Sad News: Tar Heel Talented Star Decided Just To Set On….
Things got testy on more than one occasion Saturday night when No. 7 North Carolina visited No. 9 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium in the final game of the regular season, and college basketball fans had plenty to say online in reaction. One of the more controversial moments came came at the six-minute mark in the first half. After Duke came up with a loose ball and started heading the other way in transition, Blue Devils center Kyle Filipowski and UNC forward Harrison Ingram got tangled up, and both fell to the hardwood. Ingram made it off the ground first and began sprinting back to play defense, but Filipowski, who was still on the ground, appeared to stick his leg out on purpose to trip Ingram. Filipowski then played off the incident as if he were injured on the play. Kyle Filipowski sticks his leg out and trips Harrison Ingram, then pretends to stomp his shoes and walk it off like he’s injured pic.twitter.com/PooO0rQF0c — Kyle Boone (@kyletheboone) March 10, 2024 The Tar Heels went on to win 84–79 to clinch the ACC regular-season title outright. While celebrating in front of the Blue Devils student section, the Cameron Crazies threw drinks at UNC players. All in all, it was just another intense episode of the most storied rivalry in college basketball. Here are some of the best online reactions to Filipowski’s action:
Inside Cameron Indoor Stadium for the final game of their regular season, the ninth-ranked Blue Devils struggled to keep pace with the seventh-ranked Tar Heels for much of the first half before a late-period fightback closed the gap. Duke trails North Carolina 40-31 heading into the locker room:
One last goodbye
Duke honored three players in its senior night celebration: Ryan Young, Spencer Hubbard and Jeremy Roach. With former head coach Mike Krzyzewski sitting on the baseline with his wife Mickie, all three players added the program legend to their thank-you procession. The crowd roared as Roach began his walk, chanting “one more year.” Roach, a four-year starter and two-time captain, is the lone starter remaining from the Final Four run in Krzyzewski’s last season. However, Roach was held scoreless through nearly 19 minutes of play, going 0-for-7 from the floor until he found a lane with just a minute on the clock, making the layup with ease.
Backboard advantage
Entering Saturday evening’s contest, Duke hadn’t been outrebounded since — well, the first North Carolina game. But the Blue Devils had little-to-no luck on the boards early in the half. At the under-12 media timeout, the Tar Heels had a 9-3 rebound advantage, three of which came from graduate forward Jae’Lyn Withers. North Carolina’s dominance on its own offensive glass yielded eight second-chance points and kept the ball in the hands of the visitors.
Down early
The Blue Devils found themselves on the wrong side of an early run, as Harrison Ingram made a short two to open the scoring. Filipowski got the home team on the board, but three Cormac Ryan treys forced Duke head coach Jon Scheyer to call a timeout less than four minutes in, already down 15-4. The Blue Devils’ shots were coming up reliably short, as the team went 2-for-6 from the field in that span. Out of the break, an uncharacteristic fumble by Roach ended the initial comeback possession. It would take Duke most of the half to begin to shrink that deficit, as it trailed by 15 with just more than eight minutes to play.
Rookies’ moment
It may have been senior night, but Duke’s freshmen would not be forgotten. Sean Stewart was the first player off the bench for Duke, and he came in with a vengeance. With a vicious block on RJ Davis, the freshman forward sparked the Crazies. McCain sank a long two in direct response to a Seth Trimble jumper. TJ Power got in on the defensive action with a block of his own on Ryan and McCain grabbed the offensive board to extend the possession and eventually get his team some much-needed points. The Sacramento, Calif., native also led his team in rebounds with six to go along with his 11 points.
Player of the half: Tyrese Proctor
Proctor’s two steals and subsequent fast-break points were lifelines for the Blue Devils. His layup with 6:39 to play cut the deficit to 10, the closest it had been since just more than three minutes in. Under the five-minute mark, Young knocked the ball away from Davis (the first non-Proctor steal for Duke). Jared McCain kicked it out to a wide-open Proctor on the corner, and the sophomore drained it, sending all 9,314 fans (minus the handful behind the Tar Heel bench) into a frenzy. The 11-point disadvantage had become eight, and suddenly the game felt within reach again.
