North Carolina looks to end a two-game losing streak as the Tar Heels host NC Central on Saturday at the Smith Center.

UNC is 3-2 and has lost consecutive games at the buzzer to No. 13 Texas and Tuesday night at No. 3 Iowa. The Tar Heels have defeated the College of Charleston, UNLV, and Stanford.

NCCU is 1-2 with a win over Southern on its resume. The Eagles’ losses were at Iowa by 40 points and at Coastal Carolina by seven points. Central has had games at Wofford and at Vanderbilt canceled because of COVID testing.

UNC was slated to face Elon, but the game was cancelled due to the Phoenix pausing basketball after some players tested positive for COVID-19. The Central game was announced by UNC on Wednesday.

The game will tip at 2 pm.

Here are our picks:

On paper, this should be a relatively routine win for UNC with NCCU simply not as talented. I think the Eagles keep it close until about the 10-12 minute mark in the second half before the Tar Heels' dominance down low and on the boards allows them to pull away for a comfortable victory. I see a big game from Garrison Brooks on the cards, too. Prediction: UNC 79, NCCU 65.

Carolina needed this game following back-to-back losses, so NC Central steps in to replace Elon. This game will give the Tar Heels another game for its young backcourt to gel, which is the biggest key before facing Ohio State. Prediction: UNC 83, NCCU 63.

The Tar Heels will bounce back in a big way and defeat NC Central. I look for UNC to control the paint and dominate the backboard to take the win. Prediction: UNC 83, NCCU 69.

The Tar Heels picked up a late surprise opportunity to prove they are improving as a team before facing another tough opponent next week. Nothing against a well-coached North Carolina Central squad, but this is a chance for the freshmen guards to continue their maturation and get better and lead the Heels to a crushing victory. Prediction: UNC 92, NCCU 70.

The Tar Heels really need this game to gain some confidence, get a win and to continue working on the many things they must improve. The young guards must play fairly clean basketball, especially considering the inherent advantages they will have, and overall, the Heels must dominate and they will. Carolina will get a victory and performance the team needs. Prediction: UNC 86, NCCU 61.

Average THI prediction: UNC 84.6, NCCU 65.5.