North Carolina’s unbeaten start gets a real exam on Friday night when Georgia comes to the Dean Smith Center.
The Tar Heels have rolled through their first three games, but this one brings a different kind of pressure: a matchup with another undefeated team, an SEC opponent, and the first real test of the Michael Malone era. Georgia arrives in Chapel Hill at 3-0 after beating North Carolina Central, Presbyterian, and Florida Gulf Coast, and the Bulldogs will be on the road for the first time this season under head coach Mike White.
UNC, meanwhile, has turned the Dean E. Smith Center into a tough place to visit. The Tar Heels have won 21 straight games there, and they’ll try to keep that streak alive on Friday night.
How to watch UNC basketball vs. Georgia
Date: Friday, November 13, 2026
Time: 7:00 PM ET
Location: Dean E. Smith Center (Chapel Hill, North Carolina)
TV Channel: ESPN2
Streaming: ESPN app (with an eligible TV subscription)
Announcers: Kevin Brown (play-by-play) and LaPhonso Ellis (analyst)
The game also gives North Carolina a chance to clean up some things that showed up in Tuesday’s win over Wyoming. Rebounding was the biggest issue.
The Cowboys were able to work the offensive glass in the first half and create extra chances that kept things tighter than UNC would have liked. Against Georgia, giving away those second possessions would be a dangerous habit.
There were bright spots, though, especially from the younger Tar Heels. Freshman Sayon Keita put together his best outing of the season, finishing with 13 points, eight rebounds, and six blocks. That kind of rim protection could matter even more as the schedule toughens and the games get more physical.
Isaiah Denis also kept his momentum going with a career-high 14 points, including three made threes. Terrence Brown matched him with 14 points of his own, and the pair helped give UNC the scoring burst it needed to separate from Wyoming.
Georgia will bring its own challenge, and Jeremiah Wilkinson is a name North Carolina has to account for. The Bulldogs guard has become one of their main offensive threats, and keeping Georgia’s backcourt in check will be a key job for Malone’s defense.
So far, the Tar Heels have handled what’s in front of them. Friday night is the chance to show they can do it again when the opponent level rises.
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The appeal with Lewis is not just what he is now, but what he could become as he develops. The evaluation around him points to a player with a sturdy, aggressive style and room to grow into a bigger role, which is exactly the kind of long-term bet programs make when they see upside worth investing in early. For UNC, landing him this far out in the cycle is another sign the staff is trying to stack talent before the rest of the country fully catches up. [Read more 🡒]
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The interesting part for UNC fans is how different those paths look, even before the calendar gets to December. One projection points to a matchup with East Carolina in a baseball stadium in Boston, while the other sends the Tar Heels to face UTSA in the Military Bowl, and both possibilities reflect how much can still shift based on the final stretch of the regular season. [Read more 🡒]