Keeping It Heel
Fansided

UNC Basketball: Tar Heels go cold against hot shooting Duke

By Brandon Griffin

DURHAM, NC - MARCH 03: (L-R) Head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils talks to head coach Roy Williams of the North Carolina Tar Heels before their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on March 3, 2018 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NC - MARCH 03: (L-R) Head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils talks to head coach Roy Williams of the North Carolina Tar Heels before their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on March 3, 2018 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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The Duke Blue Devils used a huge second half to take care of the North Carolina Tar Heels. The loss drops the Tar Heels to a six seed in the ACC Tournament.

“It’s the Rivalry other rivalries set their DVRs for”-Gene Wojciechowski.

That was a statement from the Duke-North Carolina game. Round two took place in Durham this evening with the Blue Devils coming out on top 74-64.

What happened to lead to this blow out win for the home team?

The Game

The first half of this game wasn’t very good. The two teams combined to score 60 points as both squads struggled from the field.

Duke shot a measly 1-for-10 from beyond the arc and 4-of-14 from the line. They were out-rebounded by seven and their fab five freshmen combined for just 14 points on 6-of-31 shooting from the field.

North Carolina didn’t look much better. The Tar Heels shot 36 percent from the floor and turned the ball over seven times. They needed a 14-4 run to end the half and lead by 10 at the break.

DURHAM, NC – MARCH 03: Trevon Duval
DURHAM, NC – MARCH 03: Trevon Duval /

The second half was a different story. The two teams both started off slow, before Duke broke out. The Blue Devils scored 49 second-half points and used a 31-14 run to finish the game and win by double digits.

They got a huge game from Marvin Bagley III who finished with a game high 21 points, 18 in the second half, and 15 rebounds.

The Tar Heels did have four players in double-digits, but committed 14 turnovers while missing 23 shots from beyond the arc. They also got a sub par game from senior guard Joel Berry II who ended with six points while going 0-for-7 from downtown.

Player of the Game

Cam Johnson. The Pitt Transfer led all North Carolina scorers with 16 points and hit four threes to help keep the Tar Heels in it as things started to fall apart.

Notable Stat

3-6. In the past 13 years, North Carolina has gone into halftime at Cameron with at least a 10 point lead nine times, including tonight. They are now 3-6 in those games.

What’s Next?

Up next for the Tar Heels is the ACC Tournament. As the six seed, the Tar Heels will play the winner of the Syracuse/Wake Forest Matchup on Wednesday at 9 pm EST.

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