North Carolina Tar Heels vs Stanford Cardinal Prediction, 1/14/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: North Carolina Tar Heels vs Stanford Cardinal

Date: Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Location: Maples Pavilion in Stanford, CA

TV: ACC Network

The North Carolina Tar Heels (14-2) are traveling to Maples Pavilion on Wednesday where they will try to beat the Stanford Cardinal (13-4).

The North Carolina Tar Heels stepped onto the hardwood against Wake Forest and took home the win by a score of 87-84 in their last contest. North Carolina ended the contest having earned a 52.7% field goal percentage (29 of 55) and made 9 of their 26 shots from distance. At the free throw line, the Tar Heels converted 20 of 30 tries for a percentage of 66.7%. When discussing pulling down rebounds, they earned 29 with 12 of them being on the offensive end. They also doled out 20 assists in this contest while forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and having 10 steals. In terms of defense, North Carolina allowed 48.4% from the floor on 31 of 64 shooting. Wake Forest totaled 13 dimes and had 9 steals in this matchup. Moreover, Wake Forest grabbed 23 rebounds (7 offensive, 16 defensive), but wrapped up the game with no rejections. Wake Forest shot 72.7% when shooting free throws by making 8 of 11 tries. They also buried 14 of 35 attempts from 3-point land. Regarding fouls, the Tar Heels finished with 13 and Wake Forest racked up 22 fouls.

Henri Veesaar is someone who had an impact for the game. He notched 25 points on 9 of 10 shooting. He was on the court for 34 mins played and also grabbed 9 boards. He finished the game shooting 90.0% from the floor and also earned 4 assists.

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North Carolina enters this contest with a mark of 14-2 on the season. They are turning it over 10.2 times per contest and as a group they are committing 14.6 personal fouls every game. As a team, North Carolina is pulling down 41.4 boards per game and has racked up 283 assists on the season, which ranks 54th in Division 1 in terms of passing the rock. The Tar Heels are shooting 33.7% on shots from beyond the arc (138 of 410) and 68.3% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 81.7 points per outing (90th in the country) while shooting 47.5% from the floor.

On defense, the Tar Heels have forced 9.7 turnovers per game and they draw 19.3 fouls. They are 51st in college in giving up assists to their opponents with 190 surrendered on the campaign. The Tar Heels are allowing an opponent FG percentage of 38.3% (393 of 1,026) and they surrender 33.3 rebounds per game as a group. They are giving up 30.9% on shots from beyond the arc while they are 42nd in D-1 in opponents points per game (67.1).

When they last stepped on the court, the Stanford Cardinal took a loss by a final score of 70-55 when they played Virginia. In relation to rebounding, Stanford allowed Virginia to grab 33 overall (11 on the offensive glass). They finished 27.3% from distance by hitting 6 out of 22 and finished the game at 14 out of 17 from the charity stripe (82.4%). The Cardinal permitted Virginia to make 25 of 57 attempts from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 43.9% in the game. When the final whistle blew, the Cardinal went 18 out of 56 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 32.1%. In reference to shots from beyond the perimeter, Stanford knocked down 5 of 26 attempts (19.2%). They were able to make 14 of the free throws for a percentage of 82.4%. Virginia had 16 fouls in this matchup which got the Cardinal to the charity stripe for 17 attempts. They gave up possession of the ball 7 times, while earning 7 steals for this contest. The Cardinal corralled 17 defensive boards and 9 offensive boards for a total of 26 in this game.

Benny Gealer pitched in for the Cardinal for the matchup. He made 5 out of 12 for the matchup for a rate of 41.7%, and accumulated 4 rebounds. He earned 15 points in his 32 mins of playing time, but didn't record an assist.

Stanford has a record of 13-4 for the campaign. When it comes to offensive execution, the Cardinal are shooting 42.7% from the floor, which has them ranked 301st in D-1. Stanford has scored 1,308 points this year (76.9 per contest) and they grab 35.4 rebounds per game. They are assisting teammates 12.0 times per contest (323rd in the nation) and they turn it over 11.1 times per game. The Cardinal are responsible for committing 17.6 personal fouls every game and they hit 72.8% from the free throw line.

The Stanford defense surrenders 32.9% on 3-point shots (101 of 307) and their opposition makes 77.1% of their foul shots. They have conceded 10.8 assists and 32.5 rebounds every game, which ranks them 25th and 75th in D-1. The Cardinal on the defensive side of the court are 105th in D-1 in points given up per game with 70.6. They are forcing 14.1 turnovers per game and have let teams shoot 44.8% from the field (256th in college).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Stanford

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