One of the most storied and intense rivalries in all of sports will be renewed Wednesday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium. We’re just two days away from the 239th installment of Carolina-Duke and this season, the Tar Heels and Blue Devils are trending in different directions.

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“There was a lot different said in the Louisville game than there was in this game. It was a lot different in the Virginia game and Boston College game. It’s not necessarily one theme that keeps recurring, so I don’t know,” UNC junior guard Marcus Paige says.

Coach Williams addresses Paige (Todd Melet)

Coach Williams addresses Paige (Todd Melet)

Paige’s reeling Tar Heels are searching for answers. And that’s bad timing with a pretty big game looming large midweek.

Carolina has now lost three of its last four. But at least in the latest setback at Pittsburgh, some consolation could be found in the lights-out shooting, 65 percent to be exact, by the opponent.

“They were so much more aggressive than us early and more positive. I think we had it tied a couple times, and then they went on a tremendous run again. Early in the second half, I thought it was still any man’s ballgame, and they made their first seven shots,” Coach Williams says. “Am I disappointed and upset? In several ways, yes. But I think you have to also understand Pittsburgh had a lot to do with the outcome of the game,”

Duke and Carolina battled it out for the first time on Jan. 24, 1920. The two hated rivals have met at least twice a year since then.

Many of those encounters have gone on to decide the eventual ACC champion.

Since the ACC’s founding in 1953, Duke and Carolina have combined to win or share 48 ACC regular season titles, that’s 78.7 percent of the total, and 36 tournament titles, 59 percent of the total, including 14 of the last 18.

The Cameron Crazies love their Coach (Duke Photography)

The Cameron Crazies love their Coach (Duke Photography)

But this year, both schools are playing the role of chasers in the conference standings, looking up at one-loss Virginia. But for surging Duke, that gap is closing. Carolina, meanwhile, appears to be fading back into the pack.

A frustrated Coach Williams says his Tar Heels were simply overwhelmed by the super sharp Panthers Saturday afternoon.

As for his counterpart wearing a tie with a darker shade of blue, Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski was a lot happier following his team’s win at the sold-out Carrier Dome.

“Our free throw shooting down at the end was just about perfect. Guys made big plays. I’m really pleased with the win. We beat a really good team – great crowd, great environment. I feel very fortunate we won,” Coach Krzyzewski says.

With a 22-3 record and a top five national ranking, Coach K certainly has plenty to be happy about it, but it’s likely his freshman sensation, Jahlil Okafor, who puts the biggest smile on the Hall of Famer’s face.

Widely projected to be the No. 1 draft pick in the upcoming NBA Draft, Okafor says he credits his teammates for setting him up in the paint, a place the sturdy freshman feels right at home.

“Throughout the whole second half my teammates kept finding me for easy buckets. They were giving me all the confidence in the world – a lot of credit to my teammates. They just kept finding me for easy baskets,” Okafor says.

The UNC defense will need to step up Wednesday night (Nick Vitali)

The UNC defense will need to step up Wednesday night (Nick Vitali)

Pitt, meanwhile, poured in buckets from everywhere over the weekend, but some of that had to do with UNC’s poor defense.

With Duke next on tap, always one of the best shooting teams in the nation, Coach Williams knows his players will need tighten up defensively and get more hands in the faces of long-range shooters.

“What you can do is guard them better. I really believe the better you guard them, the less likely they’ll shoot 65 percent for the game,” Coach Williams says.

Carolina enters this year’s Battle of the Blues as a clear underdog, but that might be an advantageous position for the Tar Heels. An old cliché often rings true – in rivalry games, you can throw out the rankings and the stat sheets.