DURHAM, N.C. (WNCN) — The Duke Blue Devils and the North Carolina Tar Heels enter Saturday’s regular season finale with some striking similarities.
Both schools have a superstar freshman player, but the Tar Heels announced on Friday that they will be without their star, Caleb Wilson, who is undergoing season-ending surgery.
According to UNC, Wilson broke his right thumb while dunking during a non-contact drill on Thursday.
Wilson missed the Tar Heels’ previous six games after breaking his left hand against Miami on Feb. 10. Although he hoped to return to the lineup after being cleared for individual workouts last week, his new injury will require surgery, according to UNC.
Neither school has lost a game at home all season. And both schools are playing some of their best basketball down the home stretch of the regular season.
Saturday’s 6:30 p.m. tipoff doesn’t decide seeding in the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament; Duke has already secured the top spot, while UNC is locked in as the fourth seed. But in the Battle of the Blues, bragging rights mean everything, and Duke is hoping home court advantage can help them even up the season series against the Heels.
ESPN College Gameday spent Saturday morning at the Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham. The side where hosts Rece Davis, Jay Bilas, Andraya Carter, Jay Williams and Seth Greenberg sat was packed with fans excited for the big game.
Previously on the Battle of the Blues
Seth Trimble’s game-winning three in Chapel Hill on Feb. 7 propelled North Carolina (24-6, 12-5) to its most emotional win of the season to this point.
Freshman star Caleb Wilson went out in Carolina’s next game at Miami, and has not played since thanks to a fractured hand, but the Tar Heels have managed a 5-1 record in games Wilson has missed. That stretch includes wins over Louisville and Clemson.
Trimble has been a steadying senior presence, while young players like Luka Bogavac, Henri Veesaar and Zayden High have filled valuable roles in Wilson’s absence.
Duke (28-2, 16-1) has not lost a game since the Heels’ buzzer-beater in Chapel Hill.
They’ve gone 7-0 since that game, including some impressive blowout wins against quality opponents. Jon Scheyer believes the Blue Devils have stepped up their defensive game during that stretch, most notably in a recent game in which Duke held 11th-ranked Virginia to just 51 points.
Cameron Boozer has made a convincing case to be college basketball’s player of the year. He has averaged 22.6 points, 10 rebounds and four assists per game, all team highs.
Isaiah Evans and Dame Sarr have emerged in recent weeks as Duke has taken over the top spot in the college polls after beating previous No. 1 Michigan a few weeks ago. Evans and Sarr combined to hit seven of the team’s 11 three-pointers in a 93-64 win over NC State Monday night in Raleigh.
The ACC Tournament and March Madness
Momentum is big in March, and whoever wins Saturday’s game will carry a lot of energy into the conference tournament. Both teams have byes in the first two rounds of the ACC Tournament; Thursday marks the opener for both teams in Charlotte.
If both teams win, they’ll face each other for a third time Friday in the conference semifinals, following the exact path of the 2025 conference tournament.
Duke won that game 74-71 after a lane violation on a free throw by UNC’s Jae’lyn Withers.
