College basketball: Saturday’s regional games to watch

North Carolina point guard Joel Berry II and the 13th-ranked Tar Heels will play host to Wake Forest on Saturday at the Smith Center. Robert Willett rwillett@newsobserver.com

SATURDAY’S MATCHUPS

WAKE FOREST (7-5, 0-0 ACC) at No. 13 NORTH CAROLINA (11-2, 0-0)

Smith Center, Chapel Hill, noon, ESPN2

Wake Forest has not shot well against its tougher opponents and hit 41 percent in its loss Saturday to Tennessee. ...North Carolina’s Theo Pinson and Joel Berry II each scored 19 points last Saturday against Ohio State.

No. 24 FLORIDA STATE (11-1, 0-0) at No. 4 DUKE (12-1, 0-1)

Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, 2 p.m., WBTV

Neither team is used to close games, as the host Blue Devils lead the league in average scoring margin (21.7 points a game) and the Seminoles are third (20.3).

N.C. STATE (10-3, 0-0 ACC) at CLEMSON (11-1, 0-0)

Littlejohn Coliseum, Clemson, S.C., 4 p.m. Fox South Carolinas

N.C. State hit a school-record 19 3-pointers in its last game, a rout of Jacksonville. Clemson got 17 points and 10 rebounds from Donte Graham in its last outing, a romp over Louisiana-Lafayette.

DAVIDSON (5-6, 0-0 Atlantic 10) at RICHMOND (2-10, 0-0)

Robins Center, Richmond, 4:30 p.m., NBC Sports Network

Davidson got a 30-point performance from freshman Kellan Grady in its last game, a victory over Akron on Christmas Day. Richmond is among the youngest teams in Division I, led by freshman Grant Golden (15.1 points a game) and sophomore DeMonte Buckingham (13.1).

CHARLOTTE (4-7, 0-0 Conference USA) at OLD DOMINION (9-3, 0-0)

Ted Constant Convocation Center, Norfolk, Va., 7 p.m.

Charlotte is 1-1 under interim head coach Houston Fancher and opens conference play against the league’s best defensive team. The Monarchs are allowing an average of 61 points a game.

HIGH POINT (6-5, 0-0 Big South) at WINTHROP (6-5, 0-0)

Winthrop Coliseum, Rock Hill, 2 p.m.

It’s an early-season meeting of expected Big South powers. High Point’s Andre Fox averages 17 points a game on 52-percent shooting from the floor. Winthrop’s Xavier Cooks is fifth in the Big South in scoring (16.2) and first in rebounding (9.2).

LIBERTY (9-4, 0-0 Big South) at GARDNER-WEBB (5-8, 0-0)

Porter Arena, Boiling Springs, 4:30 p.m.

Liberty’s Georgia Pacheco-Ortiz and Lovell Cabbil each shoot better than 90 percent from the foul line and lead the Big South. ...The Bulldogs’ David Efianayi is fourth in scoring (17.1 points a game).

No. 2 QUEENS (12-0) at TARLETON STATE (7-4)

Wisdom Gym, Stephenville, Texas, 5 p.m.

The Royals, who haven’t played since Dec. 19, have five players averaging in double figures. This is their first meeting with Tarleton State, which is led by sophomore forward Josh Hawley (16.4 points, 9.4 rebounds per game). The Texans also haven’t played since Dec. 19.

Steve Lyttle

This story was originally published December 29, 2017 at 11:05 AM with the headline "College basketball: Saturday’s regional games to watch."