Duke vs. UNC: 2018-19 Storylines for the Tobacco Road Rematch

DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 20: Head coach Mike Krzyzewski watches Zion Williamson #1 of the Duke Blue Devils react after falling as his shoe breaks against Luke Maye #32 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during their game at Cameron Indoor Stadium on February 20, 2019 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /

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CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA – FEBRUARY 11: Jay Huff #30 of the Virginia Cavaliers blocks a shot by Coby White #2 of the North Carolina Tar Heels during the second half of a game at the Dean Smith Center on February 11, 2019 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Virginia won 69-61. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /

2. How will this affect the ACC regular season title race?

Heading into the final day of the regular season, both UNC and No. 2 Virginia are jockeying for the ACC regular season championship, both sitting atop the standings with a 15-2 record in conference play and one game left to play. While UNC has a home matchup with Duke, UVA faces off at home against an underperforming Louisville team that has lost six of its last nine games. For either team to secure at least a share of the title, they must win their respective games; if one wishes to win it outright, they must win and bank on the other losing.

Duke isn’t out of the picture entirely. At 14-3 and second in the conference, it is still possible that they secure a three-way share of the title if they beat UNC and if UVA loses at home—which, admittedly, is a tough bet. Banking on two top-three teams to lose while at home will never have great odds, but they do have the opportunity to control where UNC ends up in the big picture. Worsening the odds is the fact that the Blue Devils haven’t won the regular season championship since the 2009-10 season.

For Roy Williams and his streaking Tar Heels, a victory over Duke and a share of the regular season title would be momentous for two reasons: one, eternal bragging rights that come with sweeping Duke in the regular season; and two, it bolsters an already strong resumé, increasing the odds that the NCAA selection committee decides to crown UNC as a 1-seed, which is certainly a major goal for them in the next two weeks. As is, it’s fair to argue that the Heels deserve a top seed already; a win on Saturday would improve that case even more.

According to UNC athletics’ strategic communications director Steve Kirschner (via Inside Carolina’s John Bauman), the Tar Heels have played Duke eight previous times in the Roy Williams era with the regular season ACC title on the line (be it outright or a share). Incredibly enough, the Tar Heels are a staggering 8-0 in such games (2005, ’07, ’08, ’09, ’11, ’12, ’16 and ’17). If tradition holds, the Heels could be on their way to securing at least a share of the regular season title, the ninth of Roy Williams’ UNC coaching career.

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