Corey Raji and the Boston College Eagles have a tough task ahead when they face the 19th-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels in an important ACC tilt at the Smith Canter on Saturday at 4 p.m. EST (TV/Radio: ESPN/WEEI).
The Tar Heels hold a 7-4 advantage in the all-time series against Boston College. UNC blew out the Eagles, 106-74,in their prior match-up this season on February 1st. The loss was BC's second straight against North Carolina and its sixth loss on the last eight games against the Tar Heels.
Boston College (16-9, 6-5 ACC) is coming off a solid 76-72 win over conference foe Maryland last Saturday. Reggie Jackson scored a career-high 31 points on 12-of-16 shooting and grabbed eight rebounds while Raji finished with 12 points and seven rebounds. BC shot 48.2% from the field and 38.5% beyond the arc in the win.
Jackson continues to lead BC in scoring, averaging 18.5 points, and leads the Eagles in assists (4.6 APG) and steals (1.1 SPG). Joe Trapani is second in scoring (14.7 PPG) and averages a team-high 7.5 rebounds per contest. Raji averages 12.1 points and 6.6 rebounds off the bench for Boston College.
The Eagles are ranked 74th in the country in team scoring, averaging 73.2 points, and rank 61st in overall field goal percentage (46.3%). One major area of concern for BC is rebounding, where it ranks 194th in the nation (32.3 RPG).
No. 19 North Carolina (19-6, 9-2 ACC) continues to steamroll opponents, winning seven of its last eight games and 16 of its last 18 contests. UNC is coming off of a 78-64 thrashing of Wake Forest on February 15th. The win secured second place in the ACC for the Tar Heels, who shot just 36.6% in the win.
Tyler Zeller is UNC's leading scorer (14.5 PPG) while freshman Harrison Barnes is averaging 13.6 points and 5.4 rebounds. John Henson averages 11.4 points and leads the team in rebounding with nine boards per game.
The Tar Heels rank 18th in the nation in scoring, averaging 78.2 points, and rank first in team rebounding with 42.2 boards per game. Despite UNC's high scoring average, the Tar Heels rank 93rd in the country in team field goal percentage (45.6%).
Boston College returns home to Conte Forum to host Miami (FL) in its next game on Wednesday, February 23rd. North Carolina faces in-state rival N.S. State in its next contest on Wednesday.