National Championship Monday is upon us and we have UNC representing the ACC tonight as they take on Villanova.
Tonight's matchup features a Villanova team that is playing the best right now against a North Carolina team that may be the most talented. Villanova can't play any better than they did on Saturday beating Oklahoma by 44 points. Nova scored nearly 1.59 points per possession in their win over Oklahoma and held the Sooners to just .81 points per possession on the other end of the floor. Tonight, they're facing a UNC team coming off a victory over a familiar foe in Syracuse. Some are saying the Heels weren't at their beating Syracuse by just 17 points. Keep in mind though that the Heels were facing Syracuse for a 3rd time which most definitely played into that.
In tonight's matchup, the big concern I have is the 3 point scoring margin. Villanova has shot the ball absurdly well from 3 point range in NCAA Tournament play (48-98, 49%). Throw out a 4-18 performance from behind that arc against Kansas and they're shooting 55% from 3 point range. Compare that to UNC's 30-85 (35%) shooting, and if we throw the 11-20 performance against Indiana and they're at 29% and you see a cause for concern. Sure, UNC should have an advantage in the paint, but if they're trading 2's for 3's they will be fighting an uphill battle.
Check out links, predictions, previews, and more below to get you ready for tonight's championship game.
Video of the Day
Check out more videos from the ACCDN's YouTube page.
NCAAGameSim.com Predictions
- Villanova at UNC - UNC wins 74-73 Sim the game here
View more predictions at NCAAGameSim.com
Links
- Title or not, the ACC owned the NCAA Tournament
- Roy Williams needs no validation, but third title will silence many critics
- UNC GameDay: Tar Heels face Villanova in matchup of nation's top two offenses
- Kennedy Meeks playing well at right time
- 1991: The crazy year Roy beat Dean, Duke beat UNLV, Kansas ... and Bell Biv DeVoe
- Duke's Jeff Capel Not Leaving Duke Just Yet
- North Carolina, Villanova, Play For NCAA Title
- Monday's NCAA Tournament Linkage
- Syracuse Women in championship game: reaction
- Syracuse's Breanna Butler reacts to playing in the championship game
- Technical Tidbits 4/4
- NC State Baseball wins road series against Virginia
- Florida State football, recruiting news: Jameis Winston would take pay cut to play with Jalen Ramsey again
- Tape-Delayed Women's NCAA Hockey Final Had Higher TV Ratings Than Any Men's Tournament Game
- NCAA Championship Tale of the Tape: #1 UNC vs #2 Villanova
- Duke's Jeff Capel removes name from consideration at Georgia Tech
- Is Tech search moving on?
- UNC’s Williams in full Roy mode ahead of NCAA title game
- UNC’s Paige, Johnson hope to achieve ultimate hoops dream in final game
- Roy Williams’ fiery demeanor becomes a Final Four media-driven topic
- Villanova, North Carolina a study of offensive opposites
- UNC goes for sixth NCAA title
- Williams sticks to his Heels
- Theo Pinson crashes the party — again
- Hand-washed superstition part of postseason run for Marcus Paige, UNC
| Team | Conf | Overall |
|---|---|---|
| UNC | 19-4 | 33-6 |
| Miami | 14-6 | 27-8 |
| Virginia | 15-7 | 29-8 |
| Louisville | 12-6 | 23-8 |
| Duke | 12-8 | 25-11 |
| Notre Dame | 12-9 | 24-12 |
| Virginia Tech | 11-9 | 20-15 |
| Clemson | 10-9 | 17-14 |
| Pittsburgh | 10-10 | 21-12 |
| Syracuse | 10-11 | 23-14 |
| FSU | 9-11 | 20-14 |
| Georgia Tech | 9-11 | 21-15 |
| NC State | 6-14 | 16-17 |
| Wake Forest | 2-17 | 11-20 |
| Boston College | 0-19 | 7-25 |
Yesterday's Games
| Matchup | ||
|---|---|---|
| No Games on the Schedule | ||
Injuries
No injuries to report.
