Duke vs. UNC: 3 Keys to a North Carolina Victory

UNC and Duke are set to take center stage tomorrow at the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill for what should be an epic game of basketball.

These two ACC powerhouses are separated by just one point in their last 75 meetings, according to Robbi Pickeral over at ESPN.

This heated rivalry always produces great games between two prestigious schools, and this should be no different, with both of them in the Top 10 of the polls.

Here are three keys to the game that the North Carolina Tar Heels must heed to win.

Big-Man Play

UNC’s big men are simply superior to their Duke counterparts.

John Henson (6’11”) and Tyler Zeller (7’0”) make up one of the most formidable frontcourts in college basketball, and they are able to bang for rebounds and score in the low post.

Duke’s Ryan Kelly and Mason Plumlee will have their hands full trying to contain them, especially after they gave up 27 points to Reggie Johnson (6’10”) of Miami in a loss.

Take Advantage of the Defense

Duke ranks last in the conference in field-goal percentage defense, allowing a whopping 43.8 percent of their opponents’ shots to drop.

UNC should be able to take advantage of this, especially with dynamic future NBA scorers like Harrison Barnes and Zeller on the roster.

If the Tar Heels play fast, electric basketball, they should find a lot of open shots against a porous defense.

Get the Crowd Involved

When Duke and UNC meet, it draws a ton of people. Police are already preparing in case the Tar Heels win tomorrow night, and it could get crazy inside of the stadium, too.

If UNC is doing work and the crowd gets raucous, the young Dukies will get rattled and have a tough time battling back into the game.