A critical Atlantic Coast Conference showdown takes place in Chapel Hill tonight as No. 24 Louisville (20-7, 9-5) travels to face No. 18 North Carolina (21-6, 9-5) at the Smith Center. Both teams take the court tied for sixth in the conference, making this a pivotal game for securing a coveted double-bye in the upcoming ACC Tournament. While the Tar Heels look to extend their perfect 15-0 home record this season, the Cardinals have won six of their last seven games.
Louisville’s offense, which ranks 14th nationally in scoring (86.8 points per game), will test a UNC defense that has struggled at times with the perimeter shooting of their opponents. The Cardinals, led by standout freshman Mikel Brown Jr. and senior guard Ryan Conwell, are a high-volume three-point shooting team that will try to exploit the Tar Heels’ weaknesses beyond the arc. UNC’s frontcourt is a strength despite the continued absence of freshman Caleb Wilson. Henri Veesaar—who posted 19 points in Saturday’s victory over Syracuse—provides a crucial interior presence that can limit second-chance points and challenge the Cardinals in the paint.
Louisville has a record of 6-7 in Q1 games and is 4-0 in Q2. UNC is 5-6 in Q1 and 3-0 in Quad 2 games. The Tar Heels are ranked No. 30 in KenPom and No. 27 in the NET. Louisville is ranked No. 15 in KenPom and 13th in the NET.
Lets take a closer look at tonight’s matchup and take into consideration lineups, injuries, and other factors affecting the line and total.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch tipoff, odds courtesy of DraftKings recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
Game Details and How to Watch Live: Louisville at North Carolina
- Date: Monday, February 23, 2026
- Time: 7PM EST
- Site: Smith Center
- City: Chapel Hill, NC
- Network/Streaming: ESPN
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Game Odds: Louisville at North Carolina
The latest odds as of Monday courtesy of DraftKings:
- Moneyline: Louisville Cardinals (-162), North Carolina Tar Heels (+136)
- Spread: Louisville -3.5
- Total: 162.5 points
This game opened Louisville -1.5 with the Total set at 161.5.
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NCAA Basketball schedule!
Expected Starting Lineups: Louisville at North Carolina
Louisville Cardinals
- G J’Vonne Hadley
- G Isaac McKneely
- G Ryan Conwell
- G Mikel Brown Jr.
- F Sananda Fru
North Carolina Tar Heels
- G Seth Trimble
- G Derek Dixon
- G Luka Bogavac
- F Jarin Stevenson
- C Henri Veesaar
Injury Report: Louisville at UNC
Louisville Cardinals
- No Injuries to Report
North Carolina Tar Heels
- Henri Veesaar (undisclosed) is listed as probable for tonight’s game
- Caleb Wilson (wrist) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
- James Brown (foot) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
- Ivan Matlekovic (hand) has been declared OUT for tonight’s game
Important stats, trends and insights: Louisville at North Carolina
- UNC is 15-0 at home this season
- Louisville is 3-5 on the road this season
- Louisville is 13-14 ATS overall this season / 2-6 ATS on the road
- UNC is 15-12 ATS overall this season / 10-5 ATS at home
- The OVER has cashed in 12 of UNC’s 27 games this season (12-15)
- The OVER has cashed in 11 of Louisville’s 27 games this season (11-16)
- Louisville won the last time these teams took the court (1/1/25) to snap a 5-game losing streak against UNC
- Seth Trimble is 0-8 from 3-point range over his last 4 games
- Mikel Brown Jr. is 21-36 from 3-point range over his last 4 games
Rotoworld Best Bet
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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the NCAA calendar based on data points like recent performance, head-to-head player matchups, trends information and projected game totals.
Once the model is finished running, we put its projections next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.
Here are the best bets our model is projecting for tonight’s game between Louisville and North Carolina:
- Moneyline: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on Louisville on the Moneyline
- Spread: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on North Carolina +3.5 ATS
- Total: Rotoworld Bet is leaning towards a play on the Game Total OVER 162.5.
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