After 42 seasons of patrolling the Cameron Indoor Stadium, Saturday will be the last time Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski will lead the Blue Devils at the program’s historic home stadium. At 6:00 pm ET, the No. 4 Blue Devils will take on archrival North Carolina to close out the regular season and end an illustrious chapter on the court that Coach K helped turn into one of the most iconic in the sport.
Despite all the deserved attention that will be given to Krzyzewski, there is still a game, and it may be important. Duke (26-4, 16-3 ACC) is the #2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, according to Jerry Palm’s Bracketology, and could use a strong finish to shore up his lead ahead of qualifying Sunday March 13th. The Blue Devils have won seven in a row and are guaranteed to be the No. 1 seed in next week’s conference tournament, even with a loss to UNC.
However, there’s nothing North Carolina fans would like more than ruining Krzyzewski’s last home game at a moment that could be crucial to the Tar Heels’ NCAA Tournament hopes (22-8, 14-5). According to CBS sports braces expert Jerry Palm, UNC is among the “top four” in the predicted field. Revenging an earlier 87-67 home loss to Duke with a botched away win would add an outstanding victory to the Tar Heels’ resume.
Listen below and subscribe to the Eye on College Basketball podcast as Gary Parrish and Matt Norlander talk about Coach K’s latest game at the Cameron Indoor Stadium.
In that first meeting on February 5, Duke scored 27 points from freshman A.J. Griffin and immediately pulled ahead. Since then, UNC has responded to this shelling by winning six out of seven games.
How to watch Duke vs. North Carolina live
date of: Saturday, March 5 | Time: 6:20 pm ET
Location: Cameron Indoor Stadium – Durham, NC
A TELEVISION: ESPN
Duke vs. North Carolina Prediction, Election
Will Duke’s young team be shaken by the historic nature of this moment and will they struggle to get into a rhythm amid the emotion and chaos that surrounded Coach K’s last home game? Potentially, yes. The Blue Devils used a 31-8 start to run away from North Carolina in the first meeting. Since that 20-point Duke win, the Tar Heels have won six of their last seven. It will not be easy for Duke to repeat the fast start of the first meeting against the UNC team playing for the NCAA tournament spot. In the end, however, the UNC’s defenses are too weak to hold Duke for 40 minutes. Prediction: Duke 80, NC 74
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