North Carolina vs Duke: Dominating Win Proves Tar Heels Are Best Team in America

North Carolina's destruction of Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday night proved that the Tar Heels are the best team in America and the favorites to capture basketball's national championship next month.

The 88-70 rout by the Tar Heels really showed how much better of a team North Carolina is than Duke, and why the Tar Heels' tremendous depth will be very important when March Madness begins.

The size and athleticism of the North Carolina frontcourt was too much for Duke as they convincingly won the battle of the boards by a 42-22 margin. Center Tyler Zeller and power forward John Henson combined for 20 rebounds and were dominating forces at both ends of the floor.

The depth of the Tar Heels is just extraordinary, as PJ Hairston and James McAdoo were able to come off the bench and be productive for Carolina on both offense and defense.

However, the real strength of North Carolina is their starting five. There isn't a weak link among their starters and the combination of leadership, experience, athleticism and basketball intelligence among them is simply stunning.

Henson and Zeller are two of the best big men in America and Henson is arguably the best shot blocker in the nation as well. Small forward Harrison Barnes is an all-around player whose versatility and tremendous scoring ability makes him quite challenging to defend. Point guard Kendall Marshall is a very talented point guard who makes smart decisions and is an excellent playmaker. 

When you have to defend a team whose starting lineup has few or no weaknesses, is athletic, and has good chemistry together, it's going to be really difficult to beat them.

In their impressive win against Duke, the Tar Heels showed that when they play their game and use their speed and skill at both ends of the floor to their max potential, they can not be beaten.

If one of the starters has a poor game, there's several other players capable of stepping up and producing. The Tar Heels don't rely on one or two players to carry them each night, and they don't need to shoot well from beyond the three-point line to win games.

North Carolina's ultra talented, experienced squad is the best in the country, and are certainly the team to beat in this year's NCAA Tournament.

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