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The NCAA Tournament officially got underway on Tuesday night as the first two games of the First Four took place in Dayton, Ohio. The round of 64 will get started on Thursday, and one team that a lot of people have making a run in their bracket is North Carolina basketball. The Tar Heels have been one of the best teams in the country all year long, and they earned a one seed in the NCAA Tournament.
North Carolina basketball finished the regular season with a 25-6 overall record and a 17-3 mark in ACC conference play. That 17-3 conference record was good enough to win the ACC outright. The Tar Heels' rival, Duke, had a chance to win a share of the conference crown when the two teams met at Cameron Indoor for the last game of the regular season. North Carolina played a great game to get the win, and they won sole possession of the championship.
The Tar Heels went into the ACC Tournament as the favorite, but a surprise run from NC State took the conference by surprise, and the Wolfpack ended up winning the tourney. North Carolina played well in their first two games and made it to the championship game, but they lost to NC State in the finals.
Now, North Carolina is ready to start their NCAA Tournament run, and it will get underway on Thursday afternoon as they will be taking on Wagner at 2:45 ET. The Tar Heels are big 24.5-point favorites.
Looking at North Carolina's region, they could have a very tricky path to the final four. Assuming they take care of business against Wagner, they could have a tricky matchup against Michigan State in the round of 32. The Spartans haven't been all that impressive this season, but they are known for turning it on in March.
If North Carolina gets to the Sweet 16, a matchup with the high-powered Alabama offense could be waiting. The Crimson Tide can score in bunches, and they are a nightmare for defenses. That wouldn't be an easy game.
Looking to the Elite 8, the team that North Carolina should be most worried about is three seed Baylor, not two seed Arizona. No disrespect to the Wildcats, but they played in arguably the worst major conference this season, and they have shown glaring weaknesses in recent losses to Oregon (an 11 seed) and USC (did not make the NCAA Tournament). Baylor is much more battle tested and arguably the better the basketball team.
The point is, the road to the final four is not going to be easy for North Carolina basketball. Still, this team is the one seed in the region for a reason, and they are capable of winning a national title. Here is why.
North Carolina has experience in the national game
If North Carolina ends up making it to the national title game, their experience from the 2021 season should help a lot. Key players like Armando Bacot and RJ Davis played in that national title game and know what it is like to be on the biggest stage in college basketball. If they get back to that point, that will help them a lot.
The Tar Heels had a big lead at halftime against Kansas in that game, but they folded in the second half and couldn't find a way to win the game. That was a big learning experience for the team, and they want to go back and avenge that loss.
Leadership
North Carolina also has a lot of veteran leaders on this team. Bacot, Davis, Cormac Ryan and Harrison Ingram are four starters and they are all upperclassmen, with three of them being seniors or older. That kind of leadership is big once the NCAA Tournament hits, and not a lot of teams have that luxury. When things get hard, the Tar Heels have a lot of guys that can calm things down and get the team back into a rhythm. That is huge.
North Carolina starts their tournament run in less than 24 hours, and it will be fun to watch. We'll see how far the Tar Heels can make it.
