That’s what made Saturday’s 82-69 win so remarkable for the Blue Devils. It wasn’t the grand, season-saving spectacle the Tar Heels hoped for, needed and often threatened to deliver, but another comfortable Duke win in a sea of 27 others.

While North Carolina kept it interesting, Duke escaped its rival on the road, closing out the regular season with a 82-69 win. Four of Duke’s starters finished with double digits, and the visitors demolished the Tar Heels on the glass 39-26.

Madness looms closer, Duke star Cooper Flagg and the team learned a key assistant coach in Jon Scheyer's staff will be leaving the program after the season.

Duke played down a man — or two — for most of February and the first two games of March. For the final regular-season game at UNC, the Blue Devils had all players available.

Jae'Lyn Withers has helped North Carolina regroup with a six-game winning streak entering the latest rivalry game with No. 2 Duke.

Cooper Flagg, Kon Knueppel, Sion James and Tyrese Proctor continued their consistency for Duke basketball. But two more Blue Devils stepped up late.

Maliq Brown hadn't played for the better part of three weeks for second-ranked Duke, a shoulder injury sidelining him just as the season made a hard turn into the stretch run. The 6-foot-9 junior was back as the feet-moving,