Tonight at 9:00 p.m. ET on ESPN, college basketball's top rivalry will tip off again when the No. 19 University of North Carolina Tar Heels (21-9, 11-6) host the No. 3 Duke Blue Devils (27-3, 14-3) in an ACC clash that can be live streamed free by clicking this link.
The last meeting between these two was an instant classic. Duke won an overtime thriller behind 44 combined points from Duke's starting backcourt of Tyus Jones and Quinn Cook. Together the pair was 8-of-14 from beyond the arc, while superstar freshman center Jahlil Okafor posted a double-double with 12 points and 13 rebounds.
UNC held their own tough, especially down low where they rank second in the NCAA in rebounding. Kennedy Meeks was able to bang with Okafor, scoring 18 points and grabbing seven boards. Lanky power forward Brice Johnson was even more impressive, scoring 18 as well with 12 rebounds.
"The last game we played against them was an amazing game," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. " ... It was transition and a lot of it was offensive rebounding. ... Defensive rebounding, transition defense, and then we've got to hit some shots against them. But we've gotten better since then."
UNC seems better too. Their last game against Georgia Tech on Tuesday was a shellacking, in which they pounded the Yellow Jackets 81-49.
"Coach (Roy Williams) told us don't worry about Duke until we get this game over with," said freshman guard Joel Berry. "Now our mind is on Duke, and it gives us a lot of momentum."
They will look for a more competitive performance from point guard Marcus Paige, who was limited to just five points on 2-of-11 shooting in their last meeting.
© Copyright 2024 Sports World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.