Duke Tops North Carolina in an Instant Classic

By - Kris Fletcher

Duke-UNC has been one of the best rivalries in all of sports for over a quarter of a century.

Last night, they reminded us why.

Blue Devils freshman Austin Rivers buried a 3 at the buzzer to give #10 Duke an 85-84 upset win over #5 North Carolina in Chapel Hill.

Photo by: Jim R. Bounds

Rivers scored a season-high 29 points and drilled six 3-pointers. No doubt the last will live forever in the lore of this fierce rivalry.

With Duke (20-4, 7-2) trailing by two, Rivers launched his shot over 7-footer Tyler Zeller from the right wing. The ball ripped through the net, sending Rivers sprinting down the court in celebration as the rest of his teammates gave chase before finally mobbing him in front of a stunned UNC crowd.

Rivers' 3 capped a wild rally for the Blue Devils, who trailed by 10 points with less than 3 minutes remaining in the game.

Harrison Barnes scored 25 points for the Tar Heels (20-4, 7-2), while Zeller finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds. However, he missed a big free throw with 13.9 seconds left which helped set up Rivers' winning basket.