UNC Basketball vs. Kentucky: Game preview, info, prediction and more

The UNC Basketball team is set to take on Kentucky in the CBS Sports Classic after a change of plans earlier in the week

There’s been a change of plans for the UNC Basketball program this weekend in terms of the CBS Sports Classic. All four teams will still participate but instead of taking on Ohio State, the Tar Heels will now get a Kentucky team that is desperate for a win. 

UNC and Kentucky will meet for the third time in the CBS Sports Classic with the Wildcats holding a 2-0 advantage in that series. But this is a different Kentucky team that is 1-4 and fresh off a loss to Notre Dame at home last weekend. The Wildcats have struggled this year with their play and are very vulnerable right now.

The Tar Heels on the other hand aren’t playing great basketball but they did end a two-game losing streak with a win over NC Central a week ago. However, they didn’t look good doing so and even let the Eagles hang around for most of the game. Still, this matchup might just favor UNC more than a date with Ohio State does.

In UNC’s final game here before conference play, they are looking to build some momentum and take down the Wildcats. Both teams really struggle shooting from the three-point line so things could get ugly early on. UNC does have the advantage in the paint, as they will in most games this season but it won’t matter if they continue to shoot poorly from the field. This will be an interesting matchup to see which team comes out hot and gets going early on. If both teams struggle, we could be looking at a long and low-scoring game, which is something we aren’t used to seeing from both teams.

Let’s get into our preview.

Something to Watch

How UNC shoots the basketball. The Tar Heels have really struggled shooting the ball from the field this season, especially behind the perimeter. UNC is shooting just 27% from the three-point line which ranks 285th in the nation. They have made just 24 three-pointers on the year while taking 89 of them.

That’s not good.

In their last meeting with NC Central, UNC had just two made three-pointers all game both coming from Andrew Platek in the second half. They need to shoot better plain and simple. It needs to start this week against Kentucky. This is a Wildcats team that is down and one you should beat on Saturday but if UNC struggles again from the field and especially the three-point line, they could find themselves in some trouble.

Key for UNC

Get the bigs going early and often. The Tar Heels should have the advantage in the paint against the Wildcats and they need to go at that advantage early and often. The combination of Garrison Brooks, Armando Bacot, Day’Ron Sharpe and Walker Kessler need to impose their will and not only win the rebounding battle but dominate by scoring too.

Brooks and Bacot will get the start but I’ll be curious to see the bench play from Sharpe and Kessler in this one. If UNC gets those bigs going early, they could blow this one open.

Projected Starting Lineup

G — Caleb Love

G — R.J. Davis

F/G — Leaky Black

F – Garrison Brooks

C/F  — Armando Bacot

What you need to know

WHAT?  No. 22 North Carolina (4-2) vs. Kentucky (1-4)
WHEN? Saturday, December 19 @ 2:00 p.m. EST
WHERE? Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio
TV? CBS
RADIO? Tar Heels Sports Network
LINE?  N/A
LAST MEETING? Kentucky beat North Carolina 80-72 on December 22, 2018 in Chicago
ALL-TIME SERIES? UNC leads 24-16
PREDICTION? UNC 72, Kentucky 69

For more on the UNC Basketball program, please make sure to check back with Keeping It Heel.