Blue Blood 3.0

We are less than two weeks away from The Battle for Tobacco Road: Round 1, and there couldn’t be a more exciting time of the year for Blue Devils and Tar Heels.

Right now, Duke and UNC seem to be at about the same level. Both have three losses, both have had their issues with defense exploited, while the two teams have hovered around each other in the rankings the entire season. Surprisingly enough, both teams lost to Florida State within the same week. Of course, UNC’s loss to FSU was MUCH worse than that of Duke’s, with a lot of controversy to boot.

For those who did not witness the end of the game, it seemed as if North Carolina was actually forfeiting with 14.2 seconds left on the clock. However, the intentions are in dispute. 

Here are the facts:

• Seminoles were primed to rush the court, as soon as the clock hit 0.0
• Roy Williams met with Leonard Hamilton at mid-court with 14.2 seconds left
• After a short conference, Roy Williams took his starters and bench players, and left the court.
• The walk-on, non-players for the North Carolina, were left behind to finish an embarrassing 33 point loss, while thousands of students rushed the court. Yes- LEFT BEHIND.

There was and is a lot of dispute over what the process of events was, and whose idea it was for UNC to leave early. But that’s not so significant; the fact is that it happened, Duke lost also to FSU so we can’t say much (yet), and now we’ve all moved on. Both teams are dealing with their share of injuries, as Duke’s point guard Quinn Cook battles a knee issue, while UNC’s Dexter Strickland joins Leslie McDonald on IR, with a torn ACL. Tough luck, Dex. However, the Tar Heels are still afforded the opportunity to start new shooting guard Reggie Bullock (former #10 recruit); not a huge deal. The Blue Devils remember Reggie Bullock for his bold talk, speaking how how badly he was going to dominate the Blue Devils last season. Define dominate? If you say so: 6.1 PPG, 36% FG. This Year- 8.4 PPG, 44% FG. Keep it up, moron.

The Blue Devils, losing at home for the first time in 45 games, rebounded last night with a solid pummeling of Maryland on the road. Duke rises to 5-1 in the conference, while UNC lacks at 3-1 with a game at home against NC State (easy win). Through 6 games in ACC play, the Blue Devils offense can be best described as unpredictable. But that’s not a bad thing; between Austin, Mason, and Andre, it seems one player rises to the occasion with at least a double-double, while the rest of the players fill in the stat sheet, handsomely. The same can be said for Syracuse- there’s not one key player on the team, but together, everyone plays a key role.

After UNC’s loss to FSU, some might say the Tar Heels are complacent. Despite their praise, their talent, and their stats, Chapel Hill has lately looked comfortable and unwilling to get their hands dirty. If I were Roy Williams, I would light a fire, and tell these boys that they’re going to have to sweat and scrap to achieve anything this season…..and then I’d leave them behind on the court like it’s 1999. I digress- Duke and North Carolina have pulled neck and neck. Points, rebounds, defense; it’s all in the same neighborhood.

It will be very interesting to see if the Heels and Devils clash against one another with the same record, as similar as they are now. Since North Carolina has struggled to live up to expectations, with the Blue Devils excelling to 4-1 against ranked opponents, one has to wonder if the Heels may be over-confident heading into February 8^th? We shall see. LET’S GO DUKE!