The Blue Devils are looking for a much needed winning streak to begin post season play. Having lost 2 straight before beating NC State at home this week Duke is looking to end no a high note. The only thing on the line in this game is bragging rights and after the overtime thriller in the last game - emotions will be high.
The Tar Heels are playing much better basketball at this point in the season. This game for Duke will come down to starting strong, limiting turnovers and executing on offense. While the Blue Devils will most likely be favored by a good amount playing in Cameron on senior night the odds will undoubtedly shift as the game draws nigh. You can see how those odds in realtime at https://www.
The First Matchup
In a game Duke trailed by 13 with 3:55 left in regulation and by five with 20 seconds remaining in overtime, the Blue Devils won a classic at North Carolina on Feb. 8. Tre Jones hit a running jumper at the buzzer in regulation to send the game to overtime, and freshman Wendell Moore Jr.’s tip in at the buzzer was the game winner in overtime as the Blue Devils won for the fifth time in the last nine visits to Chapel Hill. Jones scored a game-high 28 points -- 22 in the second half, including a string of 15 consecutive Duke points to end regulation and start overtime. It was the 14th Duke-Carolina game to be decided in overtime, with Duke winning 10 of them. Moore recorded his first career double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Duke vs UNC
The 2019-20 season marks the 100th anniversary of the first Duke-North Carolina game, which was played January 24, 1920 -- a 36-25 UNC win in Durham. Saturday’s game in Durham is the 253rd all-time meeting, with North Carolina leading the series, 139-113. In Durham, Duke leads 54-49, including 45-37 at Cameron Indoor. Duke has won five of the last seven at home. Duke is 48-44 versus UNC under Mike Krzyzewski. Saturday’s game marks the 57th consecutive in the series that Duke enters as a ranked team, and the 119th game in the series overall that Duke is ranked. As a ranked team, Duke is 68-50 versus UNC. RJ Barrett’s 33 points against the Heels in the first meeting last season marked the most by a Duke freshman in the rivalry’s history. Duke defeated Carolina, 74-73, in the semifinals of the 2019 ACC Tournament en route to the Blue Devils’ 21st ACC title, paced by 31 points from Zion Williamson. Over the last 100 games in the series, Duke leads 51-49. An expanded Duke-UNC series history can be found on the last page of these game notes.
The Opponent
North Carolina is 13-17 overall and 6-13 in ACC play, but brings a three-game winning streak to Cameron Indoor. Freshman Cole Anthony missed 11 games with an injury, but is averaging 20.2 points and 4.1 assists to lead the team in both categories. Junior Garrison Brooks is averaging 16.4 points, 8.7 rebounds and is second in the ACC in field goal percentage (.544) to Duke’s Vernon Carey Jr. Carolina leads the ACC in both rebounds per game (41.9) and rebounding margin (+7.7). Duke is second in rebounds (40.2) and third in margin (+5.9).
Duke
Duke has connected on at least one three-pointer in 1,089 straight games, now the second-longest streak nationally. It has been more than 30 years since Duke was held without a three-point field goal -- Dec. 30, 1989, versus Hawai’i. Vanderbilt had owned the second-longest streak before its January 18th game versus Tennessee (0-of-25).
Duke is third nationally in scoring offense (82.3) and fifth in scoring margin (+14.6), joining Gonzaga as the only teams in the top five in both categories. Duke is also ranked 27th in field goal percentage (.470), and leads the ACC in all three stats above. Duke is 14-1 this season when scoring 85+ points. Eight of Duke’s 22 wins are by 30+ points, including five ACC wins by 30+, which is a new program record. The program’s previous record for most 30-point wins in ACC play was set in 1997-98, 1998-99 and 2000-01. The 39-point margin in the BC win (88-49) was Duke’s largest in an ACC game since beating Georgia Tech, 110-57, on Jan. 3, 2017.
Vernon Carey Jr. leads the Blue Devils in both scoring and rebounding, nearly averaging a double-double with 17.6 points per game and 8.7 rebounds. Carey also leads the team in blocks at just under 2 per game. Tre Jones leads the Blue Devils in assists at 6.2 per game, he also averages 16.1 points and a team leading 2 steals per game. Cassius Stanley and Matthew Hurt round out the double figure scorers for the Blue Devils with 12.3 and 10.1 points per game respectively.
