Tar Heels Rally Past Duke in Another Instant Classic, Fueled by Grit and Second-Half Surge
When North Carolina and Duke meet, the stakes are always high, the tension always thick, and the drama? Practically guaranteed.
Saturday night was no different. This time, it was UNC who stole the spotlight - and the win - with a gritty second-half comeback that flipped the script on a game Duke had largely controlled.
For head coach Hubert Davis, the turning point wasn’t about Xs and Os - it was about attitude. His team didn’t just make adjustments; they embraced the fight.
“We were down, but I think one of the things that we were missing is we didn’t join the fight,” Davis said postgame. “Every 50/50 loose ball they were getting… and we just continued to stick to it. Every time we got knocked down, not only did we get back up - we kept taking a step forward.”
That mindset shift showed up in the hustle stats, the energy plays, and the body language. Early on, Duke was the more physical team - dominating the glass, winning loose balls, and dictating tempo.
But as the game wore on, Carolina started flipping those margins. The Tar Heels began winning possession battles, contesting shots with more urgency, and crashing the boards like their season depended on it.
And with that effort came confidence - the kind that fuels comebacks in rivalry games.
One of the biggest catalysts in the turnaround? Henri Veesaar.
After a forgettable first half where he failed to grab a single defensive rebound, Veesaar came out of the locker room with a different edge. He ended the night with a second-half double-double, anchoring UNC’s paint presence and giving them the interior toughness they were missing early.
“Henri stepped up,” Davis said. “His ability to dominate points in the paint for us was huge.”
But this wasn’t a one-man show. Caleb kept the Tar Heels afloat in the first half with timely buckets.
Then Derek knocked down some crucial threes, Seth chipped in, and suddenly Carolina had a full team effort brewing. Everyone joined the party.
That’s the hallmark of a great rivalry game - when the stars shine, the role players rise, and the momentum swings like a pendulum. Saturday night had all of that.
For UNC, this isn’t just a feel-good win over their biggest rival - it’s a blueprint. The physicality, the resilience, the collective buy-in - it’s the kind of performance that can spark a run.
Because this team has the pieces to be dangerous. Now it’s about stringing wins together and turning moments like this into momentum.
And if Saturday night was any indication, they’re ready for the fight.