Bracketology 2020: North Carolina, Michigan headline this week’s losers
NORTH CAROLINA
More than any loss, the biggest headache for the Tar Heels is the injury report. Star freshman point guard Cole Anthony is out indefinitely and fellow starter Leaky Black is day-to-day. That’s not encouraging for a team that has lost three straight and four of its last five.
The beginning of the season was a dadgum dream for Roy Williams and UNC, but that dream quickly turned into a nightmare when they tangled with Michigan on Thanksgiving. The Heels recovered well to beat Oregon in the next game but lost to Ohio State and Virginia in their next two.
None of those losses are really too bad, though the Michigan game is coming into better focus with the Wolverines’ recent struggles. But Sunday night marked the low point of the season so far in Chapel Hill.
In the rubber match of their three-year series, Wofford traveled north to Tobacco Road with an upset in mind. The Terriers had fallen out of the SOCON limelight after graduating a huge chunk of their production from last year’s nationally-ranked squad. But they’re right back in the public eye after upending the Tar Heels by a score of 68-64.
For North Carolina, tumbling out of the national polls is likely, but that has to be the least of their concerns at this point. Getting their starters back is crucial. The Heels have a midweek tussle with Gonzaga and it’s not looking very good for the boys in Carolina Blue.
Not only has the team swiftly fallen out of contention for a #1 seed, they could also be in serious danger of falling out of the bracket altogether if they can’t get Cole Anthony back on the court in a timely fashion. That’s definitely a worst-case scenario, but it’s been a rough couple of weeks in Chapel Hill. It’s hard not to imagine the worst at this point.
8 biggest takeaways of the week. dark. Next
As always, bracketology predictions in December are a shaky business at best. But as the results continue to pour in, teams start to show their strengths—and expose their weaknesses. All of these teams had a bad week, but it’s not too late to turn the bus around.