The Tar Heels are dancing.

Carolina received a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament’s South Region Sunday evening. The Tar Heels will play No. 11 seed VCU in the tournament’s first round Thursday in Greenville, S.C. The winner of the UNC vs. VCU game will play the winner of No. 3 seed Illinois and No. 14 Penn Saturday. For a full look at the tournament bracket, click here. Tip-off times will be finalized later.

UNC enters the tournament with a 24-8 overall record, though Carolina is coming off losses in consecutive games for the first time since January. The Tar Heels will be without the services of leading scorer and rebounder Caleb Wilson, who continues to rehab a fractured right thumb and has been ruled out for the remainder of the season.

Thursday’s game will be the first ever matchup between UNC and VCU in men’s basketball. The Rams enter the tournament with a 27-7 overall record. They have won 16 of their last 17 games and won the Atlantic 10 Tournament.

Carolina is seeking its first win in the tournament’s main draw since 2024. The Tar Heels reached the NCAA Tournament as the last team in last season and won their play-in game, but were then defeated by No. 6 seed Ole Miss in the Round of 64. UNC has not advanced past the Sweet 16 since reaching the national championship game in 2022.

UNC has played NCAA Tournament games in Greenville’s Bon Secours Wellness Arena before. The Tar Heels journeyed to Greenville for the first and second rounds of the tournament in 2017 as a No. 1 seed, beating No. 16 Texas Southern and No. 8 Arkansas on their way to the national title.

This year’s tournament appearance is UNC’s 55th in program history, which is the second most of any program nationally.

 

Featured image via Todd Melet

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