Capsule: UNC could experiment against Appalachian State
Appalachian State at No. 11 North Carolina
When: 7 p.m.
Where: Smith Center, Chapel Hill
TV/Radio: ESPN2, 106.1-WTKK
Projected lineups
Appalachian State (2-8)
G Frank Eaves 20.8 ppg, 2.6 apg
G Chris Burgess 9.6 ppg, 2.1 apg
G Ronshad Shabazz 8.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg
F Jacob Lawson 4.7 ppg, 3.5 rpg
F Griffin Kinney 7 ppg, 4.8 rpg
North Carolina (9-2)
G Joel Berry 11.9 ppg, 4.1 apg
G Marcus Paige 15.8 ppg, 5 apg
F Justin Jackson 13.5 ppg, 4 rpg
F Brice Johnson 15.7 ppg, 9.2 rpg
F Joel James 2.5 ppg, 2.9 rpg
Observations
After a challenging recent stretch that included games against Maryland, Texas and UCLA, the Tar Heels get something of a pre-Christmas breather against the Mountaineers, who according to kenpom.com are the weakest team on UNC’s schedule. Appalachian State, which has lost five consecutive games, hasn’t fared well in any particular aspect, and it has been especially poor defensively. Appalachian State ranks 327th nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency. The Mountaineers also commit turnovers on 22 percent of their possessions, which ranks 323rd nationally. This is likely a game that UNC coach Roy Williams will use to experiment a bit, and to offer a lot of players more time than they might ordinarily receive.
Andrew Carter
This story was originally published December 20, 2015 at 3:17 PM with the headline "Capsule: UNC could experiment against Appalachian State."