Duke vs. North Carolina: Cameron Boozer Pours In 26 Points, 15 Rebounds as No. 1 Blue Devils Crush No. 17 UNC 76-61 on Senior Night at Cameron Indoor Stadium
No. 1 Duke hammered North Carolina 76-61 on Saturday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, avenging a gut-punch road loss from a month earlier and closing the regular season with a statement that sent a clear message ahead of March.
Cameron Boozer Was Unstoppable
Boozer scored 26 points and grabbed 15 rebounds — his 17th double-double of the season and 10th with at least 20 points. The freshman was patient against early double-teams, distributing rather than forcing, then took over completely when UNC's defense collapsed in the second half. Five assists. One turnover.
With his 26 points, Boozer eclipsed 700 career points and became just the fourth Duke freshman in program history to reach that mark — a list that includes RJ Barrett. The Naismith Award favorite is making his case game by game.
Maliq Brown's Career Night
Senior Night belonged to someone other than the freshman. Maliq Brown scored 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting — the most he's ever scored in a Duke jersey — and added 10 rebounds for the first double-double of his Duke career, with five steals matching a career-high.
UNC coach Hubert Davis said Brown "dominated the game," adding: "his presence disrupted us on both ends of the floor — whether it was his post defense, ball-screen defense, steals and deflections, his screens, passing ability, being able to rim run, score around the basket."
Duke head coach Jon Scheyer was equally direct. "Maliq was off the charts tonight," Scheyer said. "His impact on winning was unbelievable; five steals, [10] rebounds, 15 points."
Brown was named ACC Defensive Player of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year on Monday — recognition that felt overdue after two years of unheralded, indispensable work.
The Second-Half Avalanche
The Blue Devils led for 37 minutes and 32 seconds of the game, essentially wire to wire. UNC made it interesting briefly — cutting the deficit to one in the opening seconds of the second half — before Duke buried them.
Duke went on a 20-2 run to build a 67-46 lead in the final 10 minutes and led by as many as 25. The Blue Devils' defense held North Carolina to just 27 second-half points, fueled by a stretch where the visitors made one basket in 11 minutes.
Duke outscored UNC 24-4 in points off turnovers. The Tar Heels committed 14 turnovers to just eight for the Blue Devils.
UNC Playing Shorthanded
North Carolina learned Friday that Caleb Wilson, the team's leading scorer and rebounder, would be out for the season after breaking his right thumb in practice while dunking — the second hand injury of his season.
Henri Veesaar, expected to carry more of the offensive load in Wilson's absence, finished with 11 points and nine rebounds but struggled against Brown's physicality. Veesaar was blunt after the loss: "We didn't have any ball movement, we were very stagnant. We didn't get anything from pick and rolls."
Derek Dixon led UNC with season highs of five three-pointers and 17 points. It wasn't enough.
Duke Also Playing Shorthanded
Duke's injury situation deserves context. Starting center Patrick Ngongba missed the entire game, and point guard Caleb Foster went down in the first half with a right foot injury. Both were seen in walking boots postgame, and Scheyer indicated it's unlikely either will play in next week's ACC Tournament.
The Blue Devils won by 15 anyway.
What's Next
Duke finished the regular season 29-2 overall and 17-1 in the ACC — entering the conference tournament as the No. 1 seed with a 32-game home winning streak. North Carolina is the No. 4 seed at 24-7 in the regular season, meaning the two programs could meet again in Charlotte on Friday in the tournament semifinals.
UNC coach Hubert Davis addressed the injury-depleted roster directly: "We have more than enough to get it done. I love these kids. I love the fight, the resiliency, the perseverance of this group, and I'll roll with this team every day."
