Despite the absence of national ratings and a lack of fans in attendance, North Carolina and Duke lived up to their reputation for rivalry with another classic on Saturday night. Caleb Love scored 25 points, the best of his career, and Leaky Black made two free throws with 7.2 seconds left to help UNC hold Duke in the 91-87 victory at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Tar Heels’ 91 points and his 66.7 percent three-point shot were both the best of the season, while his 53.1 percent shot was the second best result. The UNC hit 51.6 percent in the first half and 54.5 percent after the break, giving Roy Williams’ team six shooting halves of 50 percent or more in the last nine opportunities.
Tar Heels built double-digit leads in both halves just so that the Blue Devils would erase both deficits. UNC led 60-48 with 14:10 to play, but that lead disappeared when Matthew Hurt’s jumper tied the game at 77-77 with 4:43 to play. Love scored seven of UNC’s next nine points to guarantee a margin of work and then Black ended the game with three free throws in the final 15 seconds.
Six Tar Heels scored in double figures, marking the first time since UNC defeated Tennessee Tech on November 16, 2018. Armando Bacot (16), Garrison Brooks (12), Leaky Black (12), Kerwin Walton (12) and Day’Ron Sharpe (11) joined Love in double digits. Wendell Moore led the Duke with 15 points.
Duke kicked 53.7 percent off the ground, but was beaten, 38-31, and was beaten on turnover points (28-20) and quick break points (27-15). The teams tied for points in the painting (36-36) and second chance points (15-15).
Capitalizing on sales
The first half combined 31 goals scored with 18 goals between rivals, many of the former courtesy of live ball versions of the latter. Duke made twists in his first three games and UNC took just over four minutes to build a 17-7 lead with an 11-0 lead in turning points.
Blue Devils hit back with a 12-3 turnover advantage in the next 11:48 AM to take their lead in 32-30. Tar Heels closed halfway around the start and entered the half-time locker room with a 21-14 lead in turning points. Both teams committed nine turnovers in the first half.
UNC ended the game with 28 points, the best of the season, in 15 turnovers, while Duke totaled 20 points in 16 turnovers.
Hot from Deep
UNC made its best 3-point shot in the middle of the season to open the 254th encounter in this rivalry, making 6 of 9 attempts behind the hoop. Tar Heels was equally efficient in the second half and finished the game with 10 of 15 shots. Love was 4 out of 5 out of three, while Walton was a perfect 4 out of 4.
The 10 points out of 3 tied a high season for Tar Heels (state of Florida).
Featured game
Caleb Love with the e-1 slam ?? pic.twitter.com/VlwV8rC8z7
– ESPN (@espn) February 6, 2021
Note Status
Saturday’s clash ended a sequence of 153 consecutive UNC-Duke games with at least one team qualified in the AP vote. The last time this happened was on February 27, 1960. Roy Williams was nine years old, while Mike Krzyzewski had just turned 13.
Next
UNC has a quick turnaround when Miami (7-11, 3-10 ACC) arrives at Chapel Hill on Monday night for a 7 pm tip (ESPN). Tar Heels defeated the Hurricanes, 67-65, at Andrew Platek’s bell at Coral Gables on January 5.