Best Clemson vs. North Carolina Betting Picks for Tuesday, Feb. 6 (Tar Heels Create a Big Math Problem for Tigers)

The No. 3 North Carolina Tar Heels (18-4) hope to build off an impressive victory over Duke on Saturday, hosting the Clemson Tigers (14-7) Tuesday night at 7:00 PM EST.

Clemson fell by one to Virginia in its last matchup and is just 3-6 against the spread (ATS) in its last nine games. North Carolina, meanwhile, bounced back from a stunning loss to Georgia Tech and is an impressive 10-2 ATS over the Tar Heels' last dozen contests.

With three straight wins over the Tigers, the Tar Heels are in a great position to pick up another convincing victory tonight. Let's take a look at the odds and give my best bet for the ACC matchup.

Clemson vs. North Carolina Odds, Spread and Total

Clemson vs. North Carolina Prediction and Best Bet

North Carolina is a 6.5-point favorite, and there are several reasons to feel good about the Tar Heels' ability to cover the modest number.

Clemson's primary offensive strategy is to work the ball inside and score within the perimeter, as the Tigers rank 145th in three-point shooting rate (38.7%). They're 333rd in defensive turnover percentage (14.1%), so they don't have much of a transition game, either.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, that plays right into North Carolina's hands. The Tar Heels are a dominant defensive team, ranking 20th nationally in both opponent effective field goal percentage (45.7%) and defensive rebounding rate (75.6%).

If Clemson can't get out in transition from turnovers and can't score inside, the Tigers will need to get to the free-throw line to generate points. Well, they're 237th in free-throw rate (30.7%). Unless the Tar Heels suffer an emotional let-down following the massive Duke win, they should win this game easily just by relying on the math and limiting Clemson's chances.

The Tar Heels won the last two meetings between these teams by a combined 30 points utilizing the math problem they create for the Tigers. Expect a similar result as North Carolina continues building its resume as one of the best teams in the country.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.