Cash ticket on Gonzaga in UNC revenge match

Gonzaga was unable to knock off North Carolina in the 2017 national championship game, but the Zags have a chance to avenge that loss when they play at Chapel Hill, N.C., on Saturday.

These two clubs rank in the top eight among Division I teams in offensive efficiency and rank first and second in the nation in points per game. With the Tar Heels playing at the seventh-fastest pace of any team in the country and Gonzaga ranking 166th in the country in defensive efficiency, as well, this is going to be an up-and-down, high-scoring affair.

The matchup of Rui Hachimura and Luke Maye could be what ends up deciding this game. Maye actually has dialed back his scoring from a season ago, but has been productive on the glass with 13.7 points and 9.4 rebounds per game. He will have his hands full with Hachimura, who comes in notching 22.2 points and 6.4 rebounds per game, scoring at least 17 points in every game this season.

North Carolina, in its two losses, also has not defended the 3-point line, with Texas and Michigan shooting a combined 22-of-46 from deep in those two contests. Gonzaga enters this game making 38.8 percent of its 3s as a team, with Hachimura knocking down 46.7 percent of his.

What Hachimura provides, coupled with Gonzaga being 12th in the country in percent of possessions with a turnover, will allow the Bulldogs to be in this game the whole way and give them an opportunity to get revenge from two years ago.

THE PLAY: Gonzaga, + 2½.