1. We already knew the nonconference opponents and dates, and the Atlantic Coast Conference opponents, so tonight's release is mostly about seeing how the conference opponents fall.
2. With that in mind, the first look has to be at how many short turnarounds the Tar Heels will face. There are three Saturday-Monday combinations this year. The toughest appears to be the first one, when Carolina hosts NC State on Jan. 29 at 8 p.m., and less than 48 hours later plays at Louisville on Jan. 31. The short turnarounds are always tougher when the back end is on the road, because then there is travel involved on the "off" day.