The North Carolina Tar Heels squandered a 13-point lead in the second half, witnessing a late comeback by the Duke Blue Devils and losing, 85-84. With the ball in his hands for the final shot of the game, Duke freshman Austin Rivers took a deep three-point shot that fell through the net for the road victory. Rivers scored 29 points on 9-of-17 shots, hitting on six three-point shots. His father, Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers, cheered from his seat, excited as much as the entire Duke team.
Duke Vs. UNC Final Score: Austin Rivers, Blue Devils Beat Tar Heels At Buzzer, 85-84
Rivers' final shot gave Duke its only lead of the second half. But it was team effort to get the team back into the game. Ryan Kelly and Seth Curry each added 15 points of their own while Mason Plumlee pulled down 14 boards. The team made just 35 percent of its three-pointers, but sinking 14 of 40 shots is nothing to scoff at in this game.
North Carolina relied on strong games from Tyler Zeller (23 points, 11 rebounds) and Harrison Barnes 25 points) to maintain the ultimately doomed second half lead. John Henson added 12 points and 14 rebounds. However, Zeller also tipped in a shot by Duke's Ryan Kelly that was clearly going to miss on the downward arc. He also missed a couple of free throws toward the end of the game.
Duke will host Maryland on Saturday while North Carolina looks to rebound with a contest against Virginia.
For more on the Blue Devils, head over to Duke Basketball Report. For Tar Heels updates, visit Carolina March. Head over to SB Nation NCAA Basketball for more news and notes around the college hoops world.
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