College Basketball Preview: California Golden Bears vs. North Carolina Tar Heels

The California Golden Bears (8-8) and the North Carolina Tar Heels (11-6) will play on Wednesday, January 15 at 7:00 PM ET at the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The Tar Heels are favored with a point spread at -14.5 (-105 MyBookie).

California Golden Bears Betting Preview

The Golden Bears have been struggling to stay above .500 on the season, especially since they are 1-4 over their last five games. They are coming off a 71-68 defeat against the Virginia Tech Hokies, which put them back on the losing side.

Despite being down 42-23 at the half, the Golden Bears stormed back in the second half to make this game more respectable. Andrej Stojakovic (20.3 PPG) led the team in scoring with 24 points, and was the only starter in double figures.

Their first half performance was atrocious on both ends of the floor. That said, they finished with a shooting percentage of 32.4 and 25.9 percent from beyond the arc. On defense they allowed the Hokies to get hot and make 57.1 percent of their shots and half of their threes.

The Golden Bears are averaging 77.0 points a game and making 44.3 percent of their shots. On defense they are allowing opponents to get 75.5 points a game, offering little to no room for error.

North Carolina Tar Heels Betting Preview

The Tar Heels have found success in their last three games. Two of games have been decided by two points or less. Their latest victory was a 63-61 outing over the North Carolina State Wolfpack.

They had a six point lead after the first half of action, but allowed the Wolfpack to make a competitive run in the second. Ian Jackson led with 21 points and Jalen Washington shined with the go-ahead bucket and winning block to push the Tar Heels ahead.

Despite a lower scoring game, the Tar Heels shot 43.3 percent from the field and 36.8 percent from deep. They held the Wolfpack to 36.9 percent shooting and 15.8 percent from deep.

The Tar Heels have accumulated 83.3 points a game and are averaging 47.1 percent shooting from the field. Their defense has given up 77.4 points a game to opponents, which does not bode well against good shooting teams.

Odds, Series Trends, and Free Pick

MyBookie offers the best California Golden Bears vs. North Carolina Tar Heels betting odds, which favor the Tar Heels by 14.5 points. The Tar Heels are estimated to have a 92.5 percent chance of winning this matchup, according to market predictions. The Tar Heels need a breakout game and the Golden Bears arguably have one scorer to make an impact.

Final Pick: North Carolina Tar Heels -14.5 (-105)