ACC Tournament: Blue Devils vs. Tar Heels tournament game preview

The Tar Heels and Blue Devils both won their quarterfinals match-ups setting up the media dream of Duke UNC III. What do we need to know about this game?

It will be Duke vs. UNC Part III.

The ACC Tournament will see part three of the Duke-UNC rivalry in 2017with both teams winning their quarterfinal match-ups against Miami and Louisville respectively.

This will be only the second time Duke and North Carolina will meet in the ACC tournament since Roy Williams came to UNC. The last time this happened was 2011 in the ACC Championship game, in which Duke won by 17 points.

So with this being Duke-UNC Part III let’s look at some important questions that are surrounding this match-up.

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What happened the first time around?

Three-point shooting and free throws. Duke hit 13-27 from behind the arc. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels were an abysmal 4-0f-12 from downtown.

That is a 27 point difference. In fact Grayson Allen hit seven three pointers, outscoring the Tar Heels as a team by nine all on his own.

UNC also couldn’t hit a free throw. The Tar Heels missed eight free throws finishing 10-of-18 from the charity stripe. It cost them as Duke won the first meeting by eight in Durham.

Mar 4, 2017; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Luke Kennard (5) and North Carolina Tar Heels forward Isaiah Hicks (4) under the basket. The Tar Heels defeated the Blue Devils 90-83 at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports /

What happened the last time around?

Isaiah Hicks and Joel Berry II on Senior Night.

The Tar Heels got huge games from both players. The two combined to go 16-23 from the field for 49 points.

They also combined the go 12-14 from the free throw line a huge change from the first game. Berry also was 5-for-5 from downtown.

The other thing in that game was the free throw shooting. The Blue Devils shot 35 free throws, 14 more than the Tar Heels attempted.

This kept the game close when UNC dominated in nearly every other facet of the game.

Despite this the Tar Heels still were able to get crucial key stops and put the Blue Devils away 90-83 in Chapel Hill, evening the series at one this season.

Okay, so who takes home the title and officially owns the rivalry this year?

The biggest thing is there is no home court advantage for either team. Both team’s fans travel well and it won’t surprise anyone if there is plenty of various shades of blue when the game tips off at 7 p.m. EST.

Duke has been skating by the past two games. Meanwhile, UNC dominated the second half after allowing Miami a second breath in the first. When UNC is on and playing defense, they are hard to stop just as we saw last March.

Duke keeps it close as always, but Isaiah Hicks is in a special place averaging 20 points and 77.5 .5 rebounds per game his last two games. He is also doing it shooting 75 percent from the floor and 94 percent from the line.

Prediction UNC 93 Duke 86. Carolina takes the rivalry before a rematch with FSU in the Championship.

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