College Basketball: Duke and UNC Face Different Challenges

The Blue Devils are looking to hold on the a #1 seed while the Tar Heels have to deal with a glass ceiling. Al Dannity breaks down the issues facing the two rivals ahead of March Madness.

Diverging paths on Tobacco Road
North Carolina didn’t exactly start the year in style. Losses to Vanderbilt and Minnesota, and Illinois coupled with a narrow escape against College of Charleston didn’t make the Tar Heels look much like contenders early. A win over Kentucky and a narrow defeat to Texas showed some promise before the Tar Heels hit a rich vein of form in conference play, culminating in clinching the ACC title at home against Duke on Saturday.

The narrative of the Blue Devils’ season has been almost the reverse. Duke began the year in beast-mode, dispatching Marquette, Kansas State, Michigan State, and Butler. Even after Kyrie Irving went down, the Blue Devils still looked the team to beat nationally. A road loss to Florida State didn’t cause much of a stir but a narrow escape in their first game with UNC set the alarm bells ringing. That was followed by defeat at Virginia Tech and eventually that loss to the Tar Heels. What was once the undisputed #1 in the eyes of College Basketball betting fans, is now struggling to make the #1 seed line for the NCAA Tournament.

The task ahead
The good news for the Tar Heels is that they are virtual locks for a #2 seed. The bad news is that they would need absolutely everything to go their way this week to make it up to the #1 seed line. Aside from another possible meeting with Duke, North Carolina won’t get another chance to pad their resume between now and Selection Sunday. That makes it particularly difficult to overtake the likes of Pitt, Notre Dame, and BYU.

Duke will also need some help to make it back amongst the elite and snag a #1 seed. Their task is made somewhat easier by that excellent start they had to the season. Even the win against Butler looks more impressive following the Bulldogs win in the Horizon League tournament. Both the Tar Heels and Blue Devils would stand to benefit from another game against each other. Even a third meeting between the two biggest rivals in College Basketball probably won’t be enough on its own to guarantee a #1 seed. A victory in such a rubber match would however prove a massive confidence boost ahead of the bigger challenges that lie ahead.

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