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Ven-Allen Lubin
Photo by: ANTHONY SORBELLINI
Lucas: Duke Rapid Reactions
March 8, 2025 | Men's Basketball, Featured Writers, Adam Lucas
Quick takeaways from the rematch in Chapel Hill.
By Adam Lucas
1. Tough loss for Carolina, as Duke earned an 82-69 win to end the regular season. Duke shot 61 percent from the field in the second half.
2. The Tar Heels earned the metrics they have and that are weighing them down in NCAA Tournament consideration. But it would be very difficult to watch that game and not understand that Carolina is an NCAA Tournament team. The problem, however, is that Duke is one of the two best teams in the country. No one is saying the Heels are on that level, but Duke isn't the team Carolina is competing with on the bubble.
3. And they showed the reason they've been so good during the decisive part of the second half. The Heels built a seven-point lead midway through, but Duke then went on a 29-11 run. And what makes this Blue Devil team different from some of their recent versions is they have veterans to complement the very talented freshmen. Syracuse transfer Maliq Brown (who had made two three-pointers all season and made two in this game) was key both on the defensive end and then making what felt like a back-breaking three-pointer with under five minutes to go.
4. Duke completely shut off Carolina's second chance rebounding opportunities, which had been big in recent wins. The Devils dominated the glass, 39-26, and allowed Carolina just seven offensive rebounds (that they turned into only five points). Carolina had been +70 on the boards in the last five games.
5. Other differences from recent wins: Carolina didn't shoot the three as well (just 9-for-27, or 33.3 percent) and the Heels didn't get the balanced scoring that had been so important recently (RJ Davis had 20 points, only Ven-Allen Lubin joined him in double figures with 11, and Davis didn't score after the 17:43 mark as he battled cramping issues). The Heels also managed just eight assists on 25 field goals as the offense bogged down in the second half, partially because Duke's size at every position made it very difficult for UNC to create any penetration.
6. The Tar Heels are going to rue not being able to pick up Cooper Flagg's fourth foul at any point during the second half. Flagg never went out of the game in the final 20 minutes and never drew a foul during what was a very lightly whistled second half (eight total fouls were called on the two teams before the Heels had to give a couple at the end).
7. Carolina was down just one point after weathering an incredible start from Duke that saw them start 12-16 from the field, 5-6 from three and 7-8 from the free throw line. After that barrage, Carolina trailed by 15 points at 36-21. The first Blue Devil possession was emblematic of that stretch; Carolina played 34 seconds of great defense and then saw Kon Knueppel make a very difficult fallaway shot at the shot clock buzzer.
8. But the Heels battled back over the final 7:43 of the half, led by 15 points from RJ Davis. That first half was a very high level 20 minutes and a nice reminder of how much the Heels have improved since the noncompetitive first half in Durham.
9. Carolina also did a much better job taking care of the ball. UNC committed two turnovers in the first two minutes, allowing Duke to score five of its first seven points off turnovers. But the Heels had just one miscue in the final 18 minutes. Many of those point guard minutes were handled by Davis after Cadeau had some early-game issues. Hubert Davis had constantly emphasized Carolina's 14 turnovers in Durham; the Heels ended the game with just six.
10. Instead, it was Carolina that forced some Duke turnovers to help ease back into the game. The Heels had an 11-6 edge in points off turnovers in the first half after forcing nine turnovers from the visitors.
11. Drake Powell made a significant difference in the game defensively, almost from the very beginning. His backcourt defense on Knueppel four minutes into the game forced a jump ball and set the tone for a Tar Heel defense that provided significantly more resistance than they did in Durham. Powell also drew the second foul on Flagg at the 12:50 mark; Duke sat Flagg until the 5:18 mark, but he lasted just two minutes before Jae'Lyn Withers drew his third foul. Two of Flagg's first three fouls were offensive. Powell, at +2, was one of two Heels with a positive plus-minus rating (Lubin at +1 was the other).
12. Davis has now played in 170 games--the Atlantic Coast Conference record. He surpasses former teammate Armando Bacot in the UNC and ACC record books.
13. So Carolina is now the fifth seed at the ACC Tournament. They'll open the event against the winner of Notre Dame and Pitt on Wednesday at 2:30. The winner of that game will get Wake Forest, and then the winner of that matchup likely will see Duke in the semifinals. That path is not the ideal scenario for Carolina's NCAA hopes; Wake is not a Q1 game.
14. Great Smith Center crowd (that included tons of UNC luminaries--Lawrence Taylor, Julius Peppers, Tyler Hansbrough, a host of national champions and more) that gave all they had, as did the Heels. There are going to be some hoarse folks in Chapel Hill tomorrow.
1. Tough loss for Carolina, as Duke earned an 82-69 win to end the regular season. Duke shot 61 percent from the field in the second half.
2. The Tar Heels earned the metrics they have and that are weighing them down in NCAA Tournament consideration. But it would be very difficult to watch that game and not understand that Carolina is an NCAA Tournament team. The problem, however, is that Duke is one of the two best teams in the country. No one is saying the Heels are on that level, but Duke isn't the team Carolina is competing with on the bubble.
3. And they showed the reason they've been so good during the decisive part of the second half. The Heels built a seven-point lead midway through, but Duke then went on a 29-11 run. And what makes this Blue Devil team different from some of their recent versions is they have veterans to complement the very talented freshmen. Syracuse transfer Maliq Brown (who had made two three-pointers all season and made two in this game) was key both on the defensive end and then making what felt like a back-breaking three-pointer with under five minutes to go.
4. Duke completely shut off Carolina's second chance rebounding opportunities, which had been big in recent wins. The Devils dominated the glass, 39-26, and allowed Carolina just seven offensive rebounds (that they turned into only five points). Carolina had been +70 on the boards in the last five games.
5. Other differences from recent wins: Carolina didn't shoot the three as well (just 9-for-27, or 33.3 percent) and the Heels didn't get the balanced scoring that had been so important recently (RJ Davis had 20 points, only Ven-Allen Lubin joined him in double figures with 11, and Davis didn't score after the 17:43 mark as he battled cramping issues). The Heels also managed just eight assists on 25 field goals as the offense bogged down in the second half, partially because Duke's size at every position made it very difficult for UNC to create any penetration.
6. The Tar Heels are going to rue not being able to pick up Cooper Flagg's fourth foul at any point during the second half. Flagg never went out of the game in the final 20 minutes and never drew a foul during what was a very lightly whistled second half (eight total fouls were called on the two teams before the Heels had to give a couple at the end).
7. Carolina was down just one point after weathering an incredible start from Duke that saw them start 12-16 from the field, 5-6 from three and 7-8 from the free throw line. After that barrage, Carolina trailed by 15 points at 36-21. The first Blue Devil possession was emblematic of that stretch; Carolina played 34 seconds of great defense and then saw Kon Knueppel make a very difficult fallaway shot at the shot clock buzzer.
8. But the Heels battled back over the final 7:43 of the half, led by 15 points from RJ Davis. That first half was a very high level 20 minutes and a nice reminder of how much the Heels have improved since the noncompetitive first half in Durham.
9. Carolina also did a much better job taking care of the ball. UNC committed two turnovers in the first two minutes, allowing Duke to score five of its first seven points off turnovers. But the Heels had just one miscue in the final 18 minutes. Many of those point guard minutes were handled by Davis after Cadeau had some early-game issues. Hubert Davis had constantly emphasized Carolina's 14 turnovers in Durham; the Heels ended the game with just six.
10. Instead, it was Carolina that forced some Duke turnovers to help ease back into the game. The Heels had an 11-6 edge in points off turnovers in the first half after forcing nine turnovers from the visitors.
11. Drake Powell made a significant difference in the game defensively, almost from the very beginning. His backcourt defense on Knueppel four minutes into the game forced a jump ball and set the tone for a Tar Heel defense that provided significantly more resistance than they did in Durham. Powell also drew the second foul on Flagg at the 12:50 mark; Duke sat Flagg until the 5:18 mark, but he lasted just two minutes before Jae'Lyn Withers drew his third foul. Two of Flagg's first three fouls were offensive. Powell, at +2, was one of two Heels with a positive plus-minus rating (Lubin at +1 was the other).
12. Davis has now played in 170 games--the Atlantic Coast Conference record. He surpasses former teammate Armando Bacot in the UNC and ACC record books.
13. So Carolina is now the fifth seed at the ACC Tournament. They'll open the event against the winner of Notre Dame and Pitt on Wednesday at 2:30. The winner of that game will get Wake Forest, and then the winner of that matchup likely will see Duke in the semifinals. That path is not the ideal scenario for Carolina's NCAA hopes; Wake is not a Q1 game.
14. Great Smith Center crowd (that included tons of UNC luminaries--Lawrence Taylor, Julius Peppers, Tyler Hansbrough, a host of national champions and more) that gave all they had, as did the Heels. There are going to be some hoarse folks in Chapel Hill tomorrow.
Players Mentioned
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