No. 4 Duke Falls at No. 14 North Carolina, 71-68

Saturday, February 7

Chapel Hill, NC

6:30 p.m.

Duke University

21-2,10-1ACC

North Carolina

19-4,7-3ACC

Duke

North Carolina

No. 4 Duke Falls at No. 14 North Carolina, 71-68

2/7/2026 9:12:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – A three-pointer with less than a second remaining lifted No. 14 North Carolina (19-4, 7-3 ACC) past No. 4 Duke, 71-68, on Saturday, Feb. 7. The Blue Devils (21-2, 10-1 ACC) suffered their first conference loss, while Cameron Boozer led all players in scoring with 24 points and grabbing a team-high 11 rebounds.

Dame Sarr and Isaiah Evans also scored in double-figures with 13 and 11, respectively. Caleb Foster paced the team in assists with three helpers.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Duke controlled the opening tip and got on the board first, courtesy of a Dame Sarr corner jumper. The Tar Heels answered on their first possession with a layup. Back-to-back buckets by Patrick Ngongba II put Duke in front by five, 8-3, after three minutes of play.
A dunk by Sarr pushed the lead to nine, 14-5, and forced a North Carolina timeout with 14:54 on the clock. After a successful Duke challenge gave the Blue Devils possession, Isaiah Evans knocked in a mid-range jumper to give Duke its first double-digit lead.
A quick five-point burst by North Carolina pulled the hosts back within six, 22-16, at the halfway mark of the first half. A three-pointer in transition by Evans maintained Duke's six-point edge, 30-24, with five minutes remaining in the opening frame.
The Blue Devils used an 11-2 scoring run to close the half to take an 11-point lead, 41-29, into the break.
Caleb Foster connected on a corner triple to open Duke's scoring in the second half, the Blue Devils' fifth trifecta of the contest. Cameron Boozer went coast-to-coast for a layup with 17:14 on the clock, pushing the freshman into double-figures.
Sarr continued his hot shooting, with his second corner three-pointer of the night, to move his scoring total to 13 on the game. Duke remaining in front by double-digits, 49-38, at the first media break of the second frame.
The two teams traded buckets, with Boozer leading the way for Duke via four consecutive makes. The Blue Devils maintained their lead, 59-52, at the under-12 break.
Boozer connected on a three-pointer from the top of the key, giving him 22 points for the night and Duke a 62-53 advantage. Duke's defense held North Carolina without a made field goal for nearly five minutes, helping the Blue Devils stay in control at the under-eight timeout.
The hosts scored five straight out of the break, narrowing Duke's margin to four, 62-58. Brown forced a loose ball and hustle from multiple Blue Devils led to a Cayden Boozer run out and layup at the 5:01 mark.
Cameron Boozer and Foster each tallied a layup in the final minutes, but North Carolina scored the game's final nine points, including the game-winning three-pointer with 0.4 seconds remaining.

UP NEXT

No. 4 Duke (21-2, 10-1 ACC) remains on the road, traveling to Pittsburgh (9-15, 2-9 ACC) on Tuesday, Feb. 10. The Blue Devils and Panthers tip off at 9 p.m., on ESPN.

To stay up to date with Blue Devils men's basketball, follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook by searching "DukeMBB".

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