Allie Lawhon

Men's Basketball

Duke Holds Off Furious North Carolina Rally to Advance to ACC Tournament Championship Game

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Kon Knueppel scored 17 points and top-seeded Duke held off a furious second-half rally by No. 5 seed North Carolina to beat its rival for the third time this season, 74-71, on Friday night to reach the 2025 T. Rowe Price ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament championship game.
 
Khaman Maluach added 13 points and nine rebounds, and Sion James had 12 points for the Blue Devils, who played without 2025 ACC Player and Rookie of the Year Cooper Flagg.
 
Duke (30-3) will play the winner of the second semifinal between No. 3 seed Clemson and No. 2 seed Louisville in the title game on Saturday, March 15, at 8:30 p.m. ET.
 
After North Carolina cut a 24-point, second-half deficit to one, Ven-Allen Lubin had two free throws with 4.1 seconds left to potentially give the Tar Heels (22-13) the lead. But he missed the first and had the second made free throw was waved off after teammate Jae’Lyn Withers stepped in the lane too early.
 
Knueppel made two free throws with 2.8 seconds left and Lubin missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
 
It’s the first time since 2001-02 that Duke has beaten North Carolina three times in a season. The Blue Devils swept the Tar Heels in the regular season that year and then beat them in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals en route to winning the national championship.
 
Lubin had 20 points and 10 rebounds for North Carolina.
 
Takeaways
North Carolina: The Tar Heels simply don’t have the size to match up with the Blue Devils, but showed plenty of heart with the comeback.
 
Duke: The Blue Devils showed they have plenty of punch and more than enough defense despite being without Flagg and top reserve Maliq Brown.
 
Key Stat
North Carolina started the second half 15-of-24 from the field.
 
Of Note
  • Duke defeated North Carolina for the third time this season, marking the first time either school has won three meetings in one season since the Blue Devils did so in 2001-02.
  • The Blue Devils move to 9-3 all-time against the Tar Heels in ACC Tournament semifinal contests.
  • Duke advances to the ACC Tournament championship game for the 36th time, boasting an all-time record of 22-13 in the title game.
  • Duke is now 6-4 against North Carolina under head coach Jon Scheyer.
  • Scheyer has now led the Blue Devils to the ACC championship game three times, including winning the ACC title in 2023.
  • Duke closed the first half on a 15-0 run while holding the Tar Heels scoreless for the final 5:03 of the period to take a 21-point lead into the break.
  • The Blue Devils had five players finish with double-digit scoring, led by Kon Knueppel’s 17 points.
  • Duke’s Khaman Maluach finished one rebound shy of a double-double, logging 13 points and nine boards.
  • North Carolina’s Ven-Allen Lubin recorded his third double-double of the ACC Tournament, finishing with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
  • North Carolina fought all the way back from a 24-point deficit and trailed by one point with less than four seconds remaining.