Hubert Davis remains confident in North Carolina’s ability

This season hasn’t gone the North Carolina hoped, but coach Hubert Davis realizes the ACC Tournament represents an opportunity to change that. The Tar Heels lost their regular season finale against rival Duke on Saturday, ending their regular season with a 19-12 (11-9 ACC) record.

For a team that returned four starters after finishing as national runner up last season, it’s surprising to say the least. UNC enters the ACC Tournament desperately needing some victories to even make the NCAA Tournament, as they are among the “first four out” according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.

With that in mind, Davis hopes the Tar Heels approach the ACC Tournament as a fresh slate.

“I feel good about our team,” he said following the loss to the Blue Devils. “I told them in the locker room that even though I was very sad, I wasn’t done at all in terms of my confidence in what kind of team that this can become. My confidence in this team is not going to waver at all. I told them that even though I was sad about the outcome of this game, the confidence that I have in these guys and this team hasn’t wavered a bit heading into the ACC Tournament.”

The Tar Heels shot an abysmal 5-of-23 from 3-point range in the 62-57 loss to Duke. Outside shooting has been an issue for them all season, as they rank last in the conference with a season average of 30.9% from beyond the arc. If they are to make a run in the conference tournament, they’ll need better results in that area to say the least.

Hubert Davis and North Carolina will begin ACC Tournament play against Boston College on Wednesday. They’ll have the potential to play up to four games if they can make the championship, and will likely need a deep run to join the March Madness field. If they can take out the Eagles, they’ll have a big opportunity to earn a quality win against Virginia, a team they beat less than two weeks ago.

Tip off for the game against Boston College is set for 7 p.m. ET on Wednesday in Greensboro.