WRAL Sports Fan

College Basketball

UNC's Maturity Evident in Victory at Duke

By Dane Huffman

Mar 9, 2008

Durham, N.C. — A year ago, North Carolina might have lost this game, one where its impressive halftime lead disappeared in a Duke onslaught that had Cameron Indoor Stadium reverberating.

When Jon Scheyer scored on a follow basket inside, Duke had a 68-66 lead with 5:42 to play. The Blue Devils appeared on the brink of a stunning victory.

From there, though, the difference in Carolina from this year to last was evident. And that growing maturity, that ability to convert in the clutch, was the reason the Tar Heels won 76-68 and claimed the ACC regular-season title.

“We’re a tougher than last year. The Georgetown game, everyone knows about that,” said point guard Ty Lawson, referring to Carolina’s NCAA collapse. “This year, we’re making the big plays down the stretch and the shots when we need them.”

Carolina now enters the ACC Tournament as the No. 1 seed, with Duke dropping to No. 2. The win may also put the Tar Heels in line for NCAA berths in Raleigh and Charlotte, a path greased to the Final Four in San Antonio.

Carolina achieved that by going 8-0 on the road this season in ACC play.

“We were an extremely young team last year,” said UNC guard Wayne Ellington. “We didn’t have the experience we have now. We didn’t have the maturity we have now.”

The Tar Heels were ready for a game like this that had all the trappings for an elite ACC game. Former Duke stars like Christian Laettner and Jay Williams filled the crowd, and even Peyton Manning and Eli Manning sat on the front row with new Duke football coach David Cutcliffe.

The Cameron Crazies, who in recent years haven’t fully matched their reputation, were full throttle Saturday, their bodies and faces splashed with blue paint.

They chanted, “Tyler travels! EVERY TIME!” when UNC’s Tyler Hansbrough worked inside.

One fan mocked UNC’s injury report with a poster that claimed Danny Green was fatigued from dancing so much. And when Deon Thompson took a foul shot, a student jumped up behind the basket and did a wild dance with nothing on but a tight black bathing suit.

But Carolina wasn’t deterred, with its maturity evident in the stretch.

After a Duke time-out with 3:30 to play, Carolina had the ball. Point guard Ty Lawson came off a screen and looked inside to Tyler Hansbrough.

Lawson saw two Duke players on Hansbrough and passed to Ellington. Ellington drove hard to the basket and banked in a short shot to tie the score.

Then suddenly, the game was all UNC.

Hansbrough snatched a rebound after two Carolina misses and scored.

Lawson was fouled and hit two free throws.

Danny Green, who had a marvelous night, scored twice.

And the final moments went from frantic to momentous for Carolina as Green bumped chests with two teammates to celebrate.
Green, the 6-foot-6 junior, had a spectacular game. He scored 18 points, grabbed eight rebounds and even had seven blocks. In a game stuffed with astonishing athletes, Green stood out.

“Danny Green was huge tonight,” UNC coach Roy Williams said.

“Danny was just an animal going after everything,” Lawson said.

Carolina needed him on a night where Duke did a strong job on UNC All-America Tyler Hansbrough. Duke’s 7-foot-1 Brian Zoubek gave the Devils nine solid minutes and helped clog up the inside. Hansbrough scored 15 points, his lowest since scoring 13 against N.C. State on Jan. 12, and made only eight of 21 shots. He also failed to go to the foul line for only the second time in his career.

But Ellington had a strong night, one especially satisfying in light of his disappointing performance in the game in Chapel Hill. Ellington scored 16 points and hit baskets when Carolina needed them most.

Lawson, too, played well. He missed the previous game but had 10 points and three assists this time.

“I feel like I’m getting back to 100 percent,” Lawson said. “We’ll be a good team in postseason.”

So, too, will Duke. While North Carolina won, the fact remains that Duke is more than capable of wining both the ACC and NCAA titles. Duke’s struggles Saturday came from a poor first half in which senior captain DeMarcus Nelson failed to score.

“I thought in the first half, we were just so emotional,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “That happens a lot, with it being senior night, and just wanting to be in this big game. We almost wanted it so much that we didn’t have any poise in the first half.

“It wasn’t because of attitude or anything – our kids really wanted to win – it’s just that we couldn’t settle down.”

That changed, and quickly, in the second half. UNC led 42-31 at the break but Krzyzewski was the last one out of his locker room, and wearing an intense look. His team, energized by Greg Paulus, fought back and took the lead.

But from there, Carolina took command. The Tar heels won this one, but there could be more ahead.

Maybe Sunday in Charlotte.

Maybe even on a Monday in San Antonio.

As Nelson said at the end of his senior speech, “We’re going to bring home a championship this year.”

Perhaps.

But on this night, this title went to Carolina.