Tar Heels Hold Off Duke, 76-68. . .

Win 2nd round of battle to determine which team, fanbase has bigger pole stuck up its ass.

Compiled from Frumpzilla.com field reports -- Danny Green led UNC with 18 points, 8 boards and 7 blocks while Player of the Year candidate Tyler "Have Ball Will Travel" Hansbrough added a double-double, 16 points and 15 rebounds, to push the #1 ranked Tar Heels past #6 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday night.  UNC point guard Ty Lawson, absent from the teams' earlier meeting which saw Duke run out as winners in Chapel Hill, tallied 10 points, 3 assts, and 3 steals.

The Blue Devils put up a valiant effort, led by Greg Paulus' 15 points, but, despite being a 4 point underdog, North Carolina appeared to be in control for nearly the entire game.   Even with less than 2 minutes to play, when Duke had managed to draw level, it was difficult to imagine the Heels being behind when the final buzzer sounded.  Notwithstanding the loss to Carolina, Duke senior Demarcus Nelson will be disappointed to close out his career at Cameron with only 6 points and 4 turnovers, but it seems likely Nelson and the Blue Devils will get at least one more shot at the Heels, the most probable setting being this Sunday's ACC Tournament Final in Charlotte.

As expected, the rivalry provided for a spectacular atmosphere, and the competion always seems to carry on even after the final seconds.  "I can't describe how great this win was," said UNC student Michael Cunningham.  "Beating Duke is always the best obviously, especially considering how much they look down on us because we're a publicly funded institution.  Avenging the loss at home makes this one extra sweet," he added. "I'm just glad the refs didn't screw us like they usually do."

Kelly Simms, a junior Political Science major at Carolina, expressed similar sentiment. "Yeah, being ranked over 20 spots higher in U.S. News' 2008 Best Colleges rankings didn't mean much tonight did it, Dookies!", she said.  "I can't stand it when people look down their noses at other schools and fans the way Duke does, especially considering UNC is obviously a comparable  program and institution."  "The only thing that could make this night better is if we'd also gotten the chance to beat those red necked cattle rapists over in Raleigh earlier in the evening," Simms added.

Fans of the Blue Devils, though certainly disappointed, found ways to rationalize the bitter defeat at the hands of the Tar Heels.  Duke grad student, and Hartford, Connecticutt native, Herman Berkowitz's despair was tapered by thoughts of the future.  "Losing to Carolina hurts, there's no denying it, but there are more important things in this world.  I've got a friend graduating from Carolina this year, so I'm happy for him," Berkowitz confessed.  "Yeah, he's got a pretty decent job lined up at a mid-size accounting firm in Charlotte.  He'll probably start out with a package of just under 6 figures.  Meanwhile, I'll be working in Manhattan banking at least $225,000 in salary alone," he added.  "Knowing that softens the blow of tonight's loss.  I certainly won't be losing any sleep over it."

Duke freshman Sara Cinnelli-Dukakis was just happy to be part of the moment.  "When I packed up and left Parsippany, New Jersey this fall, I'd probably never seen a basketball game in my life.  Tonight every inch of my body, every inch, was covered in blue and white paint, and I was hoarse and hobbling on a sprained ankle by half-time," she said.  "It's like cramming every party I wasn't invited to in high school into 40 minutes."