Kon Knueppel scored 17 points and No. 1 Duke held off a furious second half rally by North Carolina to beat its rival for the third time this season, 74-71 on Friday night to reach the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament championship game.

Duke clinched the 2025 ACC tournament title on Saturday night, taking down Louisville by the final score of 73-62 at the Spectrum Center. It was an impressive performance from a Blue Devils team missing star freshman Cooper Flagg,

Without Cooper Flagg, Duke got everything it could handle from North Carolina — and an unexpected gift that proved decisive in a 74-71 win.

Friday had all the makings of a classic win for UNC in a season that can best be described as a disappointment. Then Jae'Lyn Withers stepped over the line — literally. The Tar Heels lost a game-tying free throw against rival Duke,

North Carolina just blew its shot at the ACC Tournament championship game in perhaps the worst way possible. With just 4.1 seconds left in the semifinal matchup against No. 1 seed Duke on Friday, UNC was called for a lane violation on a potential game-tying free throw.