(Anna Lou...UNC Class of 2030, not Holy Cross)Due to circumstances beyond my control (my car is a joke and needed to be taken in immediately), I could not keep a running diary of the entire Duke vs. UNC game. So instead...I'm coming at you with great alacrity for the second half! Did you know these two schools are separated by only 8 miles? Fascinating! Seriously, this should be a great one. Duke leads the Tar Heels 39-38...and that's only because mega-star UNC guard Ty Lawson clanked the front end of a one-and-one right before the half ended. I have a few questions that will hopefully be answered in the second half: How many times will the announcers reference the game two years ago when Gerald Henderson broke Tyler Hansbrough's nose? Will Duke ever flirt with a whiteout...having 3 or possibly 4 white players on the floor at one time? What will the dynamic be between Chaz and Liz during this game as Liz cheers and screams the Tar Heels onto victory as Chaz listens to Holy Cross play Colgate on the internet? Will the winner have the inside track on a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament? Let's see what happens...
16:57 remaining - UNC 43, Duke 41 - Danny Green makes a three-pointer to give UNC the lead again. This is followed by a missed three-pointer by Kyle Singler of Duke...which leads to a nifty pull up jumper by mega star Ty Lawson to cap a 7-0 run by North Carolina. This forces Coach K to take a timeout and the crowd to go nuts.
15:40 remaining - UNC 45, Duke 44 - Anna Lou (pictured above) has already experienced her first UNC/Duke game with last month's 101-87 North Carolina victory. But this is her first UNC/Duke HOME game. This must provide some good karma for Tar Heel Nation.
14:58 remaining - UNC 46, Duke 44 - Hansbrough commits his second foul in about 10 seconds, hacking Gerald Henderson as he drove to the hoop. This gives the white Tyler three fouls for the game. I'm just waiting for Hansbrough to say, "nobody makes me bleed my own blood" with regard to Henderson in the post game press conference.
14:12 remaining - UNC 48, Duke 47 - Mega star Ty Lawson commits a turnover that results in a Duke bucket. What is he trying to do, make me look like an idiot?!? I'm the one pimping the fact that he's more important to UNC's success than Hansbrough! Don't prove me wrong Lawson!
13:18 remaining - UNC 53, Duke 48 - Lil Wayne Ellington makes a three-pointer for UNC, but that's not why I'm writing this entry. Remember in last year's Championship game when Kansas played Memphis and Coach Williams was wearing that Kansas pin? That was freaking weird, huh?
12:12 remaining - UNC 55, Duke 51 - Kyle Singler may look weird, but that kid can shoot. He breaks an ice cold slump by hitting a three. He now has 18 points in the ballgame...hitting 4 of 7 three pointers. He still looks odd, not as odd as Greg Paulus though.
10:57 remaining - UNC 57, Duke 51 - Lawson turns it over again. I look like an idiot. His not-so-good entry pass to Hansbrough was telegraphed, says Clark Kellogg. And damn it, he was right.
9:15 remaining - UNC 59, Duke 55 - If you haven't already seen the HBO Special titled: Battle For Tobacco Road - Duke vs. North Carolina, I recommend it very much. If for no other reason, you should see it for the sequence where Coach K and Dean Smith are yelling back and forth during a game...which results in Coack K screaming, "FUCK YOU DEAN!" Very good stuff. Not to mention that HBO's sports productions are always of the highest quality.
8:03 remaining - UNC 61, Duke 55 - Danny Green makes a nice pull up jumper after a Duke turnover. Carolina is shooting 58% for the game and that number has to be even higher for the second half. Another thing I have on my mind...why did Tyler Zeller come back this season? I'm being serious here...can a UNC fan out there explain this to me? What value does he have to the team this season? Couldn't he have taken a red shirt this season and start next year as a very experienced "freshman"? I'm confused. Three Tylers on one team is a lot too.
6:45 remaining - UNC 65, Duke 58 - Hansbrough hits two free throws. Apparently he has some record with regard to free throws. Did UNC senior Mike Copeland really start this game? Liz...I'm looking in your direction to answer this question. If Coach Williams really played a scrub senior and prioritized Senior Day over his regular starting lineup in such a big game...he just gained some huge points in my book. Then again, maybe he didn't start and ESPN's facts are just wrong. If that's the case...i just wasted a lot of time typing this. Copeland's only stats for the game are two fouls against. At least he got to play for UNC.
5:05 remaining - UNC 65, Duke 63 - I missed too much writing that last entry! Announcer Jim Nantz said, "I'm not a bracketologist, but I'd like to be". Henderson leads a fast break down the court for Duke and throws down a dunk to make it a two point game again.
3:09 remaining - UNC 73, Duke 68 - Ridiculous sequence over the last few minutes. UNC got the lead back up to 7...Duke cuts the lead to 2 points (again) on a Jon Scheyer three-pointer...then Danny Green bumps the lead back up to 5 on a three pointer of his own (assist to Ty Lawson!). This is good stuff. ACC basketball has it's moments.
1:59 remaining - UNC 73, Duke 68 (still) - Jim Nantz is ok...but I was just wondering...where is Gus Johnson to call a game of this magnitude?!? Has he ever done a Duke vs. UNC game? How outstanding would he be in this situation?
55.1 remaining - UNC 78, Duke 69 - Lots of stuff happened again, mostly good for UNC. I can start calling Ty Lawson "Mega Star" again. He converted an old-school three point play...followed by two foul shots which pushed the UNC lead to 9. Lawson has 9 assists on the game and is 9 of 10 from the foul line. Clark Kellogg points out that the difference in the second half was that UNC had Ty Lawson, and Duke didn't. Well then.
13.8 remaining - UNC 79, Duke 69 - #50 Tyler Hansbrough fouls out...giving him the opportunity to leave the court on Senior Day to a standing ovation. White Ty finishes the game with 17 points and 8 rebounds. No blood on his nose, face, or jersey. It really does seem like he's been there forever. Love him or hate him, he certainly made his mark on ACC basketball and will be a UNC legend for ages.
Game Over - UNC 79, Duke 71 - The Tar Heels win again. Bring on the bragging rights! Will these teams meet next weekend in the ACC Tournament? Probably. This game didn't seem as chippy as I thought it might be. Maybe that's the style of these particular teams...or maybe that's just how the game played out. I'm glad that Mega Star Ty Lawson redeemed himself and made me look quasi-smart. I will say that I'm looking forward to watching more ACC games. It seems that this league (at the top) is the only Conference that can rival the intensity and skill of the Big East. However...it's hard to think that any rivalry can top this one. It's the Battle for Tobacco Road after all. Speaking of which...it's time for a smoke. Be well.
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