Heels Headed To Final Four
- Sarah Hoylman
- Mar 28, 2022
- 2 min read
Jaw. Dropped.
Players celebrating after ending Saint Peters run in the NCAA Tournament
The Heels are headed to the Final Four... for the 21st time in program history. But, what's even more exciting about the No. 8 seeded Tar-Heels going to the Final Four (for the first time since they won the natty in 2017), is that they are playing Duke. A STORYBOOK RIVALRY.
This will be the first time in NCAA tournament history that the Tar Heels and Blue Devils have played in each other. Duke and Carolina have played each other 257 times since 1920. Yeah, you heard that right. 1920.
Coach Hubert Davis and Coach Mike Krzyzewski following the 2022 UNC-Duke game in Chapel Hill
Next Saturday, when the Heels face the Blue Devils, regardless of the outcome, history is being made. I think for anyone who is a Tar Heel or Blue Devil, there has never been a matchup between them that has held this much weight.
I, for one, am freaking out. Having beat Duke the last time we played them (also Coach K's last game in Cameron Indoor), those Dukies are out for blood- probably hungrier than any other team that made it to the Final Four. And, probably starving to send the Tar Heels back to Chapel Hill and advance to the National Championship.
Coach K after most recent loss against UNC in 2022 (his last game in Cameron Indoor)
However, Carolina has this fire in them right now. You can tell they want it, and they want it bad. I haven't seen the Heels play this well all season. They have figured out what works. Grad transfer, Brady Manek, a force against nature, is averaging 15.2 points a game. Leaky Black is one of the ACC's top defenders. Armando Bacot is averaging 16.5 ppg and 12.8 rebounds, a double-double almost every game. Caleb Love, the hero against UCLA with 30 points, has remained consistent in the tournament, and when Love is consistent, there's not much hope for the other team. The Heels have the goods- they just gotta turn on the jets and make it happen.
Leaky Black, Armando Bacot and Brady Manek
I once heard someone say that they had a theory if Love doesn't make his first two shots of the game, Carolina is going to struggle. So, let's hope that Love makes his first two shots, the Heels autofocus on winning and working together as a team, and we head to the Natty. What an incredible story that would be.
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