The ninth-ranked North Carolina Tar Heels (7-1) will battle the fifth-ranked UConn Huskies (7-1) in the Jimmy V Classic on Tuesday, December 5 at 9:00 PM ET. The Huskies have a point spread of -5.5 (-105), showing they are slightly favored to win.

The Tar Heels have won their last three games and are playing quality basketball. Their most recent success was a 78-70 performance over the Florida State Seminoles. RJ Davis added 27 points to help lead them to a strong second half and to an eventual win.

Davis leads the team in scoring with 20.4 points per game and shoots 43.5 percent from the field. Can he continue to show good numbers against their toughest test this year?

The Tar Heels are getting 86.3 points per game from 45.9 percent shooting from the field. They move the ball well at 14.1 assists each game, but not as good as the Huskies.

Their defense has allowed 72.0 points a game and they grab 39.6 rebounds each time. In addition, they also average 4.5 blocks and 5.6 steals a contest.

The Huskies just suffered their first loss of the season, which was a 69-65 performance against the second-ranked Kansas Jayhawks. Tristen Newton provided 31 points in their efforts for a win.

Newton has been averaging 17.5 points per game and makes 46.7 percent of his shots. This should shape up to be an excellent guard battle between both teams.

The Huskies put up 85.8 points each game and make 50.2 percent of their shots. Their 17.9 assists averaged each game shows they do a good job moving the ball.

Defensively, they allow teams to average 61.6 points a game and they grab 41.8 rebounds total. They also contribute 5.8 blocks and 7.0 steals a game to shake up the other teams.

MyBookie shows the moneyline moderately favoring the UConn Huskies, but the point spread offers a better value for the money. Currently, market analysis show that the Huskies have a 59.3 percent chance at success.

This matchup will be close, as both teams do not look like they will run away with it. Based on the stats provided so far, the Huskies have slightly more appealing numbers in a handful of categories. Overall, the Huskies seem like they will be able to win this game and cover the spread.