Chansky’s Notebook: What The Devils Must Do

What Duke has at stake on Senior Night in the Dean Dome.

With Grayson Allen hobbling on a bad ankle and Amile Jefferson playing on a tender foot, Mike Krzyzewski’s program has let it leak out that the Blue Devils are now playing for March. While that usually means the ACC and NCAA tournaments, March starts Saturday night in the Blue Blood rematch at the Smith Center.
Duke can no longer win the ACC after being an almost unanimous preseason pick to do so, but winning and losing against the Tar Heels means plenty in seeding for the two post-season tourneys. And the farther the Blue Devils go in Brooklyn, the higher their seed when the Big Dance starts the next weekend.

A second win over the Heels will have a twofold effect for Duke. One, finishing third or fourth in the ACC and getting the double-bye to Thursday, and not having to win four games for the championship, critical for the banged up Blue Devils. It would also be the best quality win of their season and catapult them to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA and possibly a No. 2 if they won the ACC tourney.

But a loss to the favored Heels could drop Duke all the way to the 6 or 7 seed after all the ACC tie-breakers are figured out. That would mean playing a night game on Wednesday and again on Thursday, and Coach K’s chances of winning his first ACC tournament championship since 2011 would be severely compromised.

How Duke wins is by the same formula that beat Carolina in Cameron Indoor almost a month ago. Make a ton of three-pointers –the Devils drained 13 in the first game compared to 4 for UNC – and hold their own again on the backboards, where they actually grabbed one more rebound than the Tar Heels, who were playing without Isaiah Hicks in that game. Carolina is the healthier team this time around, so the chances of all that aligning are not great.

But Duke always plays well over here, having won five out of the last seven trips since Tyler Hansbrough graduated. Twice the Tar Heels gave the game away on the last possession. The Blue Devils must stay close if they’re to steal another one: Friday: UNC’s chances.

‹

After ICE Reversal, UNC Chancellor Says 5 International Students' Status Restored

The U.S. government's ongoing scrutiny of international university students recently led to the termination of six UNC students' visas.

UNC Announces Duke Department Chair as First Dean for School of Civil Life and Leadership

The UNC Board of Trustees approved the hiring of the initial dean of the School of Civic Life and Leadership: Jed Atkins of Duke University.

UNC Announces Plans of 'Free Tuition' for Certain Undergraduate Students

UNC’s flagship campus announced another step to improve affordability and access to North Carolinians, sharing plans to provide free tuition and fees to certain undergraduate students beginning in 2024. UNC Chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz sent a message to the campus community on Friday afternoon, saying students from North Carolina whose families make less than $80,000 a […]

Eric Church, Trailblazing Politicians Receiving NC Top Award

Two history-making Black politicians and country music star Eric Church were among the six latest recipients of North Carolina’s highest civilian honor announced Thursday. On Nov. 15, Gov. Roy Cooper will present the North Carolina Awards, which were created over 60 years ago to recognize significant contributions to the state and the country in several […]

Founder of Prestigious UNC-Duke Scholarship Program Dies at 90

Julian Robertson, a billionaire hedge fund manager and the benefactor of a well-known scholarship program at Duke University and UNC, died on Tuesday. A spokesperson for Robertson told national media outlets the North Carolina native died in his New York home from “cardiac complications.” He was 90 years old. Initially from Salisbury, N.C., Robertson graduated […]

Duke University to Require COVID-19 Vaccination Before Fall Enrollment

Leadership for Duke University announced all students returning to its campus for the upcoming fall semester must have COVID-19 vaccinations before enrollment. In a message to the campus community on Friday, Duke President Vincent E. Price shared an update to the university’s enrollment requirements, saying all new and returning students will need to present proof […]

UNC, Triangle Universities Celebrate Blackstone Entrepreneurship Network Successes

When Judith Cone, vice chancellor for innovation, entrepreneurship and economic development at UNC – Chapel Hill, heard that the Blackstone Charitable Foundation was going to be setting aside millions of dollars to fund entrepreneurship programs, she was immediately interested in submitting a proposal. “[Blackstone] said, ‘well, we don’t want to just fund one university, but […]

One Week: Exploring Our 'Hometowns'

Exploring our ‘hometowns’ is an activity that has been continually present in my life thus far. As a 16-year-old, I have accumulated a sense of the culture of our hometown communities as well as what they have to offer; to enumerate: where to grab a bite to eat, fun activities, places to shop and must-see […]

Lawsuit: Duke, UNC Agreed to Not Hire Each Other’s Doctors

The basketball rivalry between Duke University and the University of North Carolina battle is legendary, but a federal lawsuit says the two elite institutions have agreed not to compete in another prestigious area: the market for highly skilled medical workers. The anti-trust complaint by a former Duke radiologist accuses the schools just 10 miles (16 […]

Chansky's Notebook: What The Devils Must Do

What Duke has at stake on Senior Night in the Dean Dome. With Grayson Allen hobbling on a bad ankle and Amile Jefferson playing on a tender foot, Mike Krzyzewski’s program has let it leak out that the Blue Devils are now playing for March. While that usually means the ACC and NCAA tournaments, March […]

›