How No. 14 Kentucky and No. 9 North Carolina match up — with a game prediction

How the No. 14 Kentucky Wildcats (7-2) and the No. 9 North Carolina Tar Heels (7-2) match up at each position for Saturday’s CBS Sports Classic game in Atlanta — with a game prediction:

Small forward

▪ In the return to his hometown of Philadelphia last Saturday, Kentucky freshman Justin Edwards (9.8 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 46.6% FGs, 25.9% treys, 68.4% FTs) was limited to 14 minutes of playing time by foul trouble. In what became an 81-66 UK win over Pennsylvania, the 6-foot-8, 203-pound Edwards finished with six points and three rebounds. After going 0-of-6 on field-goal attempts in Kentucky’s 89-84 loss to then-No. 1 Kansas, Edwards has made 23 of 46 shots in the Wildcats’ subsequent six games.

▪ As a 35.2 percent career 3-point shooter entering this season, North Carolina’s Cormac Ryan (10.4 ppg, 2.9 rpg) was brought in by UNC head man Hubert Davis to be a perimeter marksman. So far, however, the 6-5, 195-pound super-senior has yet to get his shot dialed in, making 32.9% on field-goal tries, 25.5% on 3-point attempts. After starting his college career at Stanford, Ryan played the previous three seasons at Notre Dame. In the Fighting Irish’s 64-63 win over UK at Rupp Arena in 2020-21, Ryan had six points, eight rebounds and four assists. The following season, when Notre Dame upset No. 10 UK 66-62 in South Bend, Ryan went for seven points, five rebounds and four assists.

Advantage: Even.

Over Kentucky’s past six games, freshman Justin Edwards has made 23 of 46 field-goal tries. Silas Walker/swalker@herald-leader.com

Power forward

▪ Kentucky’s Adou Thiero (7.8 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 53.5% FGs, 16.7% treys, 71.4% FTs) had six points, two rebounds and two steals in the win over Penn. The 6-8, 222-pound sophomore from Leetsdale, Pennsylvania, has made 22 of 40 field-goal attempts in UK’s past seven games. With Aaron Bradshaw taking on an expanded role Saturday in his second contest since returning from injury, Thiero logged his fewest minutes (15) of the season.

▪ When he put his name into the portal after averaging 10.8 ppg and 5.7 rpg last season for Stanford, North Carolina’s Harrison Ingram (15.1 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 48.5% FGs, 46.3% treys, 62.2% FTs) became one of the more-coveted transfers available. The 2021 McDonald’s All-American is a capable but streaky 3-point shooter. In UNC’s past four games, the 6-7, 235-pound product of Dallas has shot, respectively, 3-of-4, 0-of-4, 4-of-8 and 0-of-2 on treys. In the Tar Heels’ 87-76 loss to 2023 national champion Connecticut last out, Ingram had 20 points, four rebounds and five assists.

Advantage: North Carolina.

Harrison Ingram transferred from Stanford to North Carolina after last season. Robert Willett/rwillett@newsobserver.com

Center

▪ Kentucky super-senior Tre Mitchell (13.2 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 35 assists vs. 11 turnovers, 53.7% FGs) had four points, nine rebounds and four assists in the win over Penn. The 6-9, 231-pound Pittsburgh product has essentially been UK’s “point center,” as the Wildcats run much of their half-court offense through the West Virginia transfer. Mitchell had 21 assists vs. only three turnovers in UK’s first six games; over the past three contests, Mitchell has 14 assists but also has eight turnovers.

▪ North Carolina super-senior Armando Bacot (15.9 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 51% FGs, 78.6% FTs) is already the Tar Heels’ career leader in rebounds (1,442) and double-doubles (73). The 6-11, 240-pound product of Richmond, Virginia, also needs 47 points to reach 2,000 for his career. After making 55.4% of his shots last season, Bacot is down to 51.6% this year. Bacot has previously played against UK twice, both in the CBS Sports Classic. In 2020-21, Bacot had 14 points and eight boards in a 75-63 victory over the Wildcats in Cleveland. The following year, he went for 22 points and 10 rebounds but Carolina was wiped out, 98-69, by UK in Las Vegas.

Advantage: Even.

North Carolina’s Armando Bacot (5) had 13 points and 13 rebounds in the Tar Heels’ 87-76 loss to Connecticut on Dec. 5 in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Robert Willett/rwillett@newsobserver.com

Shooting guard

▪ Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves (team-high 18 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 51.3% FGs, 43.1% treys, 79.2% FTs) had 16 points in the win over Penn and scored seven of UK’s nine points in the decisive second-half run when UK stretched a 61-57 lead to 70-57. The 6-6, 195-pound super-senior, a Chicago product, has diversified his game this season. He is shooting a career-high 59.6% on two-point attempts and averaging a career-best 4.6 rebounds.

▪ North Carolina senior guard RJ Davis (21 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 44% FGs, 36.4% treys, 95.3% FTs) has been torching SEC opponents in 2023-24. In an 87-72 win over Arkansas last month in the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas, the 6-foot, 180-pound product of White Plains, New York, hit 9 of 18 shots and scored 30 points. When UNC outlasted Tennessee 100-92 in the ACC/SEC Challenge, Davis went for 27 points. Over his career, Davis has not had a lot of luck vs. UK. In two games combined vs. the Wildcats, Davis has hit 4 of 14 shots and scored 13 total points.

Advantage: Even.

Kentucky guard Antonio Reeves (12) leads the Wildcats in scoring (18 ppg) and is averaging a career-high 4.6 rebounds per game. Silas Walker/swalker@herald-leader.com

Point guard

▪ After missing a game with an apparent ankle injury, Kentucky freshman D.J. Wagner (12.6 ppg, 30 assists vs. 11 turnovers; 41.1% FGs, 26.7% treys, 76% FTs) returned last week and had nine points and seven assists in UK’s win over Pennsylvania. Over his past three game appearances, the 6-4, 192-pound product of Camden, New Jersey, has had 19 assists vs. only three turnovers. In the win over Penn, Wagner played strong defense on Clark Slajchert, helping hold the Quakers star to five points in the second half after he scored 12 in half one.

▪ North Carolina freshman Elliot Cadeau (7.1 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 37 assists vs. 12 turnovers, 44.9% FGs, 27.3% treys, 54.8% FTs) is one of the better passing guards in men’s college hoops. The 6-1, 180-pound product of West Orange, New Jersey, reclassified so he could move the launch of his college career up one year. After going 0-of-5 from the field in the win over Tennessee, Cadeau has hit a combined 6 of 9 shots in the two games since.

Advantage: Kentucky.

After returning from a one-game absence due to injury, Kentucky freshman point guard D.J. Wagner (21) had nine points and seven assists in UK’s 81-66 win over Pennsylvania last Saturday. Silas Walker/swalker@herald-leader.com

Bench

▪ Kentucky may bring its three best players off the bench. In only his second college game since recovering from a foot injury, 7-foot-1, 226-pound freshman Aaron Bradshaw (10 ppg, 6.5 rpg, four blocked shots) had 17 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks in 29 minutes of court time vs. Penn. The Roselle, New Jersey, product’s defensive length gives UK the rim protection it had been lacking in the early part of the season. ... The Penn game was relatively quiet for Reed Sheppard (13 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 34 assists vs. 12 turnovers, 27 steals, eight blocked shots, 61.2% FGs, 59% treys, 92.3% FTs), but the 6-3, 187-pound freshman from North Laurel still had six points, five rebounds, three assists, three steals and a blocked shot in 27 minutes. ... Freshman guard Rob Dillingham (14.1 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 44 assists vs. 16 turnovers, 14 steals, 47.5% FGs, 51.4% treys, 73.7% FTs) shook off a rough game (1-of-9 shooting, four turnovers) in UK’s surprise 80-73 loss to UNC Wilmington two weekends ago to tie for the team lead with 17 points vs. Penn. ... Kentucky head man John Calipari indicated on his radio show Monday night that Ugonna Onyenso, the 7-foot, 247-pound sophomore center, could make his season debut vs. UNC after also recovering from a foot injury.

▪ North Carolina sophomore guard Seth Trimble (5.2 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 57.1% FGs, 50% treys) is the brother of ex-Tar Heel J.P. Tokoto. ... Jalen Washington (4.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg, six blocked shots) is a 6-10, 230-pound sophomore with a 7-4 wingspan. The product of Gary, Indiana, is shooting 77.8% on field-goal tries. ... A former player at both Loyola (Chicago) and Brown University, Paxson Wojcik is another transfer recruited to boost UNC’s perimeter shooting. So far, the 6-5, 195-pound super-senior (2.7 ppg, 36.8% FGs, 22.2% treys) has had a difficult time fulfilling that mission. ... Ex-Louisville Cardinals forward Jae’Lyn Withers, a 6-9, 215-pound redshirt senior, is averaging 3.2 ppg and 3.1 rpg. Withers had two points in 17 minutes against UK last season in U of L’s 86-63 loss at Rupp Arena. But the Charlotte, North Carolina, product had eight points and nine rebounds when Louisville beat Kentucky 62-59 at the KFC Yum Center in 2020-21.

Advantage: Kentucky.

Intangibles and history

▪ North Carolina leads the all-time series with Kentucky 25-17.

▪ As UK head man, John Calipari is 7-4 vs. the Tar Heels.

▪ North Carolina coach Hubert Davis is 0-1 against UK.

▪ Since the CBS Sports Classic began in 2014, North Carolina, at 6-3, has the best record of the four participating teams. However, UNC is only 1-3 vs. UK in the CBS Sports Classic. The Tar Heels are unbeaten versus the other two participating programs, having gone 3-0 vs. UCLA and 2-0 vs. Ohio State.

▪ UK is 4-5 in CBS Sports Classic games. The Wildcats have not fared as well vs. UCLA (1-2) or Ohio State (0-2) as they have against North Carolina (3-1).

Advantage: Kentucky.