The Notre Dame Fighting Irish look to stay perfect at home when they battle the North Carolina Tar Heels in a key ACC matchup on Wednesday. The Tar Heels (10-3, 2-0), who are 3-0 on the road this season, have won two in a row and seven of eight, including a 91-65 triumph at Boston College on Sunday. The Fighting Irish (7-5, 1-1), who are 5-0 at home, held on for a 68-67 win at Pittsburgh on Dec. 28. Their game against Duke on New Year’s Day was postponed due to COVID-19 protocols within the Blue Devils’ program.
Tipoff from the Joyce Center is set for 9 p.m. ET. North Carolina leads the all-time series 27-8, including an 11-4 edge since Notre Dame joined the ACC in 2013-14. The Tar Heels are 2.5-point favorites in the latest North Carolina vs. Notre Dame odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over-under for total points scored is set at 146. Before making any Notre Dame vs. North Carolina picks, be sure to check out the college basketball predictions and betting advice from SportsLine’s proven computer model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every Division I college basketball game 10,000 times. Over the past five-plus years, the proprietary computer model has generated an impressive profit of almost $2,200 for $100 players on its top-rated college basketball picks against the spread. Anyone who has followed it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on UNC vs. Notre Dame and revealed its coveted picks and predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see all of the model’s college basketball picks. Here are several college basketball odds and betting lines for Notre Dame vs. UNC:
- North Carolina vs. Notre Dame spread: UNC -2.5
- North Carolina vs. Notre Dame over-under: 146 points
- North Carolina vs. Notre Dame money line: UNC -145, Notre Dame +125
- UNC: The Tar Heels are 4-1 against the spread in their last five games against a team with a winning straight-up record
- ND: The over is 4-0 in the Fighting Irish’s last four Wednesday games
Featured Game | Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. North Carolina Tar Heels
Why North Carolina can cover
The Tar Heels have been playing solid defense of late and have held opponents to 65 or fewer points in each of their last seven victories. Offensively, North Carolina has been led by sophomore guard Caleb Love, who is averaging a team-high 15.6 points per game. He is coming off a 22-point performance at Boston College on Sunday, and has reached 22 points five times this year.
Junior forward Armando Bacot is second on the team in scoring at 15.3 points per game, and leads the Tar Heels in field goal percentage (63.3 percent), rebounds (9.9) and blocks (21). He also leads the ACC in field goal percentage. Bacot has nine double-doubles this year, third in the country, and has 27 for his career. He has five career games with 14 or more rebounds, and grabbed his 600th career rebound in UNC’s game against Appalachian State on Dec. 21.
Why Notre Dame can cover
The Fighting Irish are led by junior guard Dane Goodwin, who has reached double-digit scoring in all 12 games this season. He reached 20 points for the first time in 2021-22, leading the Irish with 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting, including 5-of-7 from 3-point range, in the win over Texas A&M Corpus Christi on Dec. 22. He became the 66th player in school history to reach 1,000 career points in a win over Western Michigan on Dec. 20. For the season, Goodwin is averaging 14.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 0.9 assists, as well as connecting on 48.5 percent of his field goals.
Freshman guard Blake Wesley has also been impressive, averaging 13.3 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.2 assists. He has reached double-figure scoring in each of Notre Dame’s last nine games. He scored a season-high 24 points at Illinois on Nov. 29 during the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.
How to make Notre Dame vs. North Carolina picks
SportsLine’s model is leaning under on the total, projecting 145 combined points. It has also generated an against-the-spread pick that hits in over 60 percent of simulations. You can only see the model’s picks at SportsLine.
So who wins North Carolina vs. Notre Dame? And which side of the spread hits over 60 percent of the time? Visit SportsLine now to see which side of the spread you need to jump on, all from the model that has crushed its college basketball picks, and find out.
