Preview: North Carolina Tar Heels at Stanford Cardinal

PALO ALTO, Calif. (Interstat) — A cross-country clash of top-25 hopefuls highlights the ACC schedule Wednesday as the North Carolina Tar Heels visit the Stanford Cardinal at Maples Pavilion.

North Carolina (14-2), riding high after a narrow 87-84 home win over Wake Forest last Saturday, faces a stern nonconference test against a Stanford squad (13-4) looking to rebound from a road loss. The game is part of the ACC’s ongoing scheduling alliance.

The Tar Heels are led by the hot hand of guard Henri Veesaar, who poured in a career-high 25 points in the win over Wake Forest. Over his last seven games, Veesaar is averaging 17.1 points per contest, including a 26-point outburst against East Tennessee State and a 17-point, 10-rebound, 5-assist performance in a road win at Ohio State.

Stanford, which fell 70-55 at Virginia last time out, will counter with guard Benny Gealer. He leads the team in scoring during its recent stretch, averaging 11.3 points over the last seven games. Gealer scored 15 in the loss to the Cavaliers and had 17 in a win over Texas-Arlington last month.

The Cardinal have shown resilience at home, boasting a perfect 8-0 record at Maples Pavilion this season. Their last home game was an 80-76 victory over Louisville on Jan. 2.

North Carolina’s only two losses this season came on the road at then-SMU (97-83) and against Michigan State in November. Their resume includes notable road wins at Kentucky and Ohio State.

Stanford’s schedule has been challenging, with its losses coming against Virginia, Virginia Tech, Notre Dame, and UNLV—all by 10 points or fewer.

This matchup pits North Carolina’s high-powered offense, which has scored 80 or more points in eight games, against a Stanford defense that has held opponents under 70 points in 11 of its 17 contests.

Next up: North Carolina travels to face California on Saturday. Stanford hosts Duke on Saturday.