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Virginia at North Carolina
Date & Time Saturday, Feb. 16, 2013 | 12 p.m.
Location Chapel Hill, N.C. | Dean Smith Center
Coverage ACC Network | Listen on Cavaliers Live | Live Stats | ESPN3
Additional Information 2012-13 Ticket Information | Twitter | Facebook | Game Notes

Feb. 15, 2013

CHARLOTTESVILLE, N.C. – The Virginia men’s basketball team hits the road for an ACC game at North Carolina on Saturday, Feb. 16. Tipoff at the Dean Smith Center in Chapel Hill is set for 12 p.m.

The game will be televised by the ACC Network and broadcast on the Virginia Sports Radio Network.

Virginia (18-6, 8-3 ACC) has won seven of its last eight games and is third in the ACC standings, while North Carolina (16-8, 6-5) is tied for fourth with NC State.

The Cavaliers are enjoying a three-game winning streak and are coming off a 73-55 home win against Virginia Tech on Tuesday. Junior guard Joe Harris (Chelan, Wash.) scored a career-high 26 points and junior forward Akil Mitchell (Charlotte, N.C.) added 17 points and eight rebounds against the Hokies.

The Tar Heels have lost two straight games, including a 73-68 decision at No. 2/1 Duke on Wednesday. P.J. Hairston had 23 points in the Duke loss, while Reggie Bullock led the Tar Heels with 14 points in an 87-61 loss at Miami on Feb. 9.

Virginia defeated North Carolina, 61-52, in Charlottesville on Jan. 6 and seeks its first two-game regular season series sweep against the Tar Heels since 2001-02. North Carolina owns a 127-50 all-time advantage over Virginia in a series that dates back to 1910-11. The Tar Heels are 64-6 against the Cavaliers in Chapel Hill, including a 22-3 mark at the Smith Center. Virginia’s last win at North Carolina was a 75-60 decision on Jan. 31, 2010, in Tony Bennett’s first season as head coach at UVa.

The Cavaliers rank in the top 10 nationally in 11 defensive categories, highlighted by their second-ranked scoring defense at 52.3 points per game. Virginia has held ACC foes under 60 points in nine of 11 games. Offensively Virginia has scored 70 or more points in three consecutive games for the first time since a six-game span in 2009-10. The Cavaliers are averaging 64.3 points per game, shooting 46 percent from the field and 40 percent from 3-point land.

Harris ranks fourth in the ACC in scoring at a career-high 16.3 points per game and is the only player in the league ranked in the top 10 in 3-point field goal percentage (1st), field goal percentage (6th) and free throw percentage (9th). Harris has tallied 20 or more points in three consecutive games and four of the last five games.

Reigning ACC Rookie of the Week Justin Anderson (Montross, Va.) was held to four points against Virginia Tech, but has scored 10 or more points in five of the last seven games.

Mitchell is averaging a career-high 12.8 points per game and ranks third in the ACC with a career-best 8.8 rebounds per game.

Senior point guard Jontel Evans (Hampton, Va.) ranks third in the ACC at 5.8 assists per game in 11 league games.

Head coach Tony Bennett sports a 71-47 record, including a 2-5 mark against North Carolina, in four seasons at Virginia. Bennett guided the Cavaliers to the NCAA Tournament last season.

Sophomore forward James Michael McAdoo leads the team in scoring (14.6 ppg) and rebounding (8.2 rpg). Bullock is averaging 14.1 points per game and ranks second in the ACC behind Harris in 3-point field goal accuracy at 44.6 percent. Sophomore guard P.J. Hairston is the other Tar Heel averaging double figures in scoring at 12.8 ppg.

Head coach Roy Williams has a 273-76 record in 10 seasons at Carolina and 691-177 mark in 25 seasons overall.

The Cavaliers play at No. 3/4 Miami on Tuesday, Feb. 19 at 9 p.m.

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