UNC vs. Duke: Last updates from Duke and Durham NC as the story comes to an end
As UNC’s frenzied fans swarmed Franklin Street in Chapel Hill in the moments after their Tar Heels put an end to Coach K’s legendary career, downtown Durham lay desolate.
Duke fans who had packed bars and restaurants and Cameron Indoor Stadium quickly and quietly dispersed.
For much of the game’s final minute, Bill Mo, a Duke Law student watching the game at Cameron, couldn’t decide what to do with his hands. As the game returned from a TV timeout, he made a fist and patted his chest, then wiped his right hand across, then balled his fists again before pulling up his sweat pants.
“I was super nervous, especially during the free throws,” Mo said.
By the end of his routine, Mo, who had been sitting, was standing. As UNC made a shot moments later, he was sitting again.
When Armando Bacot fouled out, Mo waved goodbye from 900 miles away.
Then, when Caleb Love made a three-pointer to put Duke down by four points, Mo put his hands on his head.
With the Tar Heels up 80-77 with seconds to go, he sat with his arms crossed, the final seconds ticking away.
“I’m very sad, it was very close,” Mo said just seconds later.
“I’m sorry that we didn’t win in his last game,” Mo said of Coach K, who with the loss went into retirement, “but it was a terrific career and we have actually been doing really well this year.”
Tension rising in Durham after a halftime break
As the game see-sawed into the second half, the focus of students inside Cameron Indoor Stadium seemed to tighten.
Several students in the front row on the floor leaned over the fabric barrier each time Duke came down the floor, seemingly willing the team to make the next basket.
A “Let’s Go Duke” chant that broke out when the Blue Devils took a 51-49 lead was muffled within moments as Leaky Black put UNC ahead with a three-pointer.
Ken Strickland, a 2015 Duke graduate watching the game at Dain’s Place on Ninth Street, was heartbroken when UNC forced an unanswered run early in the second half.
”No, no, no, no, no,” he said. “What is happening?”
Duke had to win, he told the N&O, as Coach K’s final stand against the pale blue beast.
”We want this game back for the one we lost at Cameron,” he said. “We’d take that one back over this one, I think. We didn’t want to send Coach off like that. But we’ll take this, too.”
At The Tavern on West Markham Avenue, a precarious crowd is gathered on the second story overhang. The diamond plate flooring resonates as hoarse fans holler at a large projector screen. They jeer when UNC gets the ball, taunting players as if they can hear the insults.
A private party (just as crazy) at Shooters
About 270 have gathered at Shooters in Durham for a private viewing of the big game, according to owner Kim Cates.
“It’s been so crazy and so fun,” she said.
A cluster of fans lock arms whenever Duke gets the ball. They jump when the Devils score and their drinks splatter across the floor.
The private party is comprised of Duke men’s and women’s lacrosse teams and select alumni, Cates said.
Shooters will open to the public at 10 p.m., according to Katie Stevens, a Shooters bartender.
“Then it’ll get really wild,” she said. “It’s already pretty full, but this is nothing yet.”
They’re making some noise in Cameron...
The scoreboard in Cameron Indoor Stadium showed the score between Duke and the “TARHOLES.”
Students stood ready to break out into cheer, a wall of sound bursting forth at every Duke rebound and a somehow louder cheer breaking through when the Blue Devils made a basket.
In one series, where UNC missed a shot, students started to cheer only to catch themselves abruptly when the Tar Heels corralled the offense rebound.
...and at Devine’s
Theo John dunks and the crowd at Devine’s adds new clangor to its cries: thunderous stomping, a chaotic clatter. The brick walls vibrate and the floor shakes.
Boos and cheers for players and highlights
As the CBS broadcast showed UNC’a team making its way toward the floor in New Orleans, Duke students in Cameron booed like it was happening in front of them. An introduction of Duke star Paola Banchero on the broadcast drew similar cheers.
“Boos” were audible from bars across Main Street when a Tar Heel hype reel played on CBS’ broadcast. Patrons waiting for entry couldn’t see the indoor monitors at Devine’s, but they were quick to join the raucous chorus.
“This is a special game and I’m just watching and enjoying,” said Gene Devine, owner of the bar that bears his name.
He’s watched every major game of the last several decades — including all five of Duke’s national championships — from his familiar perch at the corner of the restaurant’s second bar.
”But this one stands out,” he said.
Cameron fills as Kansas-Villanova ends
As the Kansas-Villanova game ended, Duke students were starting to trickle into Cameron Indoor Stadium, nearly all clad in Duke’s familiar blue.
The university is allowing more than 2,000 students to watch the game from the floor of the famous court, with others filling in the stands.
After a hype video played, a chant of “Let’s go Duke” broke out in the arena.
Devine’s on Main Street is jam-packed early
Devine’s on Main Street is a sea of deep blue. At least 100 fans are packed into the restaurant’s main room, clamoring for drinks before the game gets going.
Pete Medrano, of Charlotte, drove three hours to watch the game at Devine’s.
“I’ve been a Duke fan for more than 35 years,” said Medrano, bedecked in devil’s dress. “I didn’t want to watch from anywhere else.”
This story was originally published April 2, 2022 at 8:23 PM with the headline "UNC vs. Duke: Last updates from Duke and Durham NC as the story comes to an end."
