UNC Basketball: 2019-20 keys to beat Ohio State in ACC/Big Ten Challenge
The 2019 ACC/Big Ten Challenge comes to an end Wednesday night when UNC Basketball hosts Ohio State in a top-10 match-up. What will the Tar Heels need to do to give the Buckeyes its first loss of the season?
The ACC/Big Ten Challenge is going to have a ton of great matchups and UNC Basketball vs. Ohio State is going to be one of the best. It’s a Wednesday night affair at 9:30 p.m. on ESPN. Two top-10 teams will be going at it. Believe it or not the Buckeyes are ranked higher. The Tar Heels though just completed a brutal Battle 4 Atlantis. They beat Alabama, lost to a scorching hot Michigan team and then knocked off a great Oregon team. The thing that made the game against the Ducks so interesting is that both teams are really good, but with how deep the Tournament was, one team was walking away 1-2.
Ohio State did not go and play in a Tournament. Their biggest claim to fame has been a routing win over Villanova in the Gavitt Games. In fact, when Ohio State plays in Chapel Hill Wednesday night, it will be their first true road game. The Buckeyes beat a talented Cincinnati team that lost to Bowling Green. Other than that, no other power-conference wins.
The Buckeyes are passing the eye test early on this season. North Carolina has a road win even though it was in-state to UNC-Wilmington. They also are 1-0 in ACC play already when they played Notre Dame in the opener. The Tar Heels have a nice resume built already. The only loss came to Michigan who won Battle 4 Atlantis and went from unranked to top-five in a week.
North Carolina also has one of the most exciting players in the country. Cole Anthony makes UNC appointment TV. He does everything for them. Anthony can score from anywhere on the court, make a great pass, grab a ton of rebounds and creates turnovers. There’s no doubt he’ll be a top-five pick in the 2020 NBA draft.
He can’t do it alone. Garrison Brooks is the only returning player that saw regular minutes last season. He and front court teammate, top-25 recruit Armando Bacot are doing a very nice job crashing boards on both ends. Those three vs. Ohio State’s top-three starters, Kaleb Wesson, Duane Washington and Kyle Young are going to be fun to watch. But the Buckeyes bring a top-35 recruit off the bench in DJ Carton who is fun to watch. North Carolina will have its hands full against a balanced Buckeyes team.