Facing its final power conference opponent before the arrival of ACC play, No. 12 North Carolina will be searching for a consistent 40 minutes when it meets Ohio State on Saturday in Atlanta.
North Carolina (10-1) is on a four-game win streak, but coach Hubert Davis wants more from his team — especially early in games. The Tar Heels have won comfortably against South Carolina Upstate and East Tennessee State in their last two outings but have waited until the second half to put their foot on the gas.
With the competition level improving on Saturday, North Carolina will chase a full-throttle approach against the Buckeyes (8-2).
“I wouldn’t necessarily say that we’ve consistently gotten off to slow starts. I would say that at times we haven’t been consistent at the beginning,” Davis said. “We’ve gotten off to fast starts and then we’ve had a four- or six-minute lull on both ends of the floor. We allow a team to come back.
“The consistency, that’s one of the biggest things with this team, just playing at that high level. We’ve shown that we can be there, but it’s the consistency to be able to do that for a full 40 minutes.”
Star freshman Caleb Wilson leads the Tar Heels with 19.5 points and 10.4 rebounds per game, asserting himself as the team’s go-to player just 11 games into his college career.
The 19-year-old, who is making his return to his hometown of Atlanta, has scored in double figures in every game and is averaging 20.0 points and 11.0 rebounds across his last three games.
“I think it’ll be great. I haven’t been to Atlanta in five or six months, so it’ll be fun for sure,” Wilson said. “But the atmosphere really doesn’t matter to me. I’m just going out there and playing my hardest.”
Fellow big man Henri Veesaar adds 16.9 points and 9.1 rebounds for North Carolina, which could see the return of guard Seth Trimble. The senior hasn’t played since Nov. 11 because of a broken forearm in a weight-room accident. Hubert noted Monday that Trimble was “progressing nicely.”
Ohio State has an opportunity to earn a massive resume boosting-win on Saturday in its second game against a ranked opponent this season. After falling 88-80 to No. 13 Illinois on Dec. 9, the Buckeyes battled back from a 16-point deficit to gut out an 89-88 double-overtime win over West Virginia at Cleveland on Saturday.
Playing in the CBS Sports Classic each year since its inception in 2014 has given Ohio State a chance for a marquee December win.
“This is an event we look forward to every year,” Ohio State coach Jake Diebler said. “It’s been great for Ohio State since it began. There’s a lot of teams in the country that aren’t playing 25 high-major games in a season and it’s something that’s important to us. We’re excited about the opportunity for a big-time resume-building win in front of us.”
The Buckeyes are 0-3 against North Carolina in the event. Senior guard Bruce Thornton, another Atlanta-area native, leads Ohio State with 21.8 points per game, followed by John Mobley Jr. and Christoph Tilly at 13.8 each.
