North Carolina @ Florida State preview

North Carolina at Florida State

Last Meeting ( Feb 3, 2020 ) North Carolina 59, Florida State 65

Florida State and North Carolina are both coming off momentum-building victories entering Saturday afternoon's Atlantic Coast Conference clash in Tallahassee, Fla.

The Seminoles shot 70.7 percent from the field -- a school record in an ACC game -- and made 12 of 18 3-pointers in a 105-73 rout of visiting North Carolina State on Wednesday.

It was Florida State's first 100-point game in regulation against an ACC opponent since beating Boston College 104-72 on Feb. 20, 2017.

The Seminoles (6-2, 2-1 ACC) won their 19th consecutive ACC home game. They are playing the second of three games in a six-day span after a two-week layoff due to COVID-19 issues.

RayQuan Evans finished with a career-high 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting against the Wolfpack.

M.J. Walker leads the Seminoles with 15.8 points per game and is shooting 41.5 percent from 3-point range and 93.2 percent from the free-throw line. Scottie Barnes averages 11.1 points and 4.1 assists per game.

"We showed that we were hungry and it was important that we got the bad taste out of our mouth from losing that last game," Florida State coach Leonard Hamilton said, referring to a 77-67 loss at Clemson on Dec. 29.

North Carolina (8-4, 3-2) is on a three-game winning streak and coming off an 81-75 victory at home over Syracuse on Tuesday. Garrison Brooks and Armando Bacot each had double-doubles in what was the Tar Heels' 1,000th ACC regular-season game in program history.

Brooks, the ACC preseason Player of the Year, had one of his best performances of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

"He has the greatest attitude you can possibly have," Tar Heels coach Roy Williams said. "And it's hard for those guys doing TV stuff in their homes 500 miles away watching it on TV and trying to make comments. Garrison does not have bad body language. Garrison does not have a bad attitude. He's damn near perfect."

Brooks and Bacot have paced North Carolina both offensively and on the boards. Bacot is averaging 11.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game while Brooks is averaging 10.7 points and 7.9 rebounds per game. Day'Ron Sharpe (9.7 points, 7.9 rebounds) has also provided a presence near the basket at both ends.

The Tar Heels have struggled from long range, shooting only 29.3 percent from 3-point distance.

But North Carolina also leads the nation with 16.6 offensive rebounds per game.

--Field Level Media