Story by
A statistical breakdown of UNC's offense five games into ACC play
- Story by
- A statistical breakdown of UNC's offense five games into ACC play
North Carolina has stumbled early in ACC play despite a hot start to the season.
Carolina entered ACC play with a 12-1 record, its best start in 17 years . However, the Tar Heels have faltered in conference, going 2-3 through their first five ACC games. They have also lost three of their last four, falling to SMU , Stanford and California .
Advertisement
UNC's struggles, though, have little to do with the offense, which has been one of the most efficient in ACC play. Here is a look at several key offensive categories.
Offensive Rankings (Among ACC Teams)
Jan 17, 2026; Berkeley, California, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Zayden High (1) shoots against California Golden Bears center Milos Ilic (8) during the first half at Haas Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
-
Scoring Offense - 83.4 points per game (1st)
-
Offensive Efficiency - 117.9 (2nd)
-
Field Goal Percentage - 49.3% (1st)
-
Two-Point Percentage - 60.7% (2nd)
-
Three-Point Percentage - 34.1% (5th)
-
Effective Field Goal Percentage - 56.6% (1st)
-
Free Throw Percentage - 65.1% (17th)
-
Free Throw Attempts - 25.8 (3rd)
-
Assists - 16.4 per game (2nd)
-
Assist Percentage - 56.6% (6th)
-
Offensive Rebounds - 9.2 per game (8th)
-
Offensive Rebound Percentage - 33.7% (7th)
-
Turnovers - 10.6 per game (8th)
-
Turnover Percentage - 15.3% (4th)
While North Carolina has had sizable bumps throughout ACC play, its offense has done more than enough to win games.
The Tar Heels lead the conference in scoring offense, field-goal percentage and effective field-goal percentage. They are second in assists per game, offensive efficiency and 2-point percentage.
A large part of this efficiency comes from the frontcourt duo of Henri Veesaar and Caleb Wilson . Veesaar (64.7%) and Wilson (63.5%) rank No. 2 and No. 3 in the ACC in field-goal percentage. Wilson is eighth in scoring at 20.0 points per game, while Veesaar is averaging 18.2 points, which ranks 13th.
Advertisement
However, the biggest concern remains Carolina's free-throw shooting. In ACC play, the Tar Heels are shooting 65.7% from the line, which ranks second to last in the league. It's even more troubling that they are third in free-throw attempts per game — a volume that only magnifies how costly all those misses have been.
This has been an ongoing problem all season. UNC has made just 61.7% of its free throws, which ranks 322nd nationally out of 360 Division I teams. No other ACC team has taken as many free throws as the Tar Heels, which only makes their inefficiency at the line more alarming.
Follow us @TarHeelsWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions
This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Basketball: Offensive stats and rankings five games into ACC play
