North Carolina @ Florida State preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 14, 2017 ) Florida State 83, North Carolina 96

No. 11 North Carolina needed a late rally to avoid a loss in the ACC opener and looks to raise its level of play during a tough two-game road swing that begins with a matchup against Florida State on Wednesday night. The Tar Heels shot 39.7 percent from the field and had to score the final eight points of the game to turn back Wake Forest 73-69 at home Saturday.

“Happy to win. Not pleased at all. Not satisfied at all,” North Carolina coach Roy Williams told reporters Saturday. “Wake Forest, I thought, was much more aggressive than we were. … It was not a great positive message to them in the locker room because we’ve got to play smarter and we’ve got to play harder.” The Tar Heels, who play at No. 8 Virginia on Saturday, have still won seven of their last eight and go for an eighth consecutive win over the Seminoles after averaging 101 points in the last two. Florida State gave second-ranked Duke all it could handle Saturday before giving way in a 100-93 loss as senior guard Braian Angola poured in a career-high 23 points. “They felt they could have very easily won the game and rightfully so,” Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton told reporters. “. … We can take the fact that we just competed with one of the best teams in the country.”

TV: 7 p.m. ET, ESPN2

ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA (12-2, 1-0 ACC): Junior forward Luke Maye notched his eighth double-double of the season against Wake Forest and is averaging team highs of 18.4 points on 51.5 percent shooting and 10.9 rebounds. Senior guard Joel Berry II is shooting just 38.6 percent from the field, but contributes 17.2 points per contest, while backcourt partner Kenny Williams (12.4) has drained 27 of his 56 attempts from 3-point range. Senior guard Cameron Johnson, a transfer from Pittsburgh, has added offensive punch since returning from an injury with 35 points in three games.

ABOUT FLORIDA STATE (11-2, 0-1): Senior forward Phil Cofer also had a big night against Duke with 28 points to raise his season average 14.5 - second behind junior guard Terance Mann (14.6) - and he is shooting 57 percent from the field. Angola (12.5 points) recorded five of his team-high 30 makes from 3-point range in the loss at Duke. “I have been working a lot over the summer, getting shots up every day,” Angola, who averaged 4.6 points last season, told reporters. “My teammates trust me, the coaches trust me. I had to step up, bring the team together, and take the open shot.”

TIP-INS

1. Mann managed just 13 total points in the last two games, but stands eighth overall in the ACC in field goal percentage (62.3).

2. Berry has connected on 205 shots from 3-point range in his caree rand is six behind Jeff Lebo for sixth all-time at North Carolina.

3. Florida State sophomore G CJ Walker is averaging 9.5 points overall, but just 5.0 in the last five contests.

PREDICTION: North Carolina 80, Florida State 70