UNC hopes to limit costly mistakes in matchup vs. BC

Field Level Media|published: Fri 24th January, 19:57 2025

Jan 21, 2025; Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels guard RJ Davis (4) brings the ball up court against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons during the first half at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The North Carolina Tar Heels have seen "little mistakes," as coach Hubert Davis called them, cost them dearly over the past week, leading to back-to-back one-point losses for the first time in nearly 60 years.

Now, the Heels have a chance to right the ship as they return to Chapel Hill for an Atlantic Coast Conference matchup against the fledgling Boston College Eagles.

Not since 1968 has North Carolina (12-8, 5-3 ACC) entered a game on the heels of consecutive single-point defeats. Simply put, Davis said, "it comes down to makes and misses." The Tar Heels made just 13 of 50 shots from beyond the arc during the two-game skid. And in their most recent loss at Wake Forest, the Heels were held to 40 percent shooting from the field -- tied for their second-worst percentage of the season.

Against Boston College (9-10, 1-7), the Tar Heels look to climb back up toward the top of the ACC standings. And history is on their side.

North Carolina has won 17 of the last 18 meetings against the Eagles, including the past five. RJ Davis paces the Tar Heels with 17.5 points per game, and the Heels look to get Ian Jackson, averaging 14.7 points, back into rhythm. After a stretch of six 20-point outings in seven games, the freshman has logged just 13 points over the past two contests, shooting 4 of 19 from the field.

The Tar Heels look to capitalize against an Eagles team that has allowed opponents an average of 73.9 points per game. Boston College has also allowed opponents to shoot 45.8 percent from the field, ranking them toward the bottom of the ACC in two key stats.

Boston College will once again lean on Donald Hand Jr., who averages 14.2 points and 6.6 rebounds.

"He can be more aggressive offensively," Eagles coach Earl Grant said. "We try to get him involved in a lot of different ways. ... He's our leading scorer. He's a veteran. He's been around the program for multiple years, so it's nice to have him out on the floor."

Chad Venning has come on strong of late for Boston College, averaging 16 points over the past seven games. The Eagles, though, have dropped nine of the last 12 -- including five straight -- after opening the season 6-1 to tie for the program's best start to a season since winning the first 20 games in 2004-05.

--Field Level Media