My Thoughts: The Non-ACC Schedule
Upon first glance, North Carolina’s nonconference portion of its basketball schedule for next season isn’t as challenging as what the Tar Heels navigated during he recently-concluded campaign. But keep in mind, when the 2017-18 slate was released, few people expected Tennessee and Ohio State to become what they were, so we can tread cautiously when examining this slate of opponents.
What we do know is that a home game with Gonzaga will be huge and the neutral site game versus Kentucky in Chicago will also be big. Win those two games and take care of the rest of their business, and the Tar Heels’ RPI will be outstanding.
Add two games against a combination of UCLA, Texas or Michigan State in Las Vegas will also help. The rest of the slate has some solid teams in there, some that can help the RPI, such as Davidson, Stanford and Harvard. But the Heels should handle those games, including the season opener at Wofford.
In a way, this is a brilliant way for Roy Williams to have his team open the season. The loss to Wofford at the Smith Center last December really turned out to be revealing. Teams that lose those kinds of games rarely march hard and long through the NCAA Tournament. Losses like that reveal something is missing, and that was the case with the Heels.
Now, they get a chance to exorcise that demon to kick off the season before playing another road game, opening Elon’s new on-campus building.
Two road games out of the gate will also be good for some of the younger Heels that will be heavily counted on to contribute. Playing in other teams' buildings always help young players, especially if they have success, and Carolina should win both contests.
The third game, which is also the home opener, will be against a Stanford team that improved during this past season and should make a legitimate push toward reaching the NCAA Tournament. So, three games in and the Heels will be challenged with their focus as much as anything. With plenty of newness on hand, that’s a great way to kick off the campaign.
Michigan State is always very good, Texas is always very talented, and UCLA is always unpredictable. All three of those teams could be hot and cold next season, especially early, but each will be talented enough to knock off the Tar Heels. The Vegas tournament will present two quality challenges no matter what.
In Gonzaga, the Tar Heels will face what some pundits are already saying should be the best front line in the nation, which is great for the Heels. Williams loves challenges and that will certainly be one. Wanna see how much Garrison Brooks and Sterling Manley have improved well before we hit conference play? Bring on the Zags and find out.
By the way, UNC heads to Gonzaga for the 2019-20 season.
UK is UK. The Wildcats will be loaded as always and will be a tough out. A more athletic UNC team should be up to the challenge, though.
Davidson is always a good game for the Heels to play because of its style and that the Wildcats bring it every time. Harvard has done very well under Tommy Amaker and usually contends and often wins the Ivy League. That the Crimson nearly upset the Heels in the 2015 NCAA Tournament shouldn’t be lost on anyone. For a “patsy” game, which this is not, it’s a quality opponent.
We don’t yet know the opponent for the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, but expect a road game that will elevate the overall difficulty of the schedule. And yes, UNC has probably been told it will have a road game given the way the rest of the schedule is laid out.
As it stands, this is a quality schedule with some fun games, and it’s also one the Tar Heels should be able to handle, perhaps without any blemishes.