It may have been the first time since 1960 that both UNC and Duke were unranked, but the game Saturday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium stayed true to the rivalry by going right down to the wire.
Freshman point guard Caleb Love’s career-high 25 points ultimately proved to be enough for UNC to hold on for a 91-87 victory.
Shooting just 30 percent on the season entering his first taste of the nation’s biggest rivalry, Love picked the right night to show why he was once one of the top recruits in the country.
The St. Louis native—who was coached by former Duke star Jayson Tatum’s father in high school–made nine of his 16 shots against the Blue Devils in a game played at a breakneck pace up and down the floor. This includes a 4-for-5 mark from three-point range, part of an incredible team effort that saw the Tar Heels (16-6, 7-4 ACC) convert on 10 of their 15 total shots from deep.
Love’s tenacious defense on the perimeter also helped UNC score a whopping 29 points off of 15 Duke turnovers.
The only stain on his performance was having five turnovers of his own and a pair of defense miscues, something head coach Roy Williams made sure to mention afterwards.
“I don’t think Caleb played the best game he can play, by any means,” Williams told reporters. “He’s played the best game that he’s played since he got to North Carolina. But I think he can be a great player. And I think he was big for us tonight. You cannot have those kinds of mistakes, though, guys.”
A total of six Tar Heels ended the game in double figures, as the team set a new season-high in points just four days after setting a new season low in a loss to Clemson.
Sophomore forward Armando Bacot had 16 points, while Kerwin Walton, Garrison Brooks and Leaky Black each finished with 12. Day’Ron Sharpe also had 11 points and was the third Tar Heel big man to score in double figures.
It was Love who stole the show, however, hitting a number of timely shots down the stretch to keep Duke from ever taking the lead in the second half.
“I was in the zone,” Love said. “Just going into the game, I knew I had to be a big part of my team getting this win. Controlling traffic and doing a lot of those things that point guards do. It’s been a long season for me. Up and down. But it’s been great making these shots.”
With the loss, Duke fell to 7-7 on the year (5-5 ACC) and remains in serious danger of missing the NCAA Tournament. The Tar Heels held onto their spot in fifth place in the ACC standings, as they continue their fight to be included in this year’s big dance.
It was only fitting that a night after UNC’s two most recent freshman point guard stars—Coby White and Cole Anthony—faced off against each other in the NBA, its current point guard did everything he could to try and fill those shoes–delivering a primetime showing and a victory against the Tar Heels’ most storied rival.
“It was a big one,” Love said. “Having this be one of the biggest rivalries in college basketball, if not the best. Coming in, we knew we had to bring our own energy with no fans. But it felt like there were fans just because of how hard we were playing and how into the game we were.”
Up Next:
UNC returns to action on Monday night at home against Miami. That game is scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m.
Game Notes:
- The Tar Heels scored 11 points off Duke turnovers in the first four and a half minutes of the game.
- Duke star forward Matthew Hurt fouled out and finished the night with just seven points.
- UNC led by as many as 12 points in the second half before a late Duke run cut the Tar Heel lead to one in the final minute.
Photo via ACC Media
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Hats off to Caleb for an outstanding offensive showing. The next steps in his development are obvious ones, stop the unforced turnovers and cut down on the excessive dribbling. The idea that he can drive the lanes and draw fouls is something he needs to pay more attention to and yet when they come to double team him there should always be someone open to pass it out to or under the basket to. We should still spend a huge amount of time on free throw shooting in practices and also teaching our big men how to finish underneath the basket. Just wondering too if Roy ever considers going to any zone defenses during games to just try and show the opponents a different look. Let’s build on the positives and keep working on those problem areas and this team could turn out to be great by the end of this season.