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Rivalry Renewed: 8 questions ahead of North Carolina vs. Duke

By Evan Kurland

Zion Williamson #1 of the Duke Blue Devils (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
Zion Williamson #1 of the Duke Blue Devils (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /
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WINSTON-SALEM, NC – FEBRUARY 16: Wake Forest Demon Deacons guard Brandon Childress (0) guards North Carolina Tar Heels guard Coby White (2) during the game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on February 16, 2019 at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem,NC. (Photo by Dannie Walls/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
WINSTON-SALEM, NC – FEBRUARY 16: Wake Forest Demon Deacons guard Brandon Childress (0) guards North Carolina Tar Heels guard Coby White (2) during the game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons on February 16, 2019 at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Winston-Salem,NC. (Photo by Dannie Walls/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

The last three weeks of college basketball’s regular season are going to be an absolute treat for fans. No. 1 Duke faces off with No. 9 North Carolina in the first of two showdowns that will occur in 17 days.

The greatest college basketball rivalry resumes with No. 1 Duke hosting North Carolina on Wednesday night that will have huge NCAA and ACC Tournament implications.

With a Duke win, the Blue Devils will extend their lead in the ACC over Virginia by a full game and two games over North Carolina, all while strengthening their grasp on the top spot in the AP Poll and atop the ACC standings.

If North Carolina wins, the Tar Heels will be in a three-way tie for first with Duke and Virginia with 11-2 conference records.

Duke and North Carolina have important playing style similarities that add on to the already existing matchup; both teams are in the top-20 of tempo per KenPom and will look to use their speed in transition to create mismatches.

However, the Tobacco Road rivals use their fast-tempo playing style to create different advantages. The Blue Devils use tempo to attack the basket as much as possible, while the Tar Heels use tempo to create shot opportunities at each of the levels of offense (rim, mid-range, three-pointer).

Let’s breakdown the matchup by each program so we can isolate trends that have a good chance of indicating success.