Central Arkansas vs North Carolina Prediction 11/3/2025 Today’s College Basketball Picks

In this article we will formulate a Central Arkansas vs North Carolina prediction for this College Basketball game on Monday, November 3rd at the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Let’s take a look at the prediction for this College Basketball matchup.

Central Arkansas Bears Betting Preview

The Central Arkansas Bears went 9-24 (4-14) last year and they finished 10th in the A-Sun standings. Central Arkansas opened the season with an 88-50 loss to BYU and followed that up with a 98-63 loss against Utah. The Bears started the season just 1-8 against D-1 teams and they actually never won back to back games all season, which is incredible to think about. Central Arkansas finished the regular season by losing seven of their last nine games, but they did beat Stetson in the conference tournament by a score of 77-72, before losing to Lipscomb by a score of 84-66 to end the season. The Bears scored 70.2 points per game last year, which ranked 275th in the country, while they allowed 78.1 points against per game, which ranked 328th. 

This year, Central Arkansas will have to replace their top four leading scorers, which accounted for roughly 52 points per game. The Bears do return Cole McCormick, who averaged 8.2 points and 3.3 rebounds per game, but also lost their sixth, seventh, and eighth scorers. Central Arkansas has a ton of work to do to replace that production, while also trying to improve on being one of the bottom teams in the country. 

North Carolina Tar Heels Betting Preview

The North Carolina Tar Heels were 23-14 (13-7) last season and they finished fourth in the ACC standings. North Carolina started the season with a 90-76 win over Elon, but followed that up with a loss to Kansas, who was #1 at the time. The Tar Heels were very good for most of the season and they started with a 12-6 record through 18 games. UNC finished the regular season by winning six of their last seven games, before beating Notre Dame and Wake Forest in the ACC Tournament. North Carolina did lose to Duke by a score of 74-71 to end the conference tournament, before beating San Diego State and losing to Ole Miss in the NCAA Tournament. UNC scored 80.7 points per game, which ranked 29th in the country, while they allowed 74.7 points against per game, which ranked 261st. 

This season, North Carolina loses their top two scorers, which accounted for about 29 points per game. The Tar Heels do return Seth Trimble, who averaged 11.6 points and 5.0 rebounds per game, but he is the only one returning from their top eight scorers. North Carolina has a lot to replace from last season and while they usually have plenty of talent, it may take some time for them to click. 

Why the North Carolina Tar Heels will win

• Central Arkansas has lost 32 of its last 33 road night games against non-Conference opponents.
• North Carolina has won 18 of its last 19 night games against non-Conference opponents at Dean E. Smith Center.
• Central Arkansas has lost the first half in each of its last seven road night games against non-Conference opponents.

Matchup/League Facts

• North Carolina ranked 10th for points off turnovers per game (15.5) in last season’s NCAA Tournament.
• North Carolina ranked 29th among Division 1 teams for points per game last season (80.7).
• Central Arkansas ranked 5th among Division 1 teams for opponent free throws made per game last season (9.6).
• Central Arkansas ranked 5th among Division 1 teams for opponent free throw attempts per game last season (13.3).

Central Arkansas vs North Carolina Prediction 

Both of these teams come into this matchup with plenty of new faces to start this season, so it will be interesting to see how well they are able to play together. North Carolina is ranked #25 coming into the season and they had plenty of success last year, and I am expecting them to reload much quicker than Central Arkansas is able to. If the Bears had some experience, I would think about backing them with everything that UNC lost, but I can’t count on them to play at a high level. I don’t love it, but I will take UNC at home.