North Carolina upsets Duke, spoils Coach K's home finale
Duke fans, alumni and former players alike turned out in droves for Mike Krzyzewski's final game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday, ready to honor their coach's last home hurrah with a celebration as legendary as his long and storied career.
North Carolina had other plans.
The Tar Heels spoiled the party during its second act, defeating the Blue Devils 94-81 and handing Krzyzewski one last loss in the regular season. Krzyzewski will retire after 42 years following the end of this season.
The festivities began well before tip-off, as Duke honored Krzyzewski with a length introduction tribute video and he came to the court greeted by a gauntlet of dozens of his former players.
Once the game started, though, it was business as usual — and North Carolina came ready to win. Duke led 41-39 at halftime, and commanded things coming out of the break in the second half. The Tar Heels began to claw their way back into it midway through the period, taking control with around five minutes to go as they opened up a 79-71 lead with 3:56 left to play.
The Blue Devils answered, though, as Wendell Moore Jr. cashed in a three to cut the deficit to five two possessions later. But the Tar Heels weren't done either; Brady Manek hit a huge three on the next possession to go back up by eight and send a wave of silence through the arena.
After Duke hit two free throws, North Carolina clamped down defensively, holding Duke to zero points as they churned out eight in a row to put the game on ice.
Armando Bacot led the Tar Heels with 23 points, while Caleb Love had 22. R.J. Davis finished with 21 points and Manek logged 20 points and 11 rebounds.
Paolo Banchero was Duke's leading scorer with 23 points. Mark Williams had 16 points and 13 rebounds, and Jeremy Roach logged 15 points.
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