What must the North Carolina Tar Heels do to take down the rival Duke Blue Devils on Thursday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium?
Ranked in the top 20 once again, it’s no surprise that the North Carolina Tar Heels traveling to Cameron Indoor Stadium to face the Duke Blue Devils has national implications once again. While North Carolina currently has the upper hand in the rankings, the first Tobacco Road rivalry matchup always seems to set the tone for the home stretch of each regular season. Subsequently, a hungry Duke team could be out for blood.
Of course, the return of Mike Krzyzewski this past weekend is huge for the Blue Devils. Having him back in the fold to corral his wild colts (Re: Grayson Allen) and get his talented group playing to their potential is pivotal. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels still haven’t hit their peak either, but they’ve been much closer to doing so than Duke has all season.
All told, though, these two teams always have an extra gear ready for action when they meet. Subsequently, both teams will need to be at their best and execute what makes them individually special teams, while also exploiting where the other is weak. For the Tar Heels, these are the three things or keys to Thursday’s game that could lead them to a big victory.
1. Convert Second Chance Opportunities
Especially on the road at Cameron Indoor, the Tar Heels need to continue to be ferocious on the glass. With long athletes like Justin Jackson and Isaiah Hicks crashing the boards in addition to having big bodies such as Kennedy Meeks or freshman Tony Bradley, the Heels lead the country in rebounds per game. More importantly, though, they’re second in the nation in offensive boards per game.
It’s not just about getting the second chances on Thursday night, though—they have to convert them. We’ve seen time and again in this rivalry matchup how the momentum of a game can hinge on one play. By continuing to grab offensive rebounds and then getting points off of them, you deflate the crowd and the Blue Devils as a team as well.
2. Move the Ball
This North Carolina team is a bit different than previous iterations of a Roy Williams team in their ball-movement. Yes, they get out and run and are lethal when doing so. However, this group moves the ball better in the halfcourt than any team in recent memory. They’re always looking for the open man and best shot and often find it. That’s how you wind up being a top-five scoring team and third in assists per game in the country.
With the stakes so high in this rivalry matchup, though, Joel Berry and the rest of the Tar Heels ball-handlers can’t deviate from the course. They must stick to the game plan and move the ball with their pace when they can, but also move the ball with their passing when they can’t get out ahead on the break. If they start trying to play in isolation, Duke has the athletes to make life much harder for the Heels.
3. Theo Pinson
After missing the past two games with a foot injury—and the start of the year with another injury suffered in the preseason—Theo Pinson will be back on the floor on Thursday night. Not only is he a spark plug and leader for North Carolina, but he gives them a fantastic defensive weapon to essentially eliminate one of Duke’s biggest weapons whenever he’s on the floor.
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While Pinson can show flurries of offensive prowess at times, it’s his length and athleticism as a defender that make him such a weapon for the Tar Heels. Now that he’s back in the lineup, that affords the Tar Heels the ability to have him shadowing either Grayson Allen or Luke Kennard while putting Berry on the other. That duo for North Carolina has proven to be pestering and dangerous on the defensive end of the floor. If they can continue to be that upon Pinson’s return, advantage Tar Heels.