Derek Dixon's emergence couldn't have come at a better time for North Carolina

There are quite a few topics to discuss about UNC's incredible comeback victory over No. 14-ranked Virginia on Saturday afternoon.

You can obviously talk about Caleb Wilson tying Tyler Hansbrough for the most 20+ games by a true freshman in a single-season, and you definitely can rave about how good Jarin Stevenson played in the second half, providing a spark that helped make the 16-point comeback possible.

While those topics are important, the story surrounding the emergence of Derek Dixon is one of the biggest developments to happen in Chapel Hill, especially given the team has been looking for a true PG1 to lead the offensive attack.

Dixon's emergence continues

On Saturday, Dixon was outstanding once again. The true freshman guard scored 11 points over 33 minutes of action, but the most impressive part of his outing had to do with the elite-level passes he made to set his teammates up for open looks.

Prior to the win over Virginia, Dixon's career-high in assists sat at four. He nearly doubled that mark against the Cavaliers, recording seven assists, including some that had Tar Heel fans seeing double thinking that former UNC star Kendall Marshall somehow got additional eligibility.

To be fair, with the way college athletics is going, it wouldn't be surprising by any means, but no, that was Dixon making those passes in Charlottesville!

Dixon made it difficult for Hubert Davis to take him off the floor, and the plus-minus numbers show just what that was the case. His +22 ranked as the highest on the Tar Heels roster, as there was a drastic difference when he was on the court compared to the seven minutes he wasn't.

In an attempt to get him a breather in the second half, Davis subbed out Dixon in favor of Kyan Evans (who had a brutal -17 in just 7 minutes of action) with a five-point lead. Unfortunately, the Tar Heel lead evaporated quickly, leading Davis to have to rush his freshman point guard back on the floor.

Of course, it's not a knock on Kyan Evans, who has struggled throughout his first season on campus. However, the Tar Heels are playing at a different level with Dixon operating the point, as Davis and his staff might have finally found the right rotation recipe to roll with as we get deeper into the regular season.

For now, it appears that Derek Dixon has claimed the point guard position for the UNC basketball program for the foreseeable future. His emergence (especially as a starter) has come at the perfect time for North Carolina, especially following the struggles they had in early ACC play.

If Dixon can continue playing at this type of level, he has the ability to take this North Carolina team to an untapped level of potential.