North Carolina-NC State game postponed due to snow

North Carolina’s home game vs. NC State that was originally scheduled for 8 p.m. Saturday has been postponed due to weather.

The game has been rescheduled for 1 p.m. ET Sunday, according to a press release.

The decision was made due to “the likelihood of dangerous and worsening road conditions later this evening” after the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area was hit with a snowstorm Friday night and Saturday morning. The governor of North Carolina had declared a state of emergency.

“Considering the travel conditions we are not comfortable with the idea that thousands of people, from the players, coaches and officials to fans of both teams and the hundreds of people that staff the Smith Center for the game, would be leaving the arena tonight after 10 p.m.,” UNC athletic director Bubba Cunningham said in a statement. “Everyone attending the game on Sunday will still need to use extreme caution in getting to and from the game, but we think there is a huge difference between driving in the daylight as opposed to this evening, when conditions are expected to be treacherous.

“The ACC policy of playing if the teams and officials can get to the arena also takes into consideration all the appropriate people getting home safely as well, and when you weigh the risks associated with people being on the roads late tonight versus playing tomorrow afternoon, the correct decision is to postpone the game.”

The weather is part of Winter Storm Helena, which has hit the Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic United States and continues to move up the east coast.

North Carolina-NC State isn’t the only game affected. Six others — Drexel at William & Mary, Maryland-Eastern Shore at North Carolina Central, South Carolina State at Hampton, Savannah State at Norfolk State, Alcorn State at Jackson State, and Wofford at Samford — have also been postponed.

The West Coast Conference also announced early Saturday evening that Gonzaga’s game at Portland would be postponed due to a separate storm hitting the Pacific Northwest. No makeup date was announced.

Weber State’s game against Idaho was postponed on Saturday night, not for weather, but for a leaky roof. The game will be resumed at a later date exactly where it left off: Weber State holding onto a 13-2 lead with 15:02 remaining in the first half. The make-up date has not yet been announced.

The last time a North Carolina game was postponed due to snow was in 2014, when the Duke-UNC showdown at the Dean Smith Center was rescheduled because Duke’s team bus could not get to Durham to pick up the Blue Devils and take them to Chapel Hill. That game, originally scheduled for Feb. 12, was pushed back eight days.

This game, which will be played just 17 hours later than originally scheduled, will still be broadcast on ESPN.

In place of the postponed game tonight, ESPN will now air Arkansas-Kentucky, which was originally slated for the SEC Network. Tip is at 8:30 p.m. ET.