UNC Basketball: Justin Jackson places blame on himself for Duke loss

Justin Jackson took blame for UNC’s collapse against Duke on Friday night. Read what he had to say

Friday night in Brooklyn was a disappointing one for the North Carolina Tar Heels.

The Tar Heels had the Duke Blue Devils right where they wanted them. A double-digit lead in the second half and a third-consecutive trip to the ACC Tournament Championship seemingly in sight.

Then it all crumbled away.

Point guard Joel Berry picked up his fourth foul at the 15:04 mark and sat nearly 10 minutes with UNC holding a 56-48 lead.

But UNC couldn’t hold it as Duke went on a 31-8 run to take their first lead of the game.

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Without their floor leader, UNC’s offense crumbled. They couldn’t go inside as the Duke shut down the lane.

The offense wasn’t fluid and at times they looked completely lost. With Berry out, no one really stepped up.

That included Justin Jackson.

The ACC Player of the Year struggled again on Friday, scoring just 16 points but he didn’t get going when Berry was out.

Following the game, many put the blame on head coach Roy Williams and the junior Berry. But it was Jackson who stepped up and took the blame.

“I’ve got to play better for us to win,” Jackson said via Andrew Carter of the News & Observer. “So I take responsibility for that.”

Jackson finished the game shooting 6-of-22 including 3-of-11 from behind the three-point line. A lot of those attempts came in the final minutes with UNC trying to force a comeback.

The junior admitted his mistakes and said he could have been smarter with the ball:

"“Honestly, some of my shots – I could have just rotated the ball. I could have made a better decision to get the ball inside. … And so for me, all I can look at is I have to play better for this team to win. And I have to do that if we’re going to try to get back. So I’ve got to play better and this one’s on me.”"

For the Tar Heels, the focus shifts to the NCAA Tournament. UNC entered Friday’s game on the one line and are still there according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi.

However, they could fall to the two line if the committee decides that Oregon or Arizona deserve the one.

Check back to Keeping It Heel for complete coverage of the NCAA Tournament as the seeds will be announced on Selection Sunday.

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