Anything can happen in the biggest rivalry in college basketball. But sometimes, the better team just wins — or in this case, dominates.
After two close calls against in-state foes, Duke left no doubt in an 87-70 thrashing of North Carolina in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Three Blue Devils — Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel and Tyrese Proctor — scored more than 15 points in a balanced scoring effort.
When the starting lineups were announced, the height discrepancy was evident; four North Carolina guards stood at 6-foot-4 or shorter, and nobody was under 6-foot-6 for Duke. Flagg had a massive advantage on 6-foot-3 Seth Trimble, which the freshman phenom certainly took advantage of. He either scored or assisted on each of the Blue Devils’ first 18 points.
After two nervous free-throw misses to start the game, Flagg found his first scoring chance on a 3-point make off an offensive rebound. Then, head coach Jon Scheyer pleaded for the ball to go consistently to Flagg in the short corner, his best area of operation. The Newport, Maine, native found multiple Blue Devils for open shots and even canned a second triple of his own to bring Duke’s lead to 15-6, forcing head coach Hubert Davis to call an early timeout.
When Maliq Brown checked in for the first time in five games, it quickly went from bad to worse for the visitors.
On his first defensive possession, he immediately recorded a steal on Jalen Washington, and Flagg finished the fast break for an and-one finish. Then, Brown received the ball on a roll to the basket and swung it opposite into the awaiting arms of Knueppel for a big triple, making it 21-6.
Khaman Maluach was another big benefactor of the height disparity, giving Duke (19-2, 11-0 in the ACC) chance after chance on the offensive end of the floor. He finished with a whopping four offensive boards in the period.
The Blue Devil offense looked as good as it has in weeks, and the defense continued to stifle opponents. For a roughly six-minute stretch in the first half, North Carolina (13-10, 6-5) faced an air-tight lid on the basket. All five Blue Devils moved in sync on defense, and Duke made sure that no post entry or drive to the basket was easy. Scheyer’s squad used excellent communication and switched on screens to combat the quickness of the Tar Heel guards, ballooning its lead to 40-13.
Even on a possession where North Carolina grabbed three offensive rebounds — usually a recipe for a sure-fire basket — Flagg swatted a Ven-Allen Lubin layup attempt, indicative of how the half went for the team from Chapel Hill. The home backcourt swarmed Elliot Cadeau, RJ Davis and Ian Jackson for 10 combined first-half points, and Cadeau — who carried the ball-handling responsibilities — committed five turnovers.
Everything went Duke's way in the first half, including an improbable 15-foot turnaround from Flagg as the buzzer sounded to bring a 47-25 lead into the locker room.
A dunk also started the second half, this time from Knueppel. In the next few minutes, the Milwaukee native carried this initial spurt by showcasing his three-level scoring ability. He had a triple and a strong and-one finish into the chest of RJ Davis, which he celebrated with a flex. Knueppel scored 11 points in just four minutes of action, and the Blue Devils were clicking on all cylinders.
Knueppel’s strong play earned a chest-bump from his head coach, and Duke took a 71-42 lead into the under-12 media timeout. North Carolina found some success in its full-court press by speeding up the Blue Devils; the Tar Heels recorded a 17-2 run late in the second half from layups and forcing turnovers. However, it was too little, too late. Duke had a 20-point cushion and did enough to put away the visitors.
Next up for Duke is a trip to Syracuse Wednesday at 7 p.m., as the team will look to win its 16th straight contest.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Sign up for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.
Ranjan Jindal is a Trinity junior and sports editor of The Chronicle's 120th volume.