2024-25 College Basketball Game Preview, TV Schedule

TV Schedule: Wednesday, December 4, 7:15 p.m. ET. ESPN

Arena: Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Of the many teams in the sport, Alabama (6-2) may be the least afraid of challenges. The Crimson Tide have played five tough ball games in a row and are making this trip to Chapel Hill their sixth. They lost at Purdue before picking up big wins over Illinois and Houston, the final part of a three-game trip to Las Vegas that included a tough loss to Oregon. Now the Crimson Tide will look to assert themselves in the conference challenge against the Tar Heels.

The most important face to keep an eye on is Mark Sears (16.0 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 3.6 apg), a potential All-American who can be a monster scorer but also stand up on defense strikes in many different ways. Senior forward Grant Nelson (13.5 points per game, 7.6 points per game) has spent the last year and a half proving himself to be a capable shot maker and rebounder for Nate Oats’ team. Other talent on this roster includes freshman Labaron Philon (10.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 4.0 apg), coming off a great performance in last weekend’s loss to the Ducks.

Despite these two tough losses, Alabama is ranked No. 10 in the AP Top 25, No. 10 in KenPom and No. 13 in the first NET rankings. The Crimson Tide once again boast one of the most dynamic offenses in the country, with exceptional performances last week in Las Vegas. Even though this team has never experienced one of these games where they shoot the ball out of coverage, they still make the shots they’re supposed to make and hit enough threes to get the job done.

On the other hand, North Carolina (4-3) is back home after the Maui Invitational didn’t quite go their way. The Tar Heels rallied from an 18-point halftime deficit in the opener and outlasted Dayton before losing two straight games to Auburn and Michigan State. This team is strong offensively and undoubtedly has talent, but has fallen into some bad habits early in the year.

There is no question that RJ Davis (18.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.4 apg) is the best player on the court and will need to continue making big plays for the Tar Heels to win big games like this. One player who really stood out on Maui was Seth Trimble (16.1 ppg, 4.0 rpg), the junior guard who has become a much more important part of the lineup this season. There were disappointments early on, but sophomore Elliot Cadeau (14.4 ppg, 5.9 apg) also seemed much stronger as a sophomore for the Tar Heels.

The Tar Heels remain ranked No. 20 nationally in the AP Top 25. While they are still ranked No. 16 in KenPom, they are ranked No. 26 in the first NET rankings of the year this rough November. Their offense has the Gained the upper hand while the defense was disappointing. They’ve already allowed 90 points in three games this season and the interior defense and pressure against Michigan State was pitiful the last time they were on the court.

Both teams know how to score points quickly and each can contribute to a shootout, but it’s clearly the defense that will win this game. Neither team has really stood out for their defensive efforts, aside from perhaps catch-up games against mid-majors in the first few weeks of the season. North Carolina is still getting used to the new faces up front, while Alabama’s aggressive run-and-gun approach sometimes puts them on the receiving end on the other side.

While we’ve praised Alabama’s schedule, it’s important to note that this is only their second true road game and the first one went poorly in West Lafayette. On the other hand, this is only North Carolina’s third home game of the year, and you can bet they’ll want to give their home fans a good performance. If these teams were playing on a neutral site right now, it would be hard not to favor Alabama, but the Tar Heels can win this if they avoid their usual slow start. Whether that’s the case or not remains to be seen, and we’re leaning toward a hotter Crimson Tide squad on the road.

Prediction: Alabama 87, North Carolina 85