Tag: UNC Tar Heels

Men’s Basketball: Duke’s ACC opponents for 2024 are set

The ACC released its conference opponent schedule for 2024-25 on Thursday evening. See who Duke will host and travel to here.

The Duke Blue Devils have officially entered the month of March, which means things will get serious for them on the basketball court. The Blue Devils have just three regular-season games remaining before they play in the ACC Tournament and, after that, the NCAA Tournament for a chance to win the program’s sixth national title.

Even while that takes place, there’s an eye on next year’s team as the Blue Devils discover who their conference opponents will be for the 2024-25 season.

Next year is a big year for the ACC as it welcomes three new teams to the conference: SMU, Stanford, and California.

The expansion means some tweaks to the normal ACC schedule, however, and the conference revealed each team’s ACC foes for the 2024-25 season on Thursday.

Duke’s 20-game schedule for 2024-25 features two two-game series (home and away) versus its two current partners, North Carolina and Wake Forest. The Blue Devils are 1-2 currently this year against both teams. They also have a home-and-away series with the Miami Hurricanes for next season.

Duke will host California at Cameron Indoor for the first time. The last time the schools played was in 2019 when Duke blew Cal out by 35 points in an 87-52 win in the 2K Empire Classic.

Florida State, NC State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Stanford, and Virginia Tech will all come to Cameron next year. Duke will travel for road games at Boston College, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Louisville, SMU, Syracuse, and Virginia next season.

Duke is 3-1 all-time against SMU in basketball. The Blue Devils’ road trip to SMU is only their second all-time, having played in Dallas on Dec. 8, 1977 – a game which Duke won by 24 points 91-67.

The ACC recently announced that, with the conference expanding to 18 members, only the top 15 teams in the conference will participate in the ACC Tournament next year, which is set to be played March 11-15 at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The full schedule will be announced early this fall, equipped with specific game dates, times, and networks.

Duke above UNC and firmly within KenPom’s top 10 after Miami blowout victory

After a 29-point win over Miami, the Blue Devils are a top-10 team in adjusted efficiency…and they’re finally ahead of North Carolina.

The Blue Devils ripped Miami apart last night, shooting more than 50% from the floor and 45% from long-range in an 84-55 victory.

The full-court domination provided Duke’s largest margin of victory in conference play so far this season, and KenPom’s advanced metrics were clearly impressed by the victory.

The Blue Devils moved up to eighth in the nation in the site’s adjusted efficiency margin after the win, now the highest-ranked team in the ACC after they moved two spots above North Carolina.

Duke’s offense has consistently been one of the best in the country, and the Blue Devils are seventh with almost 1.21 adjusted points per possession.

However, the Duke defense really stepped up over the past few weeks, especially against Miami. The Blue Devils held one of the better offenses in the ACC to 55 points, including keeping star forward Norchad Omier to just nine points, and they’re now up to 22nd in the nation in adjusted defensive efficiency.

The Blue Devils now only rank below Houston, Purdue, Connecticut, Arizona, Auburn, Alabama, and Tennessee.

Duke now tied with North Carolina atop the ACC after Wednesday win

After a 29-point victory over Miami on Wednesday night, Duke is officially tied with North Carolina atop the ACC standings.

There’s officially a tie atop the ACC standings.

After falling as far as 2.5 games behind North Carolina after a loss in Chapel Hill to begin the month, Duke is now tied with the Tar Heels atop the conference leaderboard with a 12-3 record against ACC opponents.

The Blue Devils picked Miami apart on Wednesday night, winning by 29 points after shooting 52% from the floor and 45% from deep. Three different Duke starters scored at least 15 points during the game, and two other Blue Devils reached double-digits.

The win over the Hurricanes was Duke’s fifth consecutive victory, and head coach Jon Scheyer’s squad has now won 16 of its past 18 games. The Blue Devils’ only losses since December 2 came to Pittsburgh while missing two starters and against UNC.

North Carolina, for its part, was 10-1 in ACC play after the final buzzer sounded in its victory over Duke. However, two upsets in the next three games to Clemson and Syracuse prevented them from taking a stranglehold on the ACC.

Both teams have four mores games to play until then, but the conference seems headed for a March 9 battle in Cameron Indoor to decide the regular-season champion.

Duke moves ahead of North Carolina in latest AP Poll

The Associated Press released its newest Top 25 on Monday, and the Blue Devils jumped North Carolina to climb farther into the top 10.

The Associated Press released its latest top 25 on Monday, and like the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll shared on the same day, Duke took the mantle as the highest-ranked ACC team.

The Blue Devils moved up one spot to eighth in the rankings, receiving 1,116 points from the ballots after winning their fourth straight game on Saturday against Florida State.

Defending national champion Connecticut remained No. 1 unanimously with all 62 first-place votes. Houston, Purdue, Arizona, and Tennessee finished the top five in that order, followed by Iowa State, Marquette, the Blue Devils, Kansas, and North Carolina in the rest of the top 10.

The Tar Heels spent most of the season hovering within and around the top five, but UNC has since lost three of its past six games to slip down to 20-6 on the season. Duke, on the other hand, has lost just two games since December 2 to climb to 20-5 on the season even with a head-to-head loss to the Tar Heels.

No other ACC team made the top 25, but Virginia received the most votes of any team on the outside looking in. Pittsburgh and Clemson also received a handful of votes.

Blue Devils surge past North Carolina in USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

There’s a new sheriff in the ACC, according to the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches’ Poll, as Duke finally vaulted past North Carolina up at the top.

There’s a new sheriff in the ACC, at least according to the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll released on Monday.

The Blue Devils crept up one spot to seventh in the newest rankings and, combined with North Carolina dropping four spots down to ninth, that means Duke is now the highest-ranked team in the conference.

Duke has won 15 of its past 17 games after a Saturday victory over Florida State which featured 35 points from freshman Jared McCain.

The first-year guard’s emergence has been a big factor in the Blue Devils’ surge up national rankings. In his past 17 games, the former five-star recruit has scored 20 or more points seven times and recorded three double-doubles.

The Blue Devils also vaulted past Marquette and Kansas to move within the top seven in the coaches poll.

The two North Carolina rivals were shockingly the only ACC schools included. Virginia and Clemson both recently cracked the top 25, but both remained in the “Receiving Votes” category this week. The Cavaliers were the second-highest team left out.

Latest USA TODAY Sports Bracketology keeps Duke as a No. 4 while Tar Heels slide

Have recent struggles from North Carolina and Kansas been enough for Duke to close the gap in recent bracket projections?

USA TODAY Sports released an updated bracket projection on Friday, and the Blue Devils remained one of the site’s No. 4 seeds thus far.

The site’s latest Bracketology had Duke as the fourth-ranked team in the East region behind Connecticut, Iowa State, and Alabama.

The Blue Devils would play Appalachian State in the opening round with either Wisconsin or Grand Canyon waiting for them the following game, should they win.

Duke, now up to 12th in KenPom’s adjusted efficiency metric and eighth in the recent USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, has won 14 of its past 16 games to move. At 10-3 in ACC games, the Blue Devils are just half a game behind rival North Carolina for the top seed in the conference.

Speaking of the Tar Heels, after three losses in their past five games, UNC is now down to a No. 3 seed in the latest USA TODAY Sports projection. North Carolina spent much of the season as one of the four top teams after a 17-3 start, but recent slip-ups have them down as the No. 3 spot in the Midwest.

Kansas also slipped down to a No. 4 seed, also located in the Midwest region, after its fifth loss of the calendar year on Monday.

The Blue Devils may not have capitalized yet in the eyes of some projections, but with a handful of tough matchups the rest of the way, Duke has every opportunity to vault upward over the next three weeks.

Oklahoma offers five-star tight end Kendre Harrison from NC

Oklahoma offered five-star athlete and projected tight end Kendre Harrison out of Reidsville, NC. Harrison is a five-star prospect from the 2026 class.

The tight end was a sore spot for the Sooners in 2023. Production never met expectations, and the Sooners offense received nothing from the room this past season.

Tight ends coach Joe Jon Finley was elevated to co-offensive coordinator. Because of that, the expectations of him as a recruiter have also elevated.

He has a much better assortment of talent to work with in 2024. Four-star tight end Davon Mitchell will be a big boost to the room, but the Sooners have their work cut out to rebuild the position to the caliber of OU standards from the past.

One attempt to do that has the Sooners offering one of North Carolina’s best players, if not the best player in the state. Kendre Harrison is a five-star athlete who projects as a tight end for the Sooners. He’s equally capable of playing defensive end at the Power Five level, but most teams see him as a tight end. He’s the number one prospect in North Carolina for the class of 2026, but you’d be hard-pressed to find someone in NC who doesn’t think he’s simply the best player in the state, regardless of class.

Harrison’s physicality oozes on film. Though he’s not necessarily a fluid route runner, he showcases the ability to be molded into a more refined product.

Every major school in the country has offered or shown interest in Harrison, and some have offered him as a basketball player. He could very well be a five-star basketball player when his high school career is over.

Kendre Harrison’s Recruiting Profile

Film

HUDL

Sooners on the rise in latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll

The Oklahoma Sooners moved up three spots in the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.

The Oklahoma Sooners responded from their first losing streak of the season to go 2-0 last week with wins over West Virginia and Cincinnati.

Oklahoma beat the Mountaineers by 14 at home to get back to their winning ways. In beating Cincinnati, the Sooners picked up their first Big 12 road win of the season and stayed one game out of first in the conference standings.

After a strong week, the Sooners moved up three spots to No. 13 in the latest USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll.

In a wild and frenetic Big 12 season, the Sooners are the third-highest-ranked team in the conference. The Houston Cougars moved up one spot to No. 4, while the Kansas Jayhawks dropped four spots to No. 8 in the nation.

The Baylor Bears also suffered a big drop, falling back five spots to No. 14. Iowa State is at No. 18, and BYU comes in at No. 19. The Texas Tech Red Raiders, who are currently in first place in conference play, rank No. 21 in the nation, moving up four spots in the most recent poll.

The top of the poll remained the same from last week, with UConn at No. 1, picking up 24 first place votes. Purdue sits at No. 2, and North Carolina, who the Sooners lost to in Charlotte, is at No. 3.

After rising into the poll last week with upset wins over top 10 teams Houston and Oklahoma, TCU dropped out of the top 25 this week after losses to Iowa State and Cincinnati.

The Sooners have a pair of big-time matchups coming up this week at home against Red River rival Texas and a top-25 showdown with the Texas Tech Red Raiders.

A look at the full Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports:

Rank Team Record Points Change
1 UConn 17-2 791 (24) –
2 Purdue 17-2 769 (8) –
3 North Carolina 15-3 734 –
4 Houston 16-2 678 +1
5 Tennessee 14-4 671 +2
6 Kentucky 14-3 609 +4
6 Auburn 16-2 609 +5
8 Kansas 15-3 576 -4
9 Arizona 14-4 528 +4
10 Wisconsin 14-4 480 -2
11 Illinois 14-4 437 +3
12 Duke 13-4 421 -6
13 Oklahoma 15-3 401 +3
14 Baylor 14-4 362 -5
15 Marquette 13-5 360 +3
16 Creighton 14-5 299 -1
17 Dayton 15-2 277 +6
18 Iowa State 14-4 220 +2
19 BYU 14-4 181 –
20 Utah State 17-2 176 -3
21 Texas Tech 15-3 148 +4
22 Memphis 15-4 130 -10
23 Colorado State 15-3 119 +3
24 Florida Atlantic 15-4 101 +3
25 New Mexico 16-3 54 +20

Schools Dropped Out

No. 21 Ole Miss; No. 22 TCU; No. 24 San Diego State

Others Receiving Votes

San Diego State 43; Alabama 43; Seton Hall 33; Gonzaga 30; TCU 26; Texas 18; Clemson 15; Kansas State 14; Princeton 13; Utah 10; Saint Mary’s 6; Boise State 5; Indiana State 4; Grand Canyon 4; Ole Miss 2; James Madison 2; Michigan State 1

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Sooners top 10 in latest editon of College Wire’s Power Rankings

Oklahoma is ranked 9th in College Wire’s latest power rankings.

Oklahoma is in deep preparation for another war of a basketball game as they ready themselves for their first actual road game. They’ll take on a tough TCU Horned Frogs team coached by Jamie Dixon.

Over the weekend, Porter Moser’s squad opened up Big 12 play with a gritty win against an experienced and talented Iowa State team. The Sooners led the way thru the first 35 minutes of game time. After Iowa State took a late lead, a 7-0 run late pushed Oklahoma over the hump.

As the Sooners prepare for two Big 12 games this week, they’ll be ranked as one of the best teams in the country. Our colleagues at College Wire agree and has the Sooners at No. 9 in their most recent power rankings.

Ahead of Oklahoma at number one sits the Purdue Boilermakers, led by Zach Edey. New Big 12 member Houston is the number two team, but dropped their first game of the season Tuesday night. Behind them are the Kansas Jayhawks, long-time standard bearers of Big 12 hoops. The Sooners travel to Allen Fieldhouse for a Saturday afternoon tilt.

UConn and Arizona slot in at four and five. The only two SEC teams in the top 10 of these power rankings are Tennessee and Kentucky, who come in at six and seven, while the lone ACC representative, UNC, comes in at eight. Behind Oklahoma sits Scott Drew and his Baylor Bears tenth.

In the rest of the power rankings, BYU (18), Texas Tech (23), and Cincinnati (24) round out the rest of the Big 12 representation in the rankings.

Oklahoma faces three of the five Big 12 teams in this week’s power rankings in their next six games. The Sooners have some significant opportunities to add even more impressive wins to an already appealing tournament resume. It starts on Tuesday with a win in Fort Worth.

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‘It was all baby blue’: Porter Moser knows the North Carolina faithful will be ready on Wednesday

While the Sooners didn’t play North Carolina a year ago in the Jumpman Invitational, their fans’ presence was felt.

The North Carolina Tar Heels are college basketball royalty. They have the third most wins all-time with 2,343. They also have the third most championships all-time with six, most recently in 2017.

The Tar Heels are also undefeated against the Oklahoma Sooners in the history of each program. The Sooners look to change that with a win on Wednesday.

But they are going to have to do that in front of one of the most passionate fan bases in all of sports; the Tar Heel faithful. While this technically isn’t an away game, it’ll be played in Charlotte, NC as a part of the Jumpman Invitational.

The Sooners defeated the Florida Gators last year in the Jumpman Invitational and Porter Moser shared that even though North Carolina wasn’t their opponent, their fans were out in droves. “I was there last year and even in our Florida game, it was all baby blue,” Moser said. “We know they are a storied program so our guys are excited about the next one up.”

The Tar Heels come into that game just outside the top 10 whereas the Sooners are firmly cemented in the top 10 as of now. Ultimately, this will be a measuring stick game to see if this Oklahoma team is for real as a top 10 team or if they are not.

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