Latest Kentucky-North Carolina Clash Proves Saga Should Continue

For all the talk surrounding the Duke-North Carolina rivalry, there is another Battle of the Blues often overlooked that carries a similarly contentious history.

Don’t get me wrong, nothing compares to or tops Duke vs. North Carolina—something I’ll get into at a later date once the Tobacco Road Showdown recommences—but college basketball fans should keep a keen interest on the inter-conference, interstate feud between Kentucky and UNC, as well.

Simply based on statistics, Kentucky and North Carolina bolster the credentials for a heated rivalry.  It is no coincidence that the schools boast the two winningest programs in NCAA Division I history.

The Wildcats have won seven national titles with 13 Final Four appearances while the Tar Heels have claimed five championships in addition to their 18 showings.

Moreover, Kentucky leads all schools with 49 NCAA tournament bids followed by North Carolina’s 41.

Overall, the Tar Heels boast the most tournament wins and third-best winning percentage, 102-39 (.721).  The Wildcats trail with a 100-45 record and a .690 winning percentage.

In their most recent clash at Lexington, neither school disappointed when the Wildcats played hosts to the Tar Heels.

Inside a packed and raucous Rupp Arena, Kentucky and North Carolina—both young, inexperienced, yet extremely talented teams—battled down to the wire before the Wildcats escaped with a thrilling, last minute 68-66 victory.

Needless to say, it’s a pity Ashley Judd didn’t choose to attend this game at her alma mater as one of the record-breaking 24,468 fans.

Kentucky now stands four games short of 2,000 wins.  North Carolina is five games back at 1,991 wins.

Kentucky’s win was a far cry from its last matchup with North Carolina, a 77-58 drubbing in Chapel Hill on Nov. 18, 2008.  In fact, the Tar Heels had won five straight meetings.

For UNC, the recent loss spells some trouble in terms of handling a game’s setting.

The Tar Heels are undoubtedly a remarkable team when playing at home, as shown in their dismantling of preseason No. 2 Michigan St.  However, their season’s two losses have come in away games—both in massive, unfriendly environments full of vociferous devotees of the opposition.

Clearly, North Carolina should focus more on strengthening mental resolve while calming nerves over the team’s naturally and technically sound abilities.

UNC still leads the all-time series against Kentucky 21-11, which began in the age of Adolph Rupp and Dean Smith.  

Since then, the Tar Heels’ recurring, consecutive success against the Wildcats drove more than a few college basketball aficionados and analysts to question the validity of the word “rivalry” in the Carolina-Kentucky context—much to the delight of Tar Heels fans and the chagrin of their Wildcats counterparts.

Kentucky’s recent defeat of North Carolina has realigned the parity missing from the modern, one-sided dynamic of their athletic duels, especially in the short yet tenuous tenure of former Wildcats’ coach Billy Gillispie.

Now, Kentucky has a new coach in John Calipari, just as controversial as Gillispie but with more charisma.  

Calipari certainly is a contrasting figure when compared to UNC head coach Roy Williams in matters of style and demeanor, but he undoubtedly possesses the substance and expertise to further strengthen Kentucky’s reputation as a national powerhouse.  Just review Calipari’s collegiate coaching career at Massachusetts and Memphis for proof.

Like Williams, Calipari should continue to attract marquee five-star recruits to Lexington and fashion a NCAA championship-contending team from his talented roster.

One such talent has already made his mark on the court: John Wall.

In Nov. 16th’s game against Miami (Ohio), Wall hit a 15-foot, game-winning jumper with only 0.5 seconds left.  Nine days later, he buried a shot from 30 feet to tie the score against Stanford and sank two clutch free throws to force overtime, from which Kentucky won.

Much credit should go to Wall for Kentucky’s unblemished 8-0 record and blazing start to the season.  As a freshman, he is Kentucky’s leading scorer and assists leader.

Against UNC, Wall scored 16 points in a 28-2 Wildcats scoring run and catalyzed the pivotal streak in sustaining their shrinking lead throughout the game.  Not since Kansas went on a similar tear in the 2008 Final Four has a team dominated North Carolina so thoroughly, if only temporarily.

Wall’s instrumental performance in the Wildcats’ win over the Tar Heels proved an ironic narrative considering the 6'4" Wall is a native of Raleigh, N.C., and grew up wanting to suit up in Carolina blue, not Kentucky blue.  Alas, the university never offered him a scholarship despite pursuing Wall throughout high school.  

Saturday’s game served perhaps not only as Kentucky’s long-awaited retribution, but a personal redress from Wall for being passed over.

Well, surely, no one is overlooking him any longer—certainly not Roy Williams.

Judging from Williams’ assessment of Wall after the game, one could infer Williams would have offered Wall the opportunity to become a Tar Heel if the situation presented itself again.

“In Roy Williams’ coaching time, he’s the best point guard out of high school since Jason Kidd,” said Williams.

“He’s 6'4", he’s got blazing speed, and he’s going to be a vicious defender.  His biggest weakness is his outside shot. What’s the easiest thing to change? Your outside shot.”

Fans should appreciate Wall’s superlative play during his brief stint in the college ranks, as he is expected to enter next year’s NBA draft.

In additional to Wall, fans should appreciate other featured players from both Kentucky and North Carolina—a good five or six of NBA-quality, including Ed Davis, Patrick Patterson, and DeMarcus Cousins, to name a few.

More importantly, fans should demand the continuation of the annual on-court contest between the two most storied programs in college hoops—which has occurred for the past decade and scheduled until this season.

No substantive reasons exist to alter or eliminate the series; nonetheless, more attention to and recognition of this sporting gem couldn’t hurt—especially when one team’s motto, “Envy our past, fear our future,” can apply just the same to its equally decorated competitor.