UNC is bidding to become the second 8-seed to ever win the national championship and these three things will be key to a victory against Kansas.
It is incredible to think that UNC was a bubble team in serious jeopardy of missing the NCAA Tournament after losing at home to Pittsburgh on Feb. 16. The Tar Heels have caught fire over the following six weeks, going on a ridiculous NCAA Tournament run that included a dramatic Final Four victory to end Mike Krzyzewski’s Duke career to secure a spot in the national championship game.
Hubert Davis’ team is now poised to try and join the 1985 Villanova Wildcats as the second 8-seed to ever win the NCAA Tournament. 40 minutes against the lone 1-seed left, the Kansas Jayhawks, are all that separates Davis from a bit of personal history as he would become the first coach to ever win a national championship in his first full season on the job.
What does UNC need to do in order to topple the Jayhawks and secure their place in history? These three factors could determine if they end up cutting down the nets tomorrow night.
3 keys to victory for UNC against Kansas in the national championship game
3. Make at least 10 3-point shots
Kansas is a disciplined team that can grind out any game they want by slowing the tempo down to their liking. That formula has worked very well in almost all of their NCAA Tournament games except for a 78-72 win against Creighton in the Round of 32 that left the Jayhawks sweating until the end.
The Bluejays knocked down 12 3’s in that game and nearly found a way to topple Kansas without the services of either Ryan Nembhard or Ryan Kalkbrenner, their two best players, who were out with season-ending injuries. Brady Manek and Caleb Love have caught fire from deep throughout March Madness and a night with at least 10 North Carolina threes is one that significantly bolsters their odds of winning the game.
2. Don’t let Ochai Agbaji beat you
The best player on the floor in this game will be Ochai Agbaji, Kansas’ National Player of the Year candidate who can take over a game at will. The NCAA Tournament has been a bit of a struggle for Agbaji, who was cold from the floor before catching fire with six 3-pointers as part of a 21-point effort against Villanova in the Final Four.
Love, R.J. Davis and Leaky Black will presumably all get a shot at guarding Agbaji, who is the most likely Jayhawk to wreck the game if North Carolina allows him to get cooking. Frustrating Agbaji and taking him out of the game will make it much easier for UNC to overwhelm a Kansas team that doesn’t have a ton of true firepower without him.
1. Dominate on the interior
This item refers mainly to Armando Bacot, who has a significant talent edge over David McCormack and Mitch Lightfoot in the paint. Bacot did experience an injury scare after hurting his right ankle late in the Final Four against Duke but Davis confirmed today that Bacot is expected to suit up for the Tar Heels on Monday night.
Bacot has absolutely dominated the glass in the NCAA Tournament, racking up a double-double in each game and securing at least 15 rebounds in four of them, including 21 and 22 rebound efforts in UNC’s last two wins. Those boards either create easy putbacks for Bacot on the offensive end or can help trigger the fast break on defense, meaning a big night from him is essential if the Tar Heels are going to pull off one more upset to win a national title that would have been deemed impossible after that home loss to the Panthers.
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