Kentucky basketball: 3 takeaways for the win against #9 North Carolina

Kentucky basketball finally got their big win against a blue blood during the 2023–24 season. The Cats defeated North Carolina 87-83 in the CBS Sports Classic in Atlanta. We all know how much Kentucky fans love Catlanta. Here are 3 takeaways from Kentucky's win against North Carolina.

Takeaway #1: The bench is great

Dec 16, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Rob Dillingham (0) and North Carolina / Jordan Godfree-USA TODAY Sports

Kentucky basketball had 36 points off the bench. Rob Dillingham had 17 points and 3 rebounds, Reed Sheppard had 11 points and 6 rebounds, Adou Thiero had 7 points and 4 blocks, and Ugonna Onyenso had 1 point and 4 massive blocks during his sophomore debut.

The Cats will hopefully have Zvonimir Ivisic to add to the mix soon, and then they have Jordan Burks when foul trouble happens early in games. I do not doubt that Kentucky has one of the best benches in the country, and this game showed it.

Takeaway #2: John Calipari and freshman are a great duo

Dec 9, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Kentucky Wildcats head coach John Calipari reacts in / Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports

John Calipari has proved to the whole country once again that using many freshmen is okay. The Kentucky freshmen scored 62 of the Cats' 87 points in the win over the Tar Heels. Anyone who knows this Kentucky team would not be surprised to know that freshmen scored 71.2% of the points in a massive win.

Just to compare back to 2018, when Kentucky beat #9 North Carolina, Keldon Johnson, Tyler Herro, and Ashton Hagans combined to score 43 points. Immanuel Quickley and Nick Richards had 2 points each. So that would be 47 points of Kentucky's 80 scored by freshmen. John Calipari and the freshmen are just a great duo time and time again.

Takeaway #3: Kentucky basketball continues to produce great guards

Dec 2, 2023; Lexington, Kentucky, USA; Kentucky Wildcats guard Reed Sheppard (15) shoots the ball / Jordan Prather-USA TODAY Sports

Rob Dillingham, D.J. Wagner, and Reed Sheppard are about to be the next great Kentucky guards in the National Basketball Association. Now that Wagner is starting to figure out his shot, I believe he could go out there and be like Quickley or Tyrese Maxey.

Dillingham and Sheppard have already figured out their shots. If these three continue to improve all season, there is a chance they all could be first-round picks.

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