A season littered with struggles and heartbreak wrote perhaps its most tragic chapter on Saturday night at the Dean Dome, as UNC watched what looked to be a magical upset over the No. 7 Duke Blue Devils turn into a crushing 98-96 loss in overtime.
Ahead by 13 points with just over four minutes remaining—and having held the lead for nearly the entire game—the Tar Heels (10-13, 3-9 ACC) missed seven free throws down the stretch as Duke stormed back behind sophomore guard Tre Jones to tie things up at the buzzer.
With the Blue Devils (20-3, 10-2) trailing by three with four seconds remaining, Jones—who finished with a game-high 28 points–made his first free throw before intentionally missing the next. Of course, he got his own rebound and fired up the game-tying shot as time expired.
In the overtime period, UNC rallied from five points behind to take the lead into the final seconds once again. And again it was Jones who dealt the death blow.
After tying the game at the foul line, Jones missed his second shot—a scary, but familiar sight for the rowdy fans in Chapel Hill. Duke got the rebound and put the ball in the hands of Wendell Moore, who made a layup as time expired to cap off one of the most exhilarating games in the history of the Duke-UNC rivalry.
With the Tar Heels now 10-13 on the season—and out of NCAA tournament contention—this was essentially their Super Bowl. The effort was there for head coach Roy Williams’ team, but the result was not.
“I’m not disappointed in my team,” Williams told reporters afterwards. “I’m not disappointed in my team’s effort. We could have played more intelligently. We could have made more free throws. We could have rebounded more of their missed free throws. And all of those things that are what people will talk about.
“If you don’t care who won the game, you had to enjoy that as a big-time college basketball game” the coach added later. “I care who won the game.”
Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski, who has seen his fair share of games in this rivalry, was quick to credit the Tar Heels for the way they played. Regardless of the outcome, the NCAA’s all-time coaching wins leader had high praise for what he saw on the other end of the court on Saturday.
“I don’t know what’s happened the whole year, but they were Carolina tonight, boy,” Krzyzewski said. “They were fantastic.”
For the Tar Heels, freshman point guard Cole Anthony was outstanding in his first ever game against Duke—finishing with a team-high 24 points, 11 rebounds and four assists. It was also Anthony who brought UNC back from its five-point deficit in overtime, giving fans hope that maybe, just maybe, the Tar Heels could pull this one off.
Garrison Brooks added 18 points, while Armando Bacot and graduate transfers Christian Keeling and Justin Pierce all scored in double figures.
It was the type of performance Tar Heel fans have been waiting to see all season, and one that could never be expected to end up in a loss as painful as this.
Still, though, there are games left to play and Williams is not about to let this group throw the towel in just yet.
“We have no assurances,” Williams said, about his team’s postseason chances. “I told them that you’ve got a chance to play again. I told them that we also have a chance to play Duke again. The old coach is not gonna freakin’ quit. And they’re not either.
Up Next:
A trip to Winston-Salem awaits the Tar Heels on Tuesday, as they take on the struggling Wake Forest Demon Deacons in a game scheduled to tip-off at 8 p.m.
Game Notes:
- This was UNC’s highest point total in a game this season. The Tar Heels are just 1-3, however, when scoring at least 80 points.
- Both Armando Bacot and Leaky Black fouled out late in the game for UNC, while Duke lost star freshmen Vernon Carey and Cassius Stanley to foul trouble as well.
- Of the 45 minutes of game time, UNC held the lead for 41:50.
- Duke has now won the last two meetings against UNC.
Cover photo via Todd Melet
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