UNC upsets No. 4 Duke, spoil Coach K’s final home game

DURHAM, N.C. — UNC ruined what was supposed to be a special night for Duke as the  North Carolina Tar Heels upset all-time rival and No. 4 ranked Blue Devils 94-81 in Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final game in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Junior forward Armando Bacot strengthened his case for ACC Player of the year with a 23 point, seven-rebound performance despite foul trouble early on. UNC put up the most points by a Duke opponent all season.

Krzyzewski, who announced his plans to retire following this season last June, was greeted on the court by over 100 of his former players during the pregame celebration.

North Carolina (23-8, 15-5 ACC) appeared unfazed by the drama and antics surrounding the game as they came out on an 11-4 run. Duke responded with a 12-4 run out of the timeout led by Freshman sensation Paolo Banchero who scored six quick points in that span. Duke led UNC 23-21 with 8:43 to go in the first half.

Duke (26-5, 16-4 ACC) would go on another Banchero-led run for three minutes, this time a 14-0 run in which Banchero was responsible for half of the points. Banchero finished with 23 points, five rebounds and five dimes despite shooting 42% from the floor.

The Tar Heels made a push to end the half after help from their frontcourt of Bacot and Brady Manek. Bacot got in foul trouble early on which saw him on the bench for a majority of the first half.

North Carolina ended the half on an 11-4 run as they trailed 41-39 going into halftime,

The first seven minutes of the second half were all Duke as big man Mark Williams came out the halftime break scorching hot. Williams put in a quick eight points as Duke led by seven with 12:49 to go. Williams finished with 16 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.

For the next four minutes of regulation, the Tar Heels would go on a 16-5 run as guard R.J. Davis and forward Brady Manek began to heat up. UNC led 65-61 with nine minutes to go in regulation.

Davis was unstoppable in the second half where he scored 13 of his 21 points. The New York native also grabbed five rebounds and dished off four assists.

As Duke attempted to rally back while bringing the game within one point, Manek and the Tar Heels once again went on a run creating distance between them and Duke.

The Blue Devils struggled to make stops down the stretch as Manek scored ten points in the final seven minutes of regulation. Manek would finish with 20 points, 11 rebounds and three assists.

Late buckets from Senior guard Leaky Black helped extend their lead to as much as 14. UNC ultimately closed out the game on a 21-10 run propelling them to victory over their long-time rival.

Both teams end the regular season having won seven of their last eight entering the ACC Tournament. Duke opens the tournament on Thursday as the first seed while UNC plays the same day as the third seed.

The ACC Tournament begins Tuesday, March 8th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.