North Carolina received a rare break in its basketball schedule this past week, not having played a game since the Tar Heels defeated Miami 98-82 on Jan. 23.

The Tar Heels (19-1, 4-1) will return to action on Thursday at 7 p.m., when Boston College (12-6, 3-2) comes to Chapel Hill.

Coach Roy Williams said that he isn't sure what to expect because he's never had this kind of break in the middle of a conference schedule.

"We had a four-day break and are starting full practice back (on Monday), and we hope the guys had some time to get some of those little aches and pains out of the way," Williams said. "I'm looking forward to hopefully three great days of practice, trying to get ready for this game.

"I've never had (this kind of break) so I don't have any idea how it's going to work out," Williams said. "But it was there on the schedule just like six straight games outside the Smith Center, and we went ahead and played them. We've only came in the gym in two of the four days. We did some running and shooting. The other days the kids had off completely. I'm hopeful we'll be refreshed and have fresh legs and a fresh attitude."

Carolina All-American Tyler Hansbrough is coming off a 35-point performance against the Hurricanes, which may have been his best performance of the season. The reason is he showed more diversity in his game.

He made a career-high 15 free throws out of 16 tries. He also faced the basket and sank jump shots, in addition to attacking the bucket and running the floor in his usual fashion.

Hansbrough will need that variety against Boston College, because the Eagles' 6-foot-11 Tyrelle Blair leads the league in blocked shots, averaging better than 4.2 per game. Big men of this stature sometimes give Hansbrough a problem.

"When there is a half-court situation, you have to be aware of him," Williams said. "There is no question about that."

This game will also pit the top two scorers in the ACC this season: Hansbrough, who leads in scoring (22 points per game) and rebounding (10 rebounds per game), and Boston College point guard Tyrese Rice, who is averaging 20 points per game.

This game will also have two of the quickest players in the league in addition to two of the finest point guards in Rice and Carolina's Tywon Lawson.

Lawson is third in the league with 5.7 assists per game, and he is coming off his scoring high of the year with 23 points on 9-of-16 shooting against the Hurricanes. He also had 10 assists and just one turnover against Miami.

While the Tar Heels will get a scouting report on the Eagles, there is little doubt Williams' chief concern is his own team. UNC leads the ACC in scoring at 91.4 points per game, but the overriding concern from the start of this season for Williams has been Carolina's defense.

Way too many teams continue to shoot a high percentage against UNC. Carolina is ranked ninth in the league in field-goal percentage defense at 42.3 percent.

Williams got angry recently because several players gave the tired signal on defense.

"If you're going to give the tired signal, it had better be on offense," he said.

But maybe the most important aspect of this break is it marks a starting point to the stretch run of the regular season.

Right now, Duke leads the ACC standings at 5-0. Finishing first in this league is always important from the standpoint of pride and seeding in the NCAA Tournament, even more so this year.

The first two rounds of the East Region will be played in this state, with the opening two games in Raleigh and the second two in Charlotte. It's hard to imagine a better advantage leading to the Final Four than to play all the preceding games in one's home state.

But, should Duke stay ahead of Carolina during the regular season, the Blue Devils could well get that bid instead of the Tar Heels. That would be a bitter, bitter experience for a Carolina team that expected to finish on top of the ACC this year.