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A pair of top-25 teams will meet on Saturday when the Ohio State Buckeyes take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in Chicago. This will be game one of the CBS Sports Classic, which is being held at the United Center.
Ohio State, ranked 12th, is 9-1 this season, suffering its only loss to the Louisville Cardinals. Other than that game, the schedule hasn’t been daunting, so this game against North Carolina could be a measuring stick for Thad Matta and his squad. D’Angelo Russell has been the star for Ohio State this season. He leads the team in scoring, averaging 17.7 PPG. He also leads the team in assists and is third in rebounding.
Marc Loving (10.9 PPG) and Sam Thompson (10.4) are the other double-figure scorers for the Buckeyes.
North Carolina, currently ranked 24th in the country, is 7-3 so far this season. Head coach Roy Williams has played a tough schedule, playing the Kentucky Wildcats, Florida Gators, UCLA Bruins, Iowa Hawkeyes and Butler Bulldogs. The Tar Heels certainly won’t be intimidated by another ranked foe.
The Tar Heels are led in scoring by big man Kennedy Meeks, who averages 13.8 PPG. Meeks also leads the team in rebounding and blocked shots. Marcus Paige, a preseason All-American, is scoring 13.1 PPG. When Paige gets hot, the Tar Heels become much more dangerous. Brice Johnson is the only other Tar Heel averaging in double figures, scoring 11.3 PPG.
These two teams appear to be fairly evenly matched. This game will likely come down to which team can hit outside shots. With the game being on a neutral court, it could go either way.
Final score prediction: North Carolina 77, Ohio State 76
Tim Letcher is a contributing writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TimLetcher , on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
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