College basketball’s greatest rivalry took center stage Saturday night as the No. 4 Duke Blue Devils traveled from Durham to Chapel Hill to face the No. 14 North Carolina Tar Heels.
Duke carried a 41–29 lead into halftime and appeared in control for most of the night, but the Blue Devils watched a double-digit second-half lead slip away in the final moments. With the game tied at 68–68 and the clock winding down, North Carolina guard Seth Trimble drilled a go-ahead three-pointer just before the buzzer to secure a dramatic 71–68 win.
Fans immediately stormed the court, only to be ushered back when officials determined 0.4 seconds remained on the clock. After the final horn sounded once again, the court was flooded a second time — creating what Duke head coach Jon Scheyer later described as a “scary” postgame scene.
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Scheyer revealed that he had Duke staff members who were “punched in the face” amid the chaos as they attempted to escort players off the floor.
“It’s hard to talk about the game when I was most concerned for the safety of our players,” Scheyer said. “I don’t want to make it about that, but I’ve got staff members that got punched in the face. That’s not what this game is about. That was a scary ending.”
While the postgame scene was marred by controversy, the game itself was an instant classic and showcased the impact of true freshmen on both sides.
For Duke, Cameron Boozer led the way with a game-high 24 points, adding 11 rebounds and two assists. On the other end, North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson finished with 23 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
The two rivals will meet once more this season on Saturday, March 7, in the final game of the regular season — this time in Durham.
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