UNC basketball schedule for 2022-23 season is now complete with release of ACC games

North Carolina’s complete men’s basketball schedule is out with the ACC’s release on Tuesday of its conference schedule. The Tar Heels finished one win shy of sharing the ACC regular-season title last season with Duke.

In their second year under coach Hubert Davis, the Heels will be a favorite to win the league, but the road to doing so will be difficult. UNC has home and away games with Duke, Virginia, N.C. State, Wake Forest, Notre Dame and Pitt. And its away only games are tough stops at Florida State, Louisville, Syracuse and Virginia Tech.

Carolina avoids the dreaded Saturday and Monday stretch of games until the second half of its conference schedule. The first occurrence puts the Heels against both Clemson and Miami at home. The second time they face Virginia at home on a Saturday before heading to Tallahassee, Florida on one day of preparation for a Monday clash against the Seminoles.

The Heels could face up to five teams in non-conference play that are ranked in the preseason top 25 including Villanova, Alabama or Michigan State. There’s also a heavy Big Ten presence with games at Indiana, and neutral site contests against Ohio State and Michigan.

It’s a good way to test what will be a team expected to get back to the Final Four and contend for a national title.

UNC’s can’t-miss basketball game

Feb. 4 at Duke: The last trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium for Carolina resulted in the game that essentially turned its season around and served as a springboard for its run to the national title game. But the Heels’ first meeting with Duke since sending coach Mike Krzyzewski into retirement at the Final Four will be big in its own right. It will mark the first matchup between Davis and first-year Duke coach Jon Scheyer to usher in what could be the next great coaching tenures at both schools.

Trap game alert

Nov. 24 at Portland: Suffice it to say, Carolina won’t play a game this season earlier than the 10 a.m. local tipoff time against the Pilots. That and the fact that Portland is essentially playing a home game could be enough to have the Heels discombobulated.

Toughest stretch for UNC

There are two stretches that present a big challenge for the Heels. The first comes from playing in the Phil Knight Invitational, where they will likely play two ranked teams back-to-back, then play at Indiana in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

The most difficult stretch could be the five games that close out the regular season: at N.C. State, at Notre Dame, Virginia at home, at Florida State and Duke in the finale. That’s consecutive road games tacked on against three teams that should be considered among the contenders for the ACC crown.

Easiest stretch for UNC

Carolina has to take advantage of the four games that start the season, because that’s the longest stretch of games that will be played at the Dean E. Smith Center. UNC’s involvement in the Phil Knight Invitational, CBS Sports Classic and Jumpman Invitational — not to mention the ACC’s move to a 20-game schedule — has limited the amount of home games to just six before January. Playing those neutral site games will expand the brand, but doesn’t lend for too many guarantee wins on the schedule.

UNC basketball’s non-conference test

Nov. 30 at Indiana: The Heels will, perhaps, face better teams during their non-conference slate — especially in the Phil Knight Invitational. But they won’t play in a tougher environment then when they travel to Bloomington, Indiana to take on the Hoosiers. Carolina’s 2017 national title team suffered its first loss of the season when it played at IU on the exact same date in 2016.