North Carolina Tar Heels 2024 NCAA Tournament Preview: March Madness Final Four odds and more for No. 1 seed UNC

The North Carolina Tar Heels snagged the No. 1 seed in the West Region, despite a surprising upset loss to NC State in the ACC Championship game following a 27-7 regular-season/ACC Tournament record.

Nevertheless, Hubert Davis’ club did largely dominate during the regular season, taking the ACC with a 17-3 conference record, which included a season sweep of archrival Duke.

• READ: Midwest Region Odds, Preview & Picks
• READ: East Region Odds, Preview & Picks
• READ: South Region Odds, Preview & Picks
• READ: West Region Odds, Preview & Picks

UNC Tar Heels 2024 NCAA Tournament seeding

In addition to their impressive overall body of work, North Carolina snagged the final No. 1 regional seed based primarily on the strength of their non-conference schedule, which featured games against UConn, Kentucky, Villanova, Tennessee and Oklahoma.

While the Tar Heels went just 2-3 in those games, the losses to Villanova and Kentucky were by a combined 6 points, while the stumble against the defending champion Huskies came by a not-awful 11 points.

Meanwhile, the victories over the Volunteers and Sooners, ranked No. 10 and No. 7 at the time, came by 8 and 12 points, respectively.

• READ: NC March Madness Betting Sites
• READ: Best NC Sportsbook Bonuses

2024 March Madness Odds: North Carolina Tar Heels odds to reach Final Four, win National Championship

The Tar Heels have +1700 odds to win the National Title and +300 odds to at least make the Final Four. There’s a fairly expansive difference between that latter figure and UNC’s -200 odds to make it to the Sweet 16, underscoring some of the doubt surrounding Davis’s squad’s ability to dethrone top competition.

North Carolina’s RJ Davis is a true star and difference-making asset that would be instrumental to any deep run, while transfer Cormac Ryan started to get hot late in the season and is a talented 3-point marksman when he’s hot.

• READ: March Madness long shots and sleeper picks

The Heels are also an excellent rebounding team – they ranked No. 5 in the country with 41.2 per contest – and boast four players with double-digit scoring averages overall.

However, their occasional stumbles, such as that against NC State, and their adequate but not elite defense lends credence to the longer odds and the modest skepticism that surrounds them more so than the other No. 1 seeds.

Best North Carolina Sports Betting Apps & Sites

North Carolina Final Four odds: (+300 or better)

As just alluded to, the Tar Heels are saddled with the perception of being at least a notch below their fellow regional No. 1 seeds entering the tournament. UConn (-120), Houston (+125) and Purdue (+150) all have markedly shorter odds than NC to get to the Final Four.

What’s more, even Arizona is seen as having a higher probability with a +260 figure.

North Carolina will open against the winner of the Howard/Wagner First Four clash, and assuming they get over that first hump, will then be facing either Mississippi State or Michigan State in the second round.

High-powered Alabama and Saint Mary’s are among the teams that could await them for a Sweet 16 matchup, and the likes of the Wildcats, Baylor and Clemson are among other noteworthy teams in the West Bracket that could stand in the way of a Final Four nod.

Best March Madness Betting Sites

You must be over 21 to play. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-522-4700. 1-800 GAMBLER