Duke vs. North Carolina Preview
CHAPEL HILL, NC (AP) – Duke and North Carolina have traveled different paths to reach a familiar position – ACC title contention.
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For the fifth consecutive season, the rivals conclude the regular season with a league crown at stake as the fourth-ranked Blue Devils face the No. 13 Tar Heels on Saturday night in Chapel Hill.
Duke used an 82-50 home rout of North Carolina in last year’s regular-season finale to claim a share of the ACC championship. The Tar Heels, who had won the previous three regular-season titles, were not in contention as they finished up a season of transition following their 2008-09 national title run.
Current college basketball odds and oddsmakers from online sports book Sportsbook.com have made the spread a pick’em for Saturday’s game between Duke and North Carolina. Current college basketball public betting information shows that 54% of more than 332 bets for this game have been placed on North Carolina PK.
Duke (27-3, 13-2) was undefeated and the ACC frontrunner entering league play this season, while North Carolina had four losses and looked like a major disappointment after opening the season ranked eighth.
However, the Tar Heels (23-6, 13-2) have won 16 of 18 since losing to Texas on a last-second shot Dec. 18. They have won six in a row since Duke overcame a 16-point deficit to beat them 79-73 at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Feb. 9.
The Blue Devils, meanwhile, defeated Clemson 70-59 on Wednesday to bounce back from a loss at Virginia Tech.
“It makes the rivalry what it is when players are very confident,” Duke guard Nolan Smith said.
Though Duke has won three straight in the series overall, the teams have alternated wins and losses over their last eight meetings at Chapel Hill. All-American Kyle Singler had 19 points in Duke’s 64-54 road victory Feb. 10, 2010.
Smith had a career 34 points in last month’s meeting, as the Blue Devils outscored the Tar Heels 50-30 in the second half.
Averaging an ACC-high 21.3 points, Smith expects North Carolina and its fans to be in the game for the full 40 minutes this time.
“It’s going to be a great setting,” Smith told Duke’s official website. “We’re going into their house now, so we’re going to have to take the fight to them.”
Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski knows his squad must stay focused against a Tar Heels group that because of injuries and defections is down to eight scholarship players but looking for a 17th straight home win.
“To me, they have as talented a team as there is in the country,” Krzyzewski said.
The long-awaited emergence of 6-foot-8 freshman Harrison Barnes has helped the Tar Heels progress. The first freshman preseason All-American since 1986-87, Barnes has averaged 17.9 points in his last 10 contests after scoring 11.8 per game over his first 19.
Barnes’ play and North Carolina’s growing confidence has the team believing it can avoid its first four-game skid to Duke since March 15, 2003-Feb. 9, 2005.
“We want to win,” point guard Kendall Marshall said. “We have that will to win. We want to win badly. I think that’s kind of what’s eating at our insides, how people keep telling us with all these obstacles that we can’t do it. It means that much to us. Nobody wanted to go through what we went through last year, and we just want to come out on top.”
Tyler Zeller had 24 points with 13 rebounds and John Henson added 14 with 12 boards at Duke last month. Henson, who had 19 points and 12 rebounds in North Carolina’s 72-70 win at Florida State on Wednesday, has double-doubles in six of his last eight games.
While Singler is averaging 18.7 points in three career games at North Carolina, Smith has totaled just 15 in two visits to the Smith Center.
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