UNC vs. Duke: The Top 10 Matchups All-Time in the Battle of Tobbaco Road

Considered one of the most intense rivalries in all of college basketball, if not all sports, North Carolina vs Duke basketball is as good as it gets.

Regardless of the in-season records of the teams, these games are awesome battles to watch.

Series Facts:

North Carolina leads the all-time series 130-99.

Dean Smith was 59-35 vs. Duke and 24-14 vs. Krzyzewski, winning eight of the last nine matchups before retiring in 1997

Mike Krzyzewski is 34-35 vs. North Carolina

Roy Williams is 7-7 vs. Duke as head coach of North Carolina. (Williams was 1-3 against Duke as head coach of Kansas)

These two teams square off in Durham for the first time this year on Wednesday, February 9.

UNC is currently 17-5, 7-1 ACC and Duke is 21-2, 8-1 ACC.

The winner of this game will hold sole possession of the conference lead.

The following is a rapid review of the Top Ten UNC vs Duke contests of All-Time:

March 2, 1968: #10 Duke 87, #3 North Carolina 86 (3OT)

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Duke defeated North Carolina 87-86 in triple overtime at Duke Indoor Stadium (later renamed Cameron Indoor Stadium).

Little-used Blue Devil junior forward Fred Lind hadn't played in any game against North Carolina since dropping 20 points on the UNC junior varsity team his freshman year.

Because of foul-trouble to Duke's star player, Mike Lewis (pictured), Lind was thrust into action, and he responded with 16 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks. 

March 2, 1974: #4 North Carolina 96, Duke 92 (OT)

To this day, many view the final seconds of this game as the greatest comeback in college basketball history.

Duke was leading 86–78 with 17 seconds left. 

After a pair of free throws by Tar Heel star, Bobby Jones, UNC scored baskets by John Kuester and Jones after a steal by Walter Davis (pictured) and a turnover on an inbounds attempt.

Duke's Pete Kramer missed the front end of a one-and-one, which North Carolina rebounded, and got the ball to Walter Davis, who tied the game with a 30-foot bank shot as time expired.

Eight points in seventeen seconds.

This sent the game into overtime where the Tar Heels pulled away for the victory.

January 3, 1975: Duke 99, #8 North Carolina 96 (OT)

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This game was the classic "back-and-forth" battle.

A layup by UNC point guard Phil Ford (pictured) with eight seconds to go in regulation tied the score at 82 and extended the game to overtime.

The overtime-period was just like the rest of the game, both teams traded baskets or free throws until Duke guard, Tate Armstrong, converted a three-point play to put Duke ahead for good.

February 24, 1979: #6 Duke 47, #4 North Carolina 40

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No, that score isn't a misprint.

Duke actually held North Carolina scoreless for a half before knocking off the No. 4-ranked Tar Heels 47-40.

Dean Smith employed "the four corners offense," holding the ball throughout the first half. North Carolina's only two shots of the first half were air balls

Duke led 7-0 at the intermission as Jim Spanarkel (pictured) forced two turnovers, assisted on a basket to Mike Gminski and scored the last field goal of the half on a short jumper.

Smith played it straight in the second half, but couldn't overcome the Blue Devils seven point halftime lead.

Spanarkel finished with a game-high 17, shooting 8-for-9 from the field.

The win allowed Duke to tie North Carolina for the ACC regular season title.

February 28, 1981: Duke 66, #11 North Carolina 65 (OT)

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Duke struggled in its first season under Coach Mike Krzyzewski, going 17–13 overall and 6–8 in the ACC.

However, the Blue Devils' regular-season finale against rival, UNC, was one to remember.

The two teams traded baskets almost from the start, until two UNC center Sam Perkins' free throws gave Carolina a 58-56 lead with two seconds to play.

Duke inbounded the ball to midcourt and called time out with one second left.

Blue Devil senior forward Gene Banks took the inbounds pass and nailed a jumper at the buzzer to force overtime.

The game continued to see-saw in the overtime period.

Banks (pictured) rebounded a missed Duke shot and banked home the game-winner with 19 seconds to go.

March 3, 1984: #1 North Carolina 96, Duke 83 (2OT)

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This was the final home game for Matt Doherty, Michael Jordan, and Sam Perkins.

After the Blue Devils missed the front end of a one-and-one, Matt Doherty took the inbounds pass the length of the court and hit a 15-footer with one second remaining to force overtime.

The teams traded baskets during the first overtime and headed for the second extra session tied at 79.

Jordan (pictured) and Perkins were unstoppable in the second overtime, and the Tar Heels went on to win, becoming the first ACC team in 10 years to go undefeated in conference play.

February 2, 1995: #2 North Carolina 102, Duke 100 (2OT)

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With Mike Krzyzewski on leave of absence for the year, the Blue Devils suffered through their worst season in well over a decade

Duke fell behind in the first half 26-9, as Carolina's Rasheed Wallace (pictured) and Jerry Stackhouse scored at will.

But the Blue Devils rallied in the second half, leading by as many as 12 points.

Duke's Jeff Capel hit a running, 37-foot heave that tied the game as regulation-time expired.

Duke had a chance to force a third overtime, but Steve Wojciechowski's jumper fell short, preserving the Tar Heel victory.

February 3, 2000: #3 Duke 90, North Carolina 86 (OT)

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The Tar Heels were unranked coming into the game for the first time since 1990

North Carolina turned the ball over 14 times in the first half to give the Blue Devils a 17-point lead at the break.

The game changed drastically in the second half, with the Tar Heels scoring on 19 of their final 22 possessions.

Joseph Forte hit a three-pointer with 5 seconds left to send the game into overtime.

Duke couldn't miss in OT, scoring on their first six possessions.

Carlos Boozer (pictured) scored seven points in the extra period to lead the Blue Devils to victory.

February 4, 2004: #1 Duke 83, #17 North Carolina 81 (OT)

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This was the first Duke-Carolina rivalry game between Mike Krzyzewski and new UNC head coach Roy Williams.

Duke turned up the defense late in regulation and went on a 10-0 run, taking a 72-69 lead.

Chris Duhon's (pictured) reverse layup with 6.5 seconds left in overtime gave the Blue Devils their fifth victory in the last six years on North Carolina's home court.

February 11, 2009: #3 North Carolina 101, #5 Duke 87

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Going into this game, the Tar Heels had won each of their match-ups in this rivalry at Duke's Cameron Indoor Stadium since 2005.

The first half was a game of runs. UNC led at one point by as many as 11. But Duke was up by eight at the half.

Ty Lawson's (pictured) relentless penetration in the second half was the difference in the game.

He scored 21 of his 25 points after the intermission.

This game marked the first time in nine years that Duke allowed 100 points on its home floor.

With this UNC victory, Tar Heel seniors Tyler Hansbrough and Danny Green finished their college careers undefeated at Cameron.