One of college basketball’s most storied rivalries takes center stage in the Final Four as the 2-seeded Duke Blue Devils face the 8-seeded North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday in New Orleans. It will be the first time the two schools meet in the NCAA tournament.
Duke and North Carolina have played each other 257 times, with UNC holding the advantage 142-115, per ESPN Stats & Information. The teams split the regular-season series this season. On Feb. 5, the Blue Devils won 87-67 in Chapel Hill, but North Carolina spoiled Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski’s final game at Cameron Indoor Stadium a month later 94-81.
Entering Saturday’s contest, Duke-North Carolina is the most common ranked matchup (85 times) since the AP poll era began in 1948-49, per ESPN Stats & Information. It’s also the most common top-10 (48 times) and top-five (13) matchup.
Before both teams hit the hardwood in the Final Four, let’s relive some of the more memorable moments from this historic rivalry:
March 2, 1974: Eight points in 17 seconds
𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝟐, 𝟏𝟗𝟕𝟒: UNC trailed Duke by 8 points with 17 seconds left…@UNC_Basketball fans know the rest. pic.twitter.com/LCuy63cl3L
— ACC Men’s Basketball (@accmbb) February 4, 2021
UNC won the first two meetings against Duke in 1973-74 and looked for the trifecta in its regular-season finale. Even though Duke was 10-14 at the time, it gave North Carolina all it could handle. The Blue Devils were on the verge of defeating the Tar Heels, holding an eight-point lead with 17 seconds left.
North Carolina miraculously erased the deficit to force overtime, aided by an epic collapse by Duke. Tar Heel forward Bobby Jones hit two free throws to cut the lead to six. UNC stole the following inbounds pass from the Blue Devils for another score. Jones forced another Duke turnover and scored a putback on the Tar Heels’ next possession. After Blue Devils forward Pete Kramer missed the front end of a one-and-one and a North Carolina…
Source : espn
