-Jim Root
I will be quite frank: my brain is barely functioning as I type this. Sitting in the bowels of the Caesars Superdome after one of the all-time great college basketball games, words feel inadequate. The sense of finality in the postgame press conference was massive (for obvious reasons), and trying to document that all in a “quick reaction” kind of manner is impossible.
The storylines, the stakes, the shot-making – the utter enormity of this game left far better and more experienced writers than me with their jaws on the table. And yet, I will try to convey some of the insanity.
The game predictably started out with some hiccups. Neither team looked comfortable early on, feeling out the game at a crawling tempo. Mark Williams looked up for it while nearly ripping the rim off the backboard twice, but he unfortunately landed in foul trouble early. UNC’s RJ Davis was the bellwether for the first half, knocking down multiple difficult jumpers to keep the Heels in it.
Theo John quickly joined him. After some impactful minutes, John picked up his third foul. That necessitated a smaller lineup at the under four timeout, with Banchero sliding over to center and squaring off against Armando Bacot in the paint.
That lineup excelled with its speed. Duke pushed relentlessly in transition, getting a couple of quick buckets before UNC could really get set. Hubert Davis matched the small lineup 90 seconds later, a surprising move that seemed to concede the quickness edge at hand (it may also have been about getting Bacot some rest, admittedly).
Regardless of the reason, after Banchero hit a monster three with just over a minute left in the half to go up 34-28, it appeared the Blue Devils might build a mildly comfortable lead at the break.
North Carolina was having none of that, though. They quickly rattled off six points to tie it, joining Bill Pullman in Independence Day with the mantra, “we will not go quietly into the night.” An RJ Davis and-one to close the half (after savvy 2-for-1 execution) gave Duke the lead, but it felt tenuous at best.
Intermission!
After the break, the Blue Devils once again threatened to break the game open, jumping out to a 41-34 lead. What followed, though, set the tone for the rest of the evening.
Like a hurricane at Pat O’Brien’s, UNC struck with a surprising ferocity. The Heels ripped off an 11-0 run, pushing the Blue Devils to use a key timeout to quell the tide. They would add another bucket after to make it 13-0 before a Trevor Keels three stopped the bleeding.
Keels’ impact on this game cannot be overstated. Multiple times, he hit the key baskets to keep Duke in range as Carolina slammed the gas pedal, with the burly guard echoing his season-opening thrashing of Kentucky.
UNC’s Caleb Love found his groove in the second stanza, however. His dribble penetration gave Duke fits, and he generated many of the key looks – both for himself and others – during that pivotal spurt.
Brady Manek joined the party amid the 13-0 run as well after a frigid first half. As so many scoring outbursts do, it started with defense. He blocked a shot on the defensive end and immediately connected on his first jumper on the ensuing possession:
Kids, let that be a lesson: if you’re in a funk, go swat someone (and maybe talk some smack after)!
After that run, the game became more of a seesaw affair, with the lead not expanding past five on either side. The foul trouble bug bit Duke again on what felt like a massive swing in the moment: Banchero made an ill-advised save under his own basket, sending the ball straight to Bacot for a huge and-one that also nailed Williams to the bench with his fourth foul.
Duke returned to the small lineup again, and that seemed to shift the balance of the game again. Duke turned a 62-57 deficit into a 65-64 lead, bringing us to the “trading buckets” phase of the game. The lead changed 100 times (approximately) in the final six minutes, with big shot after big shot coming from all directions.
The crowd’s collective mind nearly exploded in a three-possession sequence in which Keels gave Duke a 71-70 lead, Manek answered with a triple of his own to go up 73-71, and then Moore buried another trey to regain the advantage. That all happened in 47 seconds. I (and the rest of the Weave) cackled with utter delight at the game completely matching every ounce of hype poured into it.
On a night where every player was seemingly throwing brick-fisted haymakers, it was Caleb Love who landed the ultimate knockout blow. His triple with 25 seconds left did not officially end the game, but it made it a two-possession game with the shot clock off. That was the shot that will live forever as the rock that slayed the Coach K Goliath (even if UNC is hardly a David).
And slay him UNC did. The long-term ramifications of this victory could be colossal in the context of the Duke/UNC rivalry: first ever meeting in the tournament at the Final Four, ending Coach K’s career. The effect will obviously be amplified if the Tar Heels finish the job on Monday, but regardless: Duke fans are not going to enjoy any future mention of this one.
Everything now turns to that Monday game. UNC against Kansas. The Roy Williams Bowl in the first year after he retired. I cannot properly process everything that matchup entails – like the players and coaches, I need some distance from tonight – but I can tell you that I am positively giddy to be in attendance. Both teams are playing at their absolute peaks right now, and with any luck, we’ll have another 12-round heavyweight slugfest on our hands.