Pointspread: North Carolina -13.5 Total Line: 158 The North Carolina State Wolfpack will look to retain at least a share on the lead in the ACC standings when they go up against their in-state rivals, the North Carolina Tar Heels this Thursday Night at the Dean E. Smith Center. The game is set to tip-off at 7 p.m. (ET) and it will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.
NC State is making its presence felt in the conference this season with an overall record of 15-5 straight-up (8-8 against the spread) and a 4-1 SU start in the ACC. It is coming off an impressive 78-73 victory over Miami (FLA) this past Saturday as a three-point road underdog. It is now 5-1 ATS on the road this season and the total has gone 3-3 in the six games.
The Wolfpack boast five different players scoring in double figures and three shooting better than 52 percent from the field. Overall, the team is averaging 77 points a game and shooting 47.7 percent from the floor.
North Carolina knocked-off Virginia Tech 82-68 last Thursday as a 6.5-point road favorite, but it still has to be stinging from a 90-57 beatdown at the hands of Florida State on Jan.14 as a six-point road favorite. The Tar Heels are now 16-3 SU and 10-8 ATS. They are undefeated at home at 12-0, but just 6-5 ATS. The total has stayed ?under? in seven of the 11 games at home.
The big three of Harrison Barnes, John Henson, and Tyler Zeller have North Carolina ranked first in the nation in both scoring with 85.1 points a game and rebounds with 46.3 a game. These three have combined to provide well over 50 percent of the team's production in both of these categories.
The Wolfpack are 5-15-1 ATS in their last 21 games in the ACC, but 5-0 ATS in their last five games on the road overall. The total has gone ?over? in eight of their last 10 games following a SU win.
The Tar Heels are 3-9 ATS in their last 12 games against a team with a winning record on the road and the total has stayed "under" in seven of their last 10 games at home.
The road team in this series is 5-2 ATS in the last seven meetings and the total has gone "over" in 11 of the last 15 games. NC State has lost seven of the last eight meetings to the Tar Heels SU, but stick with the Wolfpack to throw a real scare into them this time around.
The Pick: North Carolina 79 North Carolina State 75 
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