Gameday Preview: UNC vs California – Weds Jan 15th 2025

The UNC Tar Heels (11-6, 4-1 ACC) host the California Golden Bears (8-8, 1-4 ACC) Wednesday night in Chapel Hill. 

The Tar Heels have won 5 out the last 6 with their only loss coming at Louisville. The Cardinals are enjoying a meteoric rise and are sitting in second place in the ACC. The Tar Heels are coming off a 2-point victory against the NC State Wolfpack in Raleigh on Saturday winning 63-61. Carolina Big Man Jalen Washington made the go ahead dunk with 24 seconds left then followed up with the game winning block on State’s Jayden Taylors layup attempt at the buzzer. Washington grabbed his first career double double scoring 11 and hauling in 12 rebounds. UNC Freshman phenom Ian Jackson stayed in red hot form. Jackson made 5 three pointers and led the Tar Heels with 21 points shooting 8-15 from the field. Super senior star RJ Davis added 11 points. 

The Cal Bears have lost 7 out of their last 9 games including a 71-68 loss against the Virginia Tech Hokies (7-9, 2-3 ACC) over the weekend. The Bears were down 42-23 at halftime to the lowly Hokies. The Golden Bears rode a 26-7 run to cut the lead to 3 and eventually tied the game at 58 but could not take the lead.

The Tar Heels are starting to find their form with the emergence of their newest star Ian Jackson. Jackson has scored over 20 points in 5 out of the last 6 games shooting 42% from the 3 point line. Son of former NBA Superstar Peja Stojakovic, Andrej Stojakovic is the Golden Bears leading scorer with 20 points per game.

Key Points

UNC

• Feed Ian Jackson. The freshman is playing with immense swagger and is on fire from long range. Tonight is a night to get him his points and continue his blazing path.
• Build on Jalen Washington’s big game. The middle of the Tar Heels offense has noticeably under-produced. After Saturday’s massive game from Washington, the Tar Heels need to build his confidence and make him a solid offensive option.
• Win comfortably. The Tar Heels are a 14.5 point favorite and need to play like it. The Heels are riding a miracle 4 point play and block shot at the buzzer to win their last two games. A comfortable win will go a long way.

California 

• Take advantage of the Heel’s slow starts. If the Bears can jump out to an early lead and get the fans out of the game, the upset could be brewing.
• Lean on the scoring of Andrej Stojakovic. He is averaging 20 points on the season but 22.4 points on the road. In the close games the Heels have been playing in, the two points could make the difference. 
• Score at least at average. The Tar Heels are giving up 77 points a game, the same amount the Bears are averaging. If they can bump their totals up a little, they can leave Chapel Hill with a W.