• The Tar Heels play host to the Yellow Jackets at 2 p.m. on January 20th.
• Carolina has won its last three games against Boston College, Notre Dame and Clemson, and is 15-4 overall and 4-2 in the ACC heading into Saturday’s game vs. Georgia Tech.
• The Yellow Jackets are 10-8 overall and 3-2 in the ACC. Tech had won three straight in the conference over Miami, Notre Dame and Pitt before losing at home to Virginia, 64-48, on Jan. 18th.
• The Tar Heels have won 14 straight home ACC games.
• This is the only week the Tar Heels play two ACC home games this season.
• 2017 first-team All-America and ACC Player of the Year Justin Jackson will be honored at halftime. Carolina will officially recognize raising Jackson’s No. 44 to the rafters and will also present him with a Patterson Medal. Jackson was one of three recipients of the 2017 Patterson Medal, the top career achievement award presented to a UNC student-athlete, along with Hayley Carter (tennis) and Ryan Switzer (football). Switzer and Carter are scheduled to be honored at the Duke and Miami games, respectively.
• Carolina has a quick turnaround, returning to action on Monday, Jan. 22nd, at Virginia Tech. It’s the first of two Big Monday games on ESPN (also Feb. 12th vs. Notre Dame).
• Carolina is 16th in the nation in KenPom’s offensive efficiency and 12th defensively.
• Luke Maye (17.8) and Joel Berry II (17.4) lead Carolina in scoring. The last time two Tar Heels averaged 17 points or more in the same season was 1983-84, when Michael Jordan (19.6) and Sam Perkins (17.6) were UNC’s top scoring duo.
• Berry is fourth in the ACC in free throw percentage (.899), fourth in three-pointers per game (2.7) and fifth in scoring. Maye is second in the league in rebounding (10.8), fourth in scoring and ninth in field goal percentage (.512).
• Luke Maye leads the ACC and is eighth in the country in defensive rebounds (8.2). Nationally he is 12th in double-doubles (10) and 14th in rebounding (10.5).
• Cameron Johnson tied his career high with six three-pointers vs. Clemson. Johnson became the first player to make six three-pointers both for and against the Tar Heels (he hit six for Pitt in the Smith Center on 1/31/16).
• The 87-79 win over Clemson was Roy Williams’ 831st. He passed Mt. St. Mary’s Jim Phelan for seventh place in wins by a Division I head coach. Jim Calhoun is sixth with 873.
• Joel Berry II and Luke Maye are among 25 mid-season candidates for the John R. Wooden Award presented by Wendy’s.
• Maye is one of five players who are on the mid-season list who were not among the 50 players on the preseason watch list.
• Carolina is one of four schools that have two players on the mid-season Wooden Award list; Berry and Maye are among the five ACC players on the list.
• Berry is one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award (Tyler Hansbrough won the award in 2009).
THE GEORGIA TECH SERIES
• Carolina leads the series against Georgia Tech, 66-24, including 13-9 under head coach Roy Williams.
• The Tar Heels have won seven of the last eight games against the Yellow Jackets.
• Georgia Tech beat UNC, 75-63, on 12/31/16 in Atlanta in the most recent matchup.
• Carolina is 29-6 against the Yellow Jackets in Chapel Hill, including 24-4 in the Smith Center. UNC has won the last four at home.
• Joel Berry II had 19 points, four assists and five turnovers the last time the teams played in Chapel Hill in 2016. UNC won that game, 86-78.
TRENDING...
• Carolina has scored 789 points on 822 firsthalf possessions and 785 on 822 second-half possessions. Overall, UNC is scoring .96 points per possession, while the opponents are scoring .88.
• Carolina scored more than 1.0 points per possession in both halves against Clemson (1.03 in the first and 1.26 in the second), the sixth time this year it was 1.0 or better in both halves (two straight home games vs. Boston College and Clemson).
• Carolina’s bench averaged 23.1 points in non-conference play. In the six ACC games, UNC’s bench is scoring 13.0 per game.
• The Tar Heels lead the country in rebound margin (11.7) and are second in rebounds per game (43.4).
• Carolina has had a plus-10 or more rebound margin four previous times in its history – three of those four seasons have come in the Roy Williams era (2007-08, 2011-12 and 2016-17 under Williams and the undefeated season in 1956-57).
• Roy Williams’ teams have finished in the top 10 nationally in rebound margin in 14 of his previous 29 seasons as a head coach, including ninth, ninth and first in the last three seasons.
• On the offensive end, Carolina is sixth in the country in rebounding their own missed shots. UNC gets 37.4 percent of their own missed shots. Carolina is 13th in the country in protecting its defensive backboards. The Tar Heels are rebounding 76.7 percent of the opponents’ missed field goals and free throws.
• Luke Maye has led UNC in both scoring and rebounding in three of the first six ACC games (Wake Forest, BC and Notre Dame). Maye has led in both categories seven times this season.
• Maye leads UNC in blocked shots with 21. At 6-8, Maye would the shortest Tar Heel to lead the team in blocks since Danny Green (6-5) in 2006.
• Theo Pinson averaged 11.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 0.7 turnovers in UNC’s last three games, all wins.
• Carolina is 12-1 when Pinson has more assists than turnovers and 10-0 when he has five or more assists.
• Pinson is averaging 5.9 rebounds in UNC’s wins and 3.3 in the losses. He has an assist-error ratio of 1.8 in the wins and has nine assists and 12 turnovers in the losses.
• Joel Berry II has scored the winning points in two of UNC’s ACC wins this season. He hit the game-winning shot with 11 seconds to play against Wake Forest and made two free throws for a 69-68 win at Notre Dame.
• Berry has made at least three three-pointers in nine of the last 10 games and two or more in the last 10. That is the longest streak of games with multiple threes in his career.
• Maye has made 10 or more field goals five times this season – 13 vs. Boston College, 11 vs. UNI, Arkansas and Michigan and 10 at Davidson. Last year, the Tar Heels combined to make 10 or more field goals four times in 40 games – Justin Jackson twice and Joel Berry II and Kennedy Meeks one time each. Berry has also made 10 field goals twice this year.
• Carolina is hitting 8.3 three-pointers per game, which ties the school record set in 2002-03. Last year, UNC made 7.1 per game. The previous high under Roy Williams was 7.6 in 2012-13 when UNC started four perimeter players over the final 13 games.
• Carolina has scored 85 or more points 12 times (all wins), 90 or more points six times, 100 points twice and has averaged just 62.2 points in its four losses.
• The Tar Heels have shot 50 percent from the floor eight times. UNC is shooting 46.2 percent for the season. That includes 49.4 percent in its 15 wins and 33.2 percent in the four losses.
• After making 15 three-pointers against Clemson Carolina has now scored 29.9 percent of its points on three-point field goals. That’s the highest percentage in Roy Williams’ 15 seasons as UNC’s head coach.
• Carolina is attempting one-third of its field goals from three-point range. That is the highest percentage in the Roy Williams era. The previous high was 31.7 percent in 2005-06.
• This is the fifth time in the last 15 seasons UNC attempted at least 30 percent of its field goals from three-point distance. UNC attempted 39.9 percent from beyond the arc under head coach Matt Doherty in 2002-03.
• The opponents have out-scored UNC in points off turnovers in eight of the last 12 games, including an 118-76 edge in the last eight games.
• Carolina scored more fast break points in 10 of the 13 non-conference games (and had the same number of points in the other three games), but has been out-scored on the break in five of the six ACC games.
• UNC out-scored Boston College, 19-2, in fastbreak points. The other five ACC opponents have out-scored UNC, 48-24.
IN THE POLLS
• Carolina is 15th in the Associated Press poll and is tied for 14th in the USA Today/Coaches poll, which were released on 1/15.
• Carolina is ranked in the AP poll for the 72nd consecutive week (last four weeks in 2013-14, all 19 weeks in 2014-15, 2015- 16 and 2016-17 and the first 11 weeks this season).
• Carolina is ranked in the AP poll for the 888th time, most in college basketball history.
Georgia Tech at UNC
Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018
Dean E. Smith Center
Chapel Hill, N.C.
TV: ESPN2 Doug Sherman, Jason Capel
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Network Jones Angell, Eric Montross
Satellite Radio: Sirius 134/XM 193
• Carolina has won its last three games against Boston College, Notre Dame and Clemson, and is 15-4 overall and 4-2 in the ACC heading into Saturday’s game vs. Georgia Tech.
• The Yellow Jackets are 10-8 overall and 3-2 in the ACC. Tech had won three straight in the conference over Miami, Notre Dame and Pitt before losing at home to Virginia, 64-48, on Jan. 18th.
• The Tar Heels have won 14 straight home ACC games.
• This is the only week the Tar Heels play two ACC home games this season.
• 2017 first-team All-America and ACC Player of the Year Justin Jackson will be honored at halftime. Carolina will officially recognize raising Jackson’s No. 44 to the rafters and will also present him with a Patterson Medal. Jackson was one of three recipients of the 2017 Patterson Medal, the top career achievement award presented to a UNC student-athlete, along with Hayley Carter (tennis) and Ryan Switzer (football). Switzer and Carter are scheduled to be honored at the Duke and Miami games, respectively.
• Carolina has a quick turnaround, returning to action on Monday, Jan. 22nd, at Virginia Tech. It’s the first of two Big Monday games on ESPN (also Feb. 12th vs. Notre Dame).
• Carolina is 16th in the nation in KenPom’s offensive efficiency and 12th defensively.
• Luke Maye (17.8) and Joel Berry II (17.4) lead Carolina in scoring. The last time two Tar Heels averaged 17 points or more in the same season was 1983-84, when Michael Jordan (19.6) and Sam Perkins (17.6) were UNC’s top scoring duo.
• Berry is fourth in the ACC in free throw percentage (.899), fourth in three-pointers per game (2.7) and fifth in scoring. Maye is second in the league in rebounding (10.8), fourth in scoring and ninth in field goal percentage (.512).
• Luke Maye leads the ACC and is eighth in the country in defensive rebounds (8.2). Nationally he is 12th in double-doubles (10) and 14th in rebounding (10.5).
• Cameron Johnson tied his career high with six three-pointers vs. Clemson. Johnson became the first player to make six three-pointers both for and against the Tar Heels (he hit six for Pitt in the Smith Center on 1/31/16).
• The 87-79 win over Clemson was Roy Williams’ 831st. He passed Mt. St. Mary’s Jim Phelan for seventh place in wins by a Division I head coach. Jim Calhoun is sixth with 873.
• Joel Berry II and Luke Maye are among 25 mid-season candidates for the John R. Wooden Award presented by Wendy’s.
• Maye is one of five players who are on the mid-season list who were not among the 50 players on the preseason watch list.
• Carolina is one of four schools that have two players on the mid-season Wooden Award list; Berry and Maye are among the five ACC players on the list.
• Berry is one of 30 candidates for the Senior CLASS Award (Tyler Hansbrough won the award in 2009).
THE GEORGIA TECH SERIES
• Carolina leads the series against Georgia Tech, 66-24, including 13-9 under head coach Roy Williams.
• The Tar Heels have won seven of the last eight games against the Yellow Jackets.
• Georgia Tech beat UNC, 75-63, on 12/31/16 in Atlanta in the most recent matchup.
• Carolina is 29-6 against the Yellow Jackets in Chapel Hill, including 24-4 in the Smith Center. UNC has won the last four at home.
• Joel Berry II had 19 points, four assists and five turnovers the last time the teams played in Chapel Hill in 2016. UNC won that game, 86-78.
TRENDING...
• Carolina has scored 789 points on 822 firsthalf possessions and 785 on 822 second-half possessions. Overall, UNC is scoring .96 points per possession, while the opponents are scoring .88.
• Carolina scored more than 1.0 points per possession in both halves against Clemson (1.03 in the first and 1.26 in the second), the sixth time this year it was 1.0 or better in both halves (two straight home games vs. Boston College and Clemson).
• Carolina’s bench averaged 23.1 points in non-conference play. In the six ACC games, UNC’s bench is scoring 13.0 per game.
• The Tar Heels lead the country in rebound margin (11.7) and are second in rebounds per game (43.4).
• Carolina has had a plus-10 or more rebound margin four previous times in its history – three of those four seasons have come in the Roy Williams era (2007-08, 2011-12 and 2016-17 under Williams and the undefeated season in 1956-57).
• Roy Williams’ teams have finished in the top 10 nationally in rebound margin in 14 of his previous 29 seasons as a head coach, including ninth, ninth and first in the last three seasons.
• On the offensive end, Carolina is sixth in the country in rebounding their own missed shots. UNC gets 37.4 percent of their own missed shots. Carolina is 13th in the country in protecting its defensive backboards. The Tar Heels are rebounding 76.7 percent of the opponents’ missed field goals and free throws.
• Luke Maye has led UNC in both scoring and rebounding in three of the first six ACC games (Wake Forest, BC and Notre Dame). Maye has led in both categories seven times this season.
• Maye leads UNC in blocked shots with 21. At 6-8, Maye would the shortest Tar Heel to lead the team in blocks since Danny Green (6-5) in 2006.
• Theo Pinson averaged 11.0 points, 7.3 rebounds, 5.0 assists and 0.7 turnovers in UNC’s last three games, all wins.
• Carolina is 12-1 when Pinson has more assists than turnovers and 10-0 when he has five or more assists.
• Pinson is averaging 5.9 rebounds in UNC’s wins and 3.3 in the losses. He has an assist-error ratio of 1.8 in the wins and has nine assists and 12 turnovers in the losses.
• Joel Berry II has scored the winning points in two of UNC’s ACC wins this season. He hit the game-winning shot with 11 seconds to play against Wake Forest and made two free throws for a 69-68 win at Notre Dame.
• Berry has made at least three three-pointers in nine of the last 10 games and two or more in the last 10. That is the longest streak of games with multiple threes in his career.
• Maye has made 10 or more field goals five times this season – 13 vs. Boston College, 11 vs. UNI, Arkansas and Michigan and 10 at Davidson. Last year, the Tar Heels combined to make 10 or more field goals four times in 40 games – Justin Jackson twice and Joel Berry II and Kennedy Meeks one time each. Berry has also made 10 field goals twice this year.
• Carolina is hitting 8.3 three-pointers per game, which ties the school record set in 2002-03. Last year, UNC made 7.1 per game. The previous high under Roy Williams was 7.6 in 2012-13 when UNC started four perimeter players over the final 13 games.
• Carolina has scored 85 or more points 12 times (all wins), 90 or more points six times, 100 points twice and has averaged just 62.2 points in its four losses.
• The Tar Heels have shot 50 percent from the floor eight times. UNC is shooting 46.2 percent for the season. That includes 49.4 percent in its 15 wins and 33.2 percent in the four losses.
• After making 15 three-pointers against Clemson Carolina has now scored 29.9 percent of its points on three-point field goals. That’s the highest percentage in Roy Williams’ 15 seasons as UNC’s head coach.
• Carolina is attempting one-third of its field goals from three-point range. That is the highest percentage in the Roy Williams era. The previous high was 31.7 percent in 2005-06.
• This is the fifth time in the last 15 seasons UNC attempted at least 30 percent of its field goals from three-point distance. UNC attempted 39.9 percent from beyond the arc under head coach Matt Doherty in 2002-03.
• The opponents have out-scored UNC in points off turnovers in eight of the last 12 games, including an 118-76 edge in the last eight games.
• Carolina scored more fast break points in 10 of the 13 non-conference games (and had the same number of points in the other three games), but has been out-scored on the break in five of the six ACC games.
• UNC out-scored Boston College, 19-2, in fastbreak points. The other five ACC opponents have out-scored UNC, 48-24.
IN THE POLLS
• Carolina is 15th in the Associated Press poll and is tied for 14th in the USA Today/Coaches poll, which were released on 1/15.
• Carolina is ranked in the AP poll for the 72nd consecutive week (last four weeks in 2013-14, all 19 weeks in 2014-15, 2015- 16 and 2016-17 and the first 11 weeks this season).
• Carolina is ranked in the AP poll for the 888th time, most in college basketball history.
Georgia Tech at UNC
Saturday, Jan. 20, 2018
Dean E. Smith Center
Chapel Hill, N.C.
TV: ESPN2 Doug Sherman, Jason Capel
Radio: Tar Heel Sports Network Jones Angell, Eric Montross
Satellite Radio: Sirius 134/XM 193
