OK, one last Duke-North Carolina post. Can make an exception for a great rivalry with a classic finish.
Our SportsTalk crew caught up with Yahoo! Writer Pat Forde to solicit impressions of the game, Austin Rivers’ moxie and UNC’s odd performance.
The only issue I have? The Heels aren’t the nation’s most confounding team given their talent level.
They have three lottery picks and four first-rounders playing on that team, but they are 20-4 and aren’t gonna fall out of the Top 10 anytime soon. In fact, if NCAA tournament brackets were announced tomorrow, the Heels would probably be the fourth- or fifth-most popular pick to win it all, behind Kentucky, Syracuse, Ohio State and … well, maybe they’d be fourth.
Would you take Missouri to win it all over UNC? Or Kansas? Or Michigan State? I’m not even sure if Duke would be a more popular selection.
UNC’s had issues – the FSU loss foremost among them – but losing to Duke isn’t shameful. Take a look at what Connecticut’s done this season with all its talent (two lottery picks, probably four first-rounders).
That’s the most confounding team in terms of performance and talent.
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