in the NCAA. Junior forward Jafeth Martinez is averaging
2.1 blocks per game, good for 14th nationally.
The Spartans also rank in the top 60 in the NCAA in both field goal percentage and three-point percentage defense. In fact, USC Upstate is tied with Carolina at 29.4 percent allowed from beyond the arc.
While these raw numbers shine, KenPom has USC Upstate’s adjusted defensive efficiency as 109.7, ranking 215th. This rating accounts for their weak strength of schedule and 6-5 record. USC Upstate has faced just one school from a Power 4 conference, while taking on D-II and D-III programs.
Who Gets a Longer Look?
For three straight games, head coach Hubert Davis has used the same five starters and three reserves.
In the last two games, the fourth reserve was Jaydon Young, while James Brown got the nod versus Michigan State. This decision was based on the opposition personnel on the floor, but it provides insight into the top reserves in the front and back courts.
Especially since his clutch shots in the final minutes of the Kentucky game, Derek Dixon has jumped up as the top reserve guard over Jonathan Powell.
Zayden High has been the first big man off the bench whenever Henri Veesaar and Caleb Wilson need a quick breather. Working under the assumption that the next two games are opportunities to log more minutes for reserves, will Young, Brown, and guard Isaiah Denis get some more time on the court?
The rotation is working for now, but everyone knows that depth is key in the ACC and NCAA Tournament. Perhaps this will be as good a time as any to get those reserves some live action reps.
Wilson’s 10-Game Start
Needless to say, Tar Heel fans are seeing something very, very special with Wilson’s start to his UNC career.
Wilson has scored in double figures in all nine of his collegiate games, while tallying six double-doubles and five games of 20 or more points.
Looking back at the past 25 years of college basketball, Michael Beasley at Kansas State and Carmelo Anthony at Syracuse are the gold standard for the best freshman debuts.
If Wilson scores a double-double against USC Upstate, he will have one more than Anthony did during his first 10 games of his collegiate career, while averaging over a rebound better.
It is interesting to note that two other freshmen, Cameron Boozer of Duke and Hannes Steinbach of Washington, have five double-doubles so far this season.
It is doubtful Davis gives Wilson the hook prematurely in these games since he is still a freshman and needs the experience on the court. As fierce a competitor as he is, Wilson will undoubtedly be gunning for that double-double, or even the 20/10 mark on Saturday.
