Duke basketball recorded the first 3-0 sweep in its rivalry with UNC since 2002, defeating the No. 5 seed Tar Heels (22-13) 74-71 in the ACC Tournament semifinals on Friday night.
The No. 1 seed Blue Devils (30-3) were missing key starter Cooper Flagg (ankle) and lockdown defender Maliq Brown (shoulder), and they nearly imploded after leading 45-24 at halftime. However, a costly UNC mistake at the charity stripe late in the game guaranteed Duke’s victory.
As it turns out, despite what fifth-year UNC guard RJ Davis told ESPN on Thursday, the Tar Heels’ third time against the Blue Devils was not the charm.
On that note, the Duke basketball social media team posted the following locker room conversation between a pair of freshman roommates in backup center Patrick Ngongba II, who scored a career-high 12 points in the win, and Isaiah Evans, a fiery competitor who only had two points as a starter in place of Flagg but took advantage of the opportunity to mock UNC:
Duke basketball will play the No. 2 seed Louisville Cardinals (28-6) in the ACC Tournament championship game at 8:30 p.m. ET Saturday (ESPN). The Blue Devils and Cardinals have only met once this season, with a 76-65 comeback away win on December 8.
