Garrison Brooks and Justin Pierce have been ruled out of North Carolina’s Saturday afternoon game against Louisville at the KFC Yum Center. The announcement comes less than two hours prior to the start of the game. Brooks will miss the game with an undisclosed illness, while Pierce is nursing a sprained right ankle.
Brooks has been arguably the Tar Heels’ best player this season, averaging 15.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game. He’s also shooting better than 53 percent from the floor, and has posted 10 double-doubles this season. Pierce, on the other hand, has averaged 5.