Auburn vs UNC 3/29/19 - NCAA Tournament Picks & Predictions

The No. 5 seeded Auburn Tigers play the No. 1 seeded North Carolina Tar Heels on Friday at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri in a Midwest Region Sweet 16 showdown. The Tigers defeated the Kansas Jayhawks 89-75 on Saturday in the second round to reach the Sweet 16. Bryce Brown led the surging Tigers with 25 points. The Tigers led by 26 points at the half and were never threatened after the break.

North Carolina is known for its offense but its defense stepped up as well on Sunday helping the Tar Heels rout Washington 81-59. Nassir Little and Luke Maye scored 20 points apiece in the win. A 13-0 run early in the second half spearheaded by strong defense and solid shooting allowed the Tar Heels to blow open the game. North Carolina outrebounded Washington 48-24. Bryce Brown leads Auburn in scoring with an average of 15.8 points per game. Jared Harper is the team leader in assists with an average of 5.8 per game. Chuma Okeke is the team leader in rebounds with an average of 6.8 per game. Auburn is shooting 44.9% from the field and 37.6% from 3-point territory.

Cameron Johnson leads the Tar Heels in scoring with an average of 16.9 points per game. Luke Maye is the third leading scorer and leader in rebounds with averages of 14.9 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. The leader in assists is Coby White with an average of 4.2 per game. North Carolina is shooting 46.6% from the field and 37.3% from 3-point territory.