The tension of a Duke and UNC basketball game is always high, but some moments in the rivalry stand out above the others.
As the Blue Devils and Tar Heels are set to square off in the Final Four this Saturday, we thought we’d take a look at some of those key moments on Tobacco Road.
Undoubtedly, the teams meeting for the first time ever in the NCAA Tournament this year will go down as one of the best moments in the rivalry’s history.
But it’s names like Fred Lind, Michael Jordan, Jeff Capel, Chris Duhon, Marvin Williams, Tyler Zeller, and a whole host of others that have helped make the rivalry arguably the best in all of sports.
Let’s take a look at some of those key moments, as we get ready for the Final Four (if any of the video boxes show gray, you can just click on them and they’ll play):
2012: The Tyler Zeller-Austin Rivers Game
Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Look away for a moment Tar Heel fans. This one wasn’t pretty. No. 5 North Carolina hosted No. 9 Duke in a regular-season matchup, and boy did this not end well for the Heels.
After leading for most of the game, UNC blew a 10-point lead with 2:09 left. It was culminated by an accidental tip-in basket for Duke, by UNC center Tyler Zeller, and then Austin Rivers hitting a buzzer-beater 3 to win the game.
A minor moral victory for UNC that year, as they got to watch Duke lose to Lehigh in stunning fashion in the NCAA Tournament.
1974: The Walter Davis Stunning Comeback
March 2, 1974 gave us another shocking moment in the rivalry, when Duke blew an 8-point lead with 17 SECONDS LEFT! Keep in mind this was before the 3-point-shot even existed. Duke was poised to upset the No. 4 ranked Tar Heels, with an 86-78 lead with 17 seconds remaining. But a wild turn of events culminated with Walter Davis hitting a shocking 30-footer to tie the game and send it to overtime. The Heels went on to win in overtime, and the Devils left crushed.
1995: The Jeff Capel Dagger
1995 wasn’t exactly a banner year for the Blue Devils. Coach K was out after back surgery, and Duke was a miserable 13-18 overall. Not good sparky.
But on Feb. 2, 1995, the No. 2 Tar Heels came to Cameron Indoor and got an unexpected fight.
Early on, Rasheed Wallace and Jerry Stackhouse made the game look like a laugher, with a 17-point lead. But Duke hung tough and managed to force overtime.
It was in overtime, that one of the most legendary moments in the history of the rivalry happened. Jeff Capel threw in a lonnnnng-range 3-pointer to tie the game again in the final seconds of overtime. Duke fans went crazy, and a lost season appeared to be at least emotionally saved.
Unfortunately, Capel’s shot was the best moment for Duke, as UNC went on to win 102-100 in the second overtime.
2020: The Wendell Moore-Tre Jones Shocker
Duke’s Wendell Moore makes the game winning shot to defeat UNC on February 08, 2020 in Chapel Hill. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
There’s a lot of similarity to this game and that 1995 game, but in reverse. Duke was riding high, and UNC was in a miserable season.
North Carolina led the game by 13 in the final minutes, and that’s when Tre Jones took over. He had a remarkable game, that was capped by an amazing buzzer beater off an intentionally-missed free throw to force overtime.
And then a wild scramble at the end of overtime led to a Jones miss that somehow Wendell Moore picked from thin air and dropped in to win the game.
2022: So Long Coach K
Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images
A somewhat disappointing season for UNC, in new head coach Hubert Davis’ first year got a WHOLE lot better on the night of March 5.
Coach K’s retirement season had been going pretty well for Duke, and his final home game at Cameron Indoor seemed like it would be a great moment to cap his rivalry with the Heels in style. North Carolina had different ideas.
Not only did North Carolina win Coach K’s final home game, but it did with vigor, winning 94-81. It looked like Duke might get a chance at revenge in the ACC Tournament, but Virginia Tech thumped the Heels, before also thumping the Blue Devils in the championship.
But… as so often happens, Coach K has another chance at revenge with this weekend’s NCAA Final Four matchup.
2015: The Dean Smith Remembrance Game
Players and coaches of UNC and Duke gather at midcourt for a moment of silence in honor of North Carolina coach Dean Smith. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
Dean Smith was a legend at North Carolina, and the 15th-ranked Tar Heels had an emotional night at No. 4 Duke, just days after his death.
An emotional moment at center court before the game was just the start of a wild night.
UNC was down early, but came back and took a 10-point lead into the final four minutes. The emotions seemed to catch up to the Heels, as Duke stormed back to force overtime, and then won it 92-90 in overtime.
2019: The Zion Shoe Game
Duke’s Zion Williamson had a memorable first 30 seconds against UNC. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
This is actually technically three games, but starts 30 seconds into the monumental first one.
With Zion Williamson coming in to Duke as one of the biggest recruits… ever, anticipation for his first matchup against UNC was high. Like Barack Obama was the game, kind of high.
But just over 30 seconds into that game, the great Nike blowout happened. If you know the rivalry, you can see it happening in your head now. His shoe exploded, and his knee was hurt.
UNC won that game, and Zion missed their second matchup that year too. The Tar Heels won that one also. Zion finally got his moment though, as UNC took down Duke in the ACC Tournament semifinals.
2004: The First Roy Williams-Coach K Matchup
Looking back, it was impossible to predict just how good both UNC and Duke were under Roy Williams and Mike Krzyzewski. We knew they were great coaches, but become two of the greatest of all-time may have been a stretch.
Their personal rivalry started on Feb. 4, 2004, with No. 1 Duke traveling to No. 17 UNC for a wild matchup.
Duke came out on top, 83-81 in overtime, but not before a whole lot of drama. Jawad Williams hit a three for UNC to send the game into overtime. Rashad McCants drilled another one near the end of overtime, and it looked like things were going to a second overtime period.
But Chris Duhon pulled off the unthinkable, driving from one end of the court to another, and hit a wild reverse layup to give the Blue Devils the win, and Coach K a 1-0 record against the Heels.
1984: Jordan's Last Home Game
Michael Jordan’s final home game was a memorable one, as the Tar Heels defeated Duke, 82-81 in double overtime.
The names in that game were ridiculous: Matt Doherty, Sam Perkins, Mark Alarie, Johnny Dawkins and a host of others. But it was Jordan’s final moments on the court in Chapel Hill that were iconic.
1992: Montross' Bloody Face
On February 5, 1992, No. 9 North Carolina beat No. 1 Duke, 75-73, and it was filled with great moments.
Notably, Christian Laettner missed two shots that could have tied the game in the closing seconds. And who doesn’t love with Laettner misses a shot or two?
But it was the Eric Montross casually sinking two late free throws with blood all over his face, after taking some “accidental” elbow to his skull.
2007: Hansbrough's Bloody Face
Let’s flip the script and go ugly the other way. Who can forget this 2007 matchup? Nobody really remembers the 86-72 UNC win. It’s the image of blood gushing from Tyler Hansbrough’s face after an errant elbow from Gerald Henderson that we remember.
And of course the masked up Hansbrough in the ACC and NCAA Tournaments.
1979: Four Corners
If you’ve ever played basketball without a shot clock, you know how infuriating this game was. Dean Smith used his obnoxious Four Corners offense on occasion to drag games to a halt. And this 1979 matchup was one of those. Prepare to take a nap while watching the clip below. You’ll see plenty of nothing happening.
Problem was, UNC forgot to score. The halftime tally was 7-0 in Duke’s favor.
Smith backed off the Four Corners in the second half, but ended up losing the game, 47-40.
Also of note: This is the first known instance of fans shouting “Air Ball” during a game.
1968: The Legendary Lind
Want to make a mark in basketball history? Follow Fred Lind’s path.
Lind scored only 12 points all season long for Duke before their matchup against UNC. But something in him clicked in that game, and he dropped 16 points for the Blue Devils, as they won 87-86 in triple overtime.
Lind’s legacy was secured when he blocked a shot to send the game to overtime. And then hit two free throws to tie the game at the end of the first overtime. Oh, and then he hit a buzzer-beater at the end of the second overtime.
His heroics got him carried off the court, and he became a Duke legend.
Ranking All 68 of the 2022 NCAA Tournament Teams By Their Mascots
The Top Tier
1. Cal State Fullerton Titans
The Titans have zero shot at winning the actual basketball tournament, and will likely get pummeled by Duke in the first round. But here in our mascot land, what’s more powerful than an almighty elder god of everything? Nothing. That’s what. Behold the all-powerful Titans, and their totally unrelated elephant.
2. Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islanders
While the Islanders already saw their tournament end in a First Four matchup Tuesday night, we’re giving them strong mascot points. Why? Well, who doesn’t want to perpetually be on an island enjoying life? And if you want to flip it, there’s not much more fearsome than someone who has been isolated on the islands for their whole life. I’m not gonna mess with them, are you?
3. San Francisco Dons
Major bonus points here for the Dons for originality. This Zorro-like mascot is about as cool as they come. Plus, we get some mafioso vibes, and that’s pretty cool too.
4. Richmond Spiders
Very few creatures inspire pretty much everyone to want to burn down their house and run away. The spiders get points here for coolness AND terrifying realness. If you need more evidence, just read this story.
5. TCU Horned Frogs
It’s a frog. With horns. Doesn’t get much cooler than that.
6. UAB Blazers
The Blazers lose points for a somewhat lame name on the surface. But the actual mascot is a fire-breathing dragon, playing on the BLAZE portion of the name. And that’s just freaking cool.
7. Miami Hurricanes
When it comes to fearsome, it doesn’t get much scarier than a Hurricane. Bonus points for some of the coolest unis in all of basketball too. And another batch of points for Sebastian the Ibis being about as cool as it gets.
8. Iowa State Cyclones
If Hurricanes are fearsome, then Cyclones by default have to be as well, since they are the same thing. A strange amount of bonus points for the geographical oddity that is a team from…IOWA being named after a water-based natural disaster. THE AUDACITY! We love it. Five more bonus points for the physical mascot being a totally unrelated bird.
The Second Tier
9. Norfolk State Spartans
These little guys have no chance in the Big Dance. But when it comes to mascots, an entire society of ancient Greek warriors sounds pretty darn intimidating to us!
10. Michigan State Spartans
Another Spartan, and probably the most recognized of the Spartans. We like the underdog story more though, so Michigan State gets ranked below Norfolk State for this discussion.
11. USC Trojans
If we’re including ancient warriors, the Trojans have to be right up there. Maybe a few points lost for having a giant hollow horse. But a whole lot of points gained for the best cheerleading squads in the country.
12. Akron Zips
If you’ve ever had a zipper stuck, you understand just how intimidating it can be. Akron gets MAJOR points for the audacity of just rolling with a zipper mascot. And they get even MORE points for their mascot suit being a Kangaroo. Cause nothing says zippers like kangaroos. Just all-in on this insanity.
13. UCLA Bruins
It saddens us greatly that UCLA doesn’t run with their mascot branding more. Because a Bruin is just a bear… but with pizzazz. We’ll take that.
14. Baylor Bears
What they don’t have in pizzazz, Baylor makes up for in style. They embrace their Bears with full-force. The defending national champions get some strong points from us here.
15. Saint Peter's Peacocks
Major points lost for not embracing the Peacock mascot on every social media platform everywhere. Major points gained for being about as cool an animal mascot as you can get.
16. Loyola Chicago Ramblers
We’re not sure what a Rambler is supposed to be, but it’s pretty cool. And major cool points for the amazing Sister Jean, who is the REAL mascot for Loyola. If you know, you know.
17. South Dakota State Jackrabbits
If you’re coming from South Dakota, you gotta come hard with your mascot. And the Jacks do it well. If you’ve ever tried to catch a jackrabbit, you’ll appreciate how great this mascot is. It ain’t easy folks.
The Horse-Related Tier
18. Texas Tech Red Raiders
There are a surprising number of western-themed mascots in the field this year. The best of the bunch has to be Texas Tech.
19. Wright State Raiders
No, we don’t know why Wright State has a wolf as a Raider either. But it’s our list, so we’re adding them under the western theme.
20. Colgate Raiders
We’d like Colgate a lot more if their mascot was toothpaste. But it’s a guy in a hat. And he’s hard to find on social media. But we like Raiders as a concept overall. So just deal with it.
21. Wyoming Cowboys
Look, there’s a cool Cowboy mascot that Wyoming trots out and he’s a lot of fun. But what’s even MORE fun is how cool Cowboy Joe the miniature pony is.
22. Murray State Racers
What’s cooler than horses? RACE HORSES!
23. Boise State Broncos
Major bonus points for basically having a Denver Broncos logo. Major points lost for not having a social presence for the fierce horse.
24. Longwood Lancers
If the student that has to wear that giant mascot costume doesn’t have the best neck muscles on the planet, they are doing something wrong. We’ll take ’em in a fight.
25. New Mexico State Aggies
We really wanted to rank this mascot lower, cause… well, look at it. But for consistency’s sake we kept it here with the western-themed teams.
26. Arkansas Razorbacks
https://www.instagram.com/p/Ca-94p8uZXy/
We really need to move the Hogs up in the rankings. This is criminally low for a cool, angry pig.
The Next Tier
27. Duke Blue Devils
We just want to know why Duke’s mascot is feeling so blue? Shouldn’t a Devil be a little less sad? We think so.
28. Alabama Crimson Tide
There’s something cool about the whole concept of Roll Tide. There really is. There is however, very little cool about a sad, blue-eyed elephant that has nothing to do with tides of any color.
29. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
We watched all the Leprechaun movies. They freaked us out. This dude is creepy, and that gives him major points in the whole fearsome mascot world. Points off for some questionable cultural tropes.
30. Saint Mary's Gaels
Sticking with the Irish theme, it turns out a Gael is an Irish warrior of some type. So that’s cool. Kinda. And they did beat the No. 1 team in the country this year. So that’s cool. Kinda.
31. San Diego State Aztecs
We really wanted the Aztecs to be higher on this list, but a startling lack of ANY presence for this mascot makes us think it’s gone the way of the real Aztecs. Extinct.
32. North Carolina Tar Heels
Ramses is one of the coolest mascots in all of sports. But… he has nothing to do with “Tar Heels” and that’s a bit problematic for us. Yes, we understand that we used the opposite rationale earlier. This is our list. Deal with it.
33. Rutgers Scarlet Knights
Knights are pretty cool. They have a round table and get to wear cool shiny outfits. Make em Scarlet in color and that’s enough to gain points on our list.
34. Seton Hall Pirates
Did this Pirate go to Duke? Why is he so blue?
35. Purdue Boilermakers
Bonus points for being one of the most Googled mascot names in the world. Major negative points for the creepy shiny head.
36. Providence Friars
Based on our extensive history with Friars (hello Friar Tuck…that’s all we got), we know that these monk-like dudes can be pretty fearsome. They do have some lovely chants though.
37. Texas Longhorns
If we’re talking scary, the Longhorns get some major points and should be higher on the list. But as it stands, a cow just sorta comes in the middle of the pack. We love hamburgers and all, but eh. Bevo is one of the coolest live mascots ever though. We’ll give them that.
38. Wisconsin Badgers
Badgers are fierce. And the honey badger variety simply does not care. But Wisconsin loses points here because they make their badger look cozy and cuddly in a striped red and white sweater.
39. Chattanooga Mocs
Major, major major points off for mascot confusion here. Isn’t a moc a snake? Or a shoe? But that’s a bird. At least it’s a cool bird. Maybe.
The Cat Section
Why are there so many cats?!
40. LSU Tigers
If we are talking live mascots, nothing beats Mike the Tiger at LSU ever. He’s simply the best by any measure. But we’re talking ranking the whole concept of the mascot here… and we just have some issues with so many schools leaning on cats. A full 12 of the 64 teams are cats. But LSU is by far the tops among those.
41. Memphis Tigers
They’re grrrrrreat. But their mascot is not. Seriously, what is this?
42. Texas Southern Tigers
Extreme points boost here for the really cool Tiger jumping out of the T logo. That’s about it.
43. Auburn Tigers
If Aubie was the Tigers’ sole mascot, they’d get a boost here. But there’s extreme identity crisis at Auburn. They can’t decide if they are Tigers, War Eagles, Plainsman, Big Blue or Aubie. And it’s just a lot. We need a little more clarity out of you.
44. Georgia State Panthers
Huge points boost for being cool and having a name like Pounce. Huge points deduction for following the Duke blue sadness vibe.
45. Arizona Wildcats
The most-used name in all of mascotland, Wildcats is so uninspiring. We’ll give Arizona credit for having Wilma and Wilbur costumes though.
46. Kentucky Wildcats
What. Is. That? No. Just no.
47. Davidson Wildcats
Oh look, it’s another cat. They really just need to become the Fighting Steph Curry’s and get it over with.
48. Villanova Wildcats
Is that a rat??? What are you doing Villanova? And did you really name him Will D Cat??? Ugh.
49. Houston Cougars
At least Houston has some fun with their cats.
50. Vermont Catamounts
Even Vermont doesn’t take their mythical mountain cat seriously.
51. Montana State Bobcats
At least we believe a Bobcat could exist in Montana and might be scary. Thank God this is the last cat on the list.
The Dogs
52. Connecticut Huskies
Extreme major points for cuteness. But dogs are too beloved to really be taken seriously as mascots. Doesn’t he look like the goodest boy?
53. Gonzaga Bulldogs
What in the world is the best team in the tournament doing with that thing???
54. Yale Bulldogs
Sweet and cute? YES! Fearsome? No. Definitely no.
55. Bryant Bulldogs
And the Birds
56. Marquette Golden Eagles
Eagles are cool and all. But color them gold? For what reason? And we can’t find a single reference to the Golden Eagles on Marquette social media. If they just went by the Fighting Letter M’s we would rank them No. 1.
57. Kansas Jayhawks
Why does Kansas have a 1/2 mascot? One of the best basketball programs of all time has to do better mascoting than this.
58. Jacksonville State Gamecocks
Stealing South Carolina’s mascot, and stealing the Philly Phanatic. Both cardinal sins.
59. Creighton Blue Jays
Nobody is taking that mascot seriously are they?
60. Delaware Blue Hens
For a glorified chicken, he’s pretty cool. But we’re over all this unoriginality.
61. Iowa Hawkeyes
What is that creepy beak???
The Lower Tier
62. Colorado State Rams
Like UNC’s Ramses, only lamer.
63. Illinois Fighting Illini
Nothing says fierce like “Hi, I’m a person from Illinois.”
64. Tennessee Volunteers
If Smokey were all we were ranking here, the Vols would be top 10. But instead they are just people who Volunteer. Yeah, we know there’s a bunch of history to why it’s super cool and all that. But we’re unimpressed.
65. Indiana Hoosiers
Oh no, I’m a fierce person from Indiana!
66. Virginia Tech Hokies
We just realized we should have put this in the bird section, but we have a hard time putting delicious edible mascots above this ranking. Sorry giant maroon turkey guy.
67. Ohio State Buckeyes
It’s a nut. There’s nothing good about this. (Well, maybe the candy things that people call Buckeyes. But that’s about it.)
68. Michigan Wolverines
Michigan hates this mascot so much, they don’t even HAVE ONE. Look how excited these guys are to be in the NCAA Tournament.