Duke vs. UNC: Score and Reaction from 2017 Regular Season

The No. 5 North Carolina Tar Heels avenged their previous loss to the No. 17 Duke Blue Devils on Saturday, as they scored a 90-83 home victory at the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

UNC (26-6, 14-4) had already clinched the outright ACC regular-season title, but the result was significant for Duke (23-8, 11-7) since it dropped to the No. 5 seed and did not earn a double bye in the ACC tournament.

Junior guard Joel Berry II led the way for North Carolina with 28 points and five made three-pointers. Senior forward Isaiah Hicks added 21 points and nine rebounds for the Tar Heels.

Five Duke players reached double figures in scoring, including sophomore guard Luke Kennard, who netted 28 points.

According to ESPN Stats & Info, history suggests the loss to UNC may have been significantly damaging to Duke's national championship hopes:

The first half was Duke vs. North Carolina at its finest, as the teams remained close throughout the opening 20 minutes and put up staggering numbers.

There were 18 lead changes, and while the combination of Kennard, Grayson Allen and Amile Jefferson was potent for Duke, Berry was the main reason UNC carried a 48-46 lead into the locker room.

He led all scorers in the first half with 19 points and made all five of his three-point attempts, as seen in this look at his shot chart:

The Tar Heels needed his excellence from beyond the arc, as the rest of the team shot 0-of-8 from downtown during the half.

As former North Carolina point guard Marcus Paige pointed out, Berry was at his best in one of the most important games of the season:

Things often get heated during contests between the Blue Devils and Tar Heels, and that was the case in the closing minutes of the first half, courtesy of Allen.

The controversial Duke guard drew a foul on UNC guard Brandon Robinson but elbowed him in the face as well, which resulted in Allen's getting called for a technical foul.

Mike Waters of Syracuse.com commented on Allen's penchant for getting involved in chippy plays on a regular basis:

"

Grayson Allen does more things that would result in a fight on a playground than any college player I've seen in the last 20 years

— Mike Waters (@MikeWatersSYR) March 5, 2017"

North Carolina emerged from the exchange with a 43-42 lead when Robinson made a layup on the Tar Heels' ensuing possession.

Berry then knocked down his fifth triple of the half, and UNC managed to take the lead into halftime following an eventful 20 minutes.

According to R.L. Bynum of RaleighCo.com, Berry's play in the first half was a huge improvement over how he fared in North Carolina's first meeting with Duke:

UNC had momentum entering halftime and may have gained even more while in the locker room due to what occurred on the court.

As seen in the following photo from UNC-Chapel Hill on Twitter, Michael Jordan made a rare appearance at the Dean E. Smith Center and whipped the crowd into a frenzy:

The seesaw nature of the first half carried over to the second frame, as the teams remained close and traded the lead on several occasions.

While Berry was the story of the opening half, a duel between Hicks and Kennard was the highlight of the second.

On senior night, Hicks enjoyed a huge game that featured his 1,000th career point, per Carolina Basketball:

Despite that and Berry's first-half heroics, Duke managed to keep things close, and Kennard was the biggest factor.

The sophomore made several big-time plays and excelled at getting to the free-throw line.

Kennard's strong performance in a rivalry game prompted Mike Schmitz of The Vertical to discuss his NBA prospects:

Kennard tied the game at 71-71 with just over six minutes remaining, but UNC went on a 6-0 run, which included a strong finish by Hicks off a great pass from Justin Jackson, as seen in this video courtesy of ESPN College BBall:

"

Thread the needle  pic.twitter.com/dvKw1nmQhm

— ESPN College BBall (@ESPNCBB) March 5, 2017"

That lead nearly disappeared, though, when Duke pulled to within one at 79-78 with 4:07 left.

What followed was a 6-1 run by the Tar Heels highlighted by three made baskets from Berry, who awoke from what was largely a second-half slumber.

That deficit proved too much for Duke to overcome, as the Tar Heels cemented their place atop the ACC entering the conference tournament.

UNC won't have to play until the quarterfinals of the tourney, while Duke will only receive one bye due to Saturday's loss.

Although the Blue Devils have enough talent to do damage in the ACC tournament and perhaps even win it, having to play an extra game in such a deep conference could take a toll.

Postgame Reaction

Following a huge victory to close out the regular season, UNC head coach Roy Williams expressed pride in his team posting a perfect home record, according to InsideCarolina:

Although he was pleased with the win, Williams made sure to mention that improvements can still be made after fouling the Blue Devils far too often Saturday, per Stephen Schramm of the Fayetteville Observer:

Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski was simplistic in his assessment of the game, as he believed both teams performed at a high level:

Coach K was especially impressed with the play of Berry for UNC:

Although Duke and North Carolina are arguably the biggest rivals in college basketball, Krzyzewski tipped his cap to UNC for clinching the outright ACC title, according to Ngozi Ekeledo of ABC11 WTVD:

The season series is now tied at 1-1, but based on how both teams are playing, there is a strong chance that North Carolina and Duke could meet one more time in the ACC tournament.