Seth Trimble hits game-winning 3 to complete No. 14 UNC’s largest comeback win over No. 4 Duke in 25 years

With the game tied and less than a minute to go Saturday night in the Dean Smith Center, Duke forward Cameron Boozer knocked the ball loose from a driving Seth Trimble.

Boozer’s ensuing take, however, didn’t result in points, either.

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And Trimble, a senior guard, got one more chance for a defining moment in a historic regional matchup that had been split evenly over its past 120 iterations.

He swished a go-ahead 3 that sent the Dean Smith Center into pandemonium.

Fans stormed the court, only to find out there were 0.4 seconds remaining.

All of them had to return to their seats, and equipment staff anxiously cleared the hardwood of debris — all of that for Duke’s inbound heave to not change a 71-68 result, UNC’s largest comeback win versus Duke in 25 years.

A motivated Caleb Wilson, who revealed to Andscape in the lead-up to the rivalry showdown that Duke stopped talking to the forward in his recruitment, logged 17 of UNC’s 29 first-half points and finished with 23. Boozer, another top-five NBA Draft prospect, turned in 24 points and 11 rebounds.

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Duke sliced through UNC’s defense with well-timed cuts in the game’s opening minutes. One of those helped fuel a 10-0 Blue Devils run that staked them to a 18-5 lead, as center Patrick Ngongba II whipped a pass to wing Dame Sarr, who then deposited a dunk.

Duke scored 12 of its first 18 points in the paint.

Wilson didn’t get many touches early, and he didn’t score until the 13:18 mark in the first half. But his drought-ending turnaround jumper set up a pretty up-and-under that gave the Tar Heels a shot in the arm.

UNC doubled Boozer early and often. His first points, and shot, came on a tip-in close to eight and a half minutes into the matchup.

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After Wilson scored eight straight points for the Tar Heels, wing Jonathan Powell drilled a 3 to pull his team back within six points of the Blue Devils, making it a 22-16 game.

Wilson tacked on another UNC triple, and, following two quick fouls, Boozer took a…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/mens-college-basketball/breaking-news/article/seth-trimble-hits-game-winning-3-to-complete-no-14-uncs-largest-comeback-win-over-no-4-duke-in-25-years-015024137.html

Author : Andy Backstrom

Publish date : 2026-02-08 01:50:00

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