Scouting Kentucky-North Carolina
— -- With Saturday's highly anticipated matchup between the Kentucky Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels (5:15 p.m. ET, ESPN) fast approaching, we asked former coaches Seth Greenberg and Bruce Pearl to break it all down. They each provided a scouting report on the biggest keys for both sides of the ball, with Greenberg taking the role of John Calipari and Pearl the role of Roy Williams.
How Kentucky can beat North Carolina
By Seth Greenberg
Offensive keys
Be efficient with the ball: Defensively in the half court, North Carolina will play man-to-man with a few possessions of point zone. In their man, the Tar Heels hope to use their length and are active off the ball. They look to run through passing lanes. It is important to set up cuts and meet passes. When driving to the hoop, it's crucial to take the ball at their shot-blockers. On post passes, they will scrape the post off the passer.
Feed the beast: We must establish Julius Randle early. Expect him to be doubled, so he'll need to use his back dribble to create space to throw out of. Proper spacing is necessary for this to be effective. James Young, Aaron Harrison and Andrew Harrison must either get to the "window" or be a cutter to the rim. Finish all cuts! Willie Cauley-Stein must put himself in a position to get to the glass.
Win the paint battle: Be hard to block out and establish deep post position. In our dribble-drive motion offense, get two feet in the paint at all times. Our guards must get downhill, play through the defense and read kickouts and dump-offs. North Carolina has been inconsistent rebounding the ball this season, so we must be relentless. The Tar Heels gave up 21 offensive rebounds in a loss against UAB but outworked Michigan State on the backboards in a win. We need to take control of the interior.
Defensive keys
Limit the Tar Heels backcourt: North Carolina is led by 6-foot-1 sophomore Marcus Paige, its sneaky-quick lefty point guard. He looks to push the ball at every opportunity and is a big-time shooter with NBA range. Paige likes to create space off the jab step. You cannot go under on ball screens when defending him. He has a runner and is a good passer.
Nate Britt plays off Paige. He will push the ball in transition and has a pass-first mentality. You can gap him. It's important for us to keep Paige and Britt out of the lane and contain them in transition. Offensively, I look for the Wildcats to use their size to attack the undersized backcourt off the dribble and off closeouts. Wing J.P. Tokoto is ultra-athletic and a great offensive rebounder, but he struggles shooting the ball, so you can gap him and play him for the drive.
We must pressure Paige on all ball screens so we can get over the top. The screener's defender must arrive with the screen at the level of the screen. Being late and soft will give Paige room and rhythm.
