Written by MICHAEL KOH
The Tar Heels will need to avoid a common pitfall tonight in Coral Gables.
Who among us hasn’t crashed back to earth after a night of celebration? For UNC, it’s almost impossible to not experience some sort of drop-off after its 71-68 win against Duke Saturday night in the Smith Center. But Miami is no pushover, and the Hurricanes need a signature win to boost their NCAA Tournament résumé. That makes tonight’s contest the trap game to end all trap games.
In 2024, UNC fell into the trap when it hosted Clemson at the Smith Center after an emphatic home win against the Blue Devils the previous weekend. The Tigers raced out to a big lead, then held on for dear life as Carolina attempted a huge rally in the second half. To this day, it’s one of only two wins ever for Clemson in Chapel Hill.
Miami may not be as good as that Tiger team which eventually advanced to the Elite Eight that March, but the ‘Canes historically haven’t been very friendly hosts in UNC’s recent visits, even when outmatched from a talent perspective. During that same 2024 season, Miami nearly erased a 13-point UNC lead in the final three minutes, giving the Tar Heels a serious scare. In 2022, it was a beatdown of historic proportions in an 85-57 ‘Canes win. And in 2021, Carolina needed a game-winner from Andrew Platek of all people to escape with a victory.
The Hurricanes are much improved this season after a last-place finish in the ACC in 2025. They’re led by Jai Lucas, a former Duke assistant in his first year with the program. Lucas is the first disciple of Duke head coach Jon Scheyer to earn a head coaching appointment of his own, and may or may not have a bone to pick after the Blue Devils alleged mistreatment by UNC fans at the Smith Center last weekend.
Miami is 18-5 overall, but has lost to all three ranked teams it’s faced this season and also has an ugly home loss to Florida State which currently places the ‘Canes squarely on the NCAA bubble. Adding to Tuesday night’s importance is the fact that UNC and Miami are tied in the ACC standings at 7-3. With the teams only meeting once in the regular season, whoever wins will clinch a crucial head-to-head tiebreaker and get that much closer to a coveted double-bye in next month’s ACC Tournament.
Hubert Davis expressed confidence his team would be ready for the challenge after Saturday’s euphoric win. But if precedent tells us anything, it’s to be wary of a potential upset by the beach.
Featured image via Todd Melet
Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
