UNC men's basketball can't match Kentucky's physicality in CBS Sports Classic

ATLANTA — As Tre Mitchell’s airball conveniently sailed into Kentucky teammate Aaron Bradshaw’s arms, RJ Davis only had one option: foul.

Facing a two-point deficit with 46 seconds left in the CBS Sports Classic, the undersized UNC senior guard wrapped his arms around the towering Bradshaw to prevent an easy basket.

Was the sequence significant or memorable?

Compared to North Carolina’s inexplicable, game-breaking miscommunication 40 seconds later, no. But it served as a microcosm of the Tar Heels’ struggles to match the Wildcats’ physicality.

In No. 9 UNC’s 87-83 loss to No. 14 Kentucky, the Tar Heels were outmuscled on the glass, tallying a new season-low 32 rebounds after setting that mark against UConn the week prior. Davis, UNC's shortest player, led North Carolina with seven boards — six of which came in the first half.

“Kentucky was tougher than us in the trenches,” UNC head coach Hubert Davis said. 

Four of the Wildcats’ 18 offensive boards came in the final two and a half minutes, but Kentucky's length and athleticism was present much earlier in the game. Toward the end of the first half, UNC junior forward Harrison Ingram missed back-to-back contested layups, hitting the deck hard both times.

Following the second try, the Stanford transfer laid sprawled on the baseline for a few moments before standing. Visibly shaken up, Ingram headed to the bench.

“I mean, Kentucky is an athletic team,” graduate guard Cormac Ryan said. “That's how they play. They've got long, athletic guys. I think we could have done a better job being physical, especially on the boards."

Kentucky’s physical dominance extended past its rebounding and defense. On some possessions, the Wildcats resorted to old-school bully ball.

After Mitchell scored inside on UNC senior forward Jae’Lyn Withers midway through the second half, the forward lowered his hand towards the floor to indicate that Withers was “too small." Then, with 91 seconds to play, first-year Wildcat guard Rob Dillingham mimicked the same motion after a tough bucket over Davis.

“They had to make some tough shots, one-on-one against us," Hubert Davis said. "Specifically down the stretch they were able to do so.”

Ryan said the Tar Heels need an all-around effort to improve rebounding, noting they “can’t just leave it all for Armando.” That being said, UNC’s preseason All-American center arguably didn’t pull his typical weight, seen in the final stat line for UNC's program leader in rebounds: six boards, nine points and six turnovers.

“He's going to have a lot of attention,” Hubert Davis said. “There’s a responsibility of being one of the best players in the country — not just Armando, whomever — that you have to adjust and tweak and pivot to do things to still be effective out there on the floor.”

It’s unclear when those tweaks and pivots for Bacot will come to fruition. In the meantime, RJ Davis — who delivered another 27-point performance — said the Tar Heels “just got to fight harder next time.”

John Calipari explained things in a similar vein.

“This was a game you had to fight,” the Kentucky head coach said. “You had to be a dog or you were getting chomped on.”

Given the contest’s slim margins, it’s safe to say both teams brought the intensity befittingly of a blue blood clash.

But in the end, the Wildcats chomped just a little bit more.

@danielhwei

@dthsports | sports@dailytarheel.com