North Carolina @ Tennessee preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 11, 2016 ) Tennessee 71, North Carolina 73

Seventh-ranked North Carolina will get a big test in the first game after a break for exams when it goes on the road Sunday afternoon to take on No. 20 Tennessee. The Tar Heels have won four straight after their lone loss to Michigan State and must be ready from the start to snap Tennessee’s five-game winning streak against defending national champions in Knoxville.

North Carolina is averaging 93 points during its winning streak after being held to 45 against Michigan State, boasts three players averaging at least 13 points and continues to show progress with several newcomers. “I think we feel pretty good to be sitting at 9-1,” Tar Heels junior guard Kenny Williams told the Raleigh News & Observer. “We had that horrendous game, but we’ve made strides defensively and the younger guys are starting to pick up the offense a little bit more.” The Volunteers have been one of the biggest surprises in the country with a young group that has recorded victories over Georgia Tech, North Carolina State and Purdue - led by a balanced offense. “We hope we can survive guys not having a great night - our system is based on that,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes told cbssports.com. “If a guy is not playing well, we’re not building a lot around one person because we don’t think our team is made like that. With a young group it’s continuing to understand roles and what we need to do.”

TV: 3 p.m. ET, ESPN

ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA (9-1): Junior forward Luke Maye has given the Tar Heels everything they had hoped for, averaging 19.9 points on 57.1 percent shooting and 10.5 rebounds with six double-doubles. Senior guard Joel Berry II has not shot the ball that well, connecting on 36.4 percent from the floor, but averages 16 points and Williams is next at 13.4 while draining 22-of-40 from 3-point range. Freshman guard Jalek Felton will be needed with sophomore Seventh Woods (foot) out indefinitely, and he scored a season-high 15 against Western Carolina last time out.

ABOUT TENNESSEE (7-1): Sophomore forward Grant Williams has recorded at least 19 points in four of the last six games and tops the team in scoring (16.1) while sitting second in rebounding (7.3). Junior forward Admiral Schofield is contributing 11.9 points per contest and sophomore guard Lamonte Turner, who had a season-high 24 against Georgia Tech on Dec. 3, is chipping in at 10.3. Sophomore guard Jordan Bowden (10.3 points) has made multiple shots from behind the arc in six of eight games and is draining 16-of-27 from long range overall.

TIP-INS

1. The Tar Heels have won nine of the 10 previous meetings, including a 73-71 triumph at home last season, but have split the only two in Tennessee.

2. This is the first game between two ranked teams at Thompson-Boling Arena since Feb. 27, 2010 when the Volunteers beat Kentucky 74-65.

3. The last time a defending national champion beat Tennessee in Knoxville was 1997 when Kentucky accomplished the feat 74-64.

PREDICTION: North Carolina 80, Tennessee 74