It’s no less than incredible how the last 10:31 of the second national semifinals Saturday night might affect Duke, the ACC, Carolina and the blue blood rivalry from history to tomorrow to the future.
Imagine how many Tar Heel fans turned off the broadcast in disgust when the Blue Devils held a 13-point lead over never-say-die Houston more than midway through the second half in San Antonio (the site of perhaps UNC’s most disappointing Final Four loss back in 2008 as a top seed), missing an epic comeback. And while the celebrations in Chapel Hill and along Franklin Street for those who watched to the end did not match those of Carolina actually beating Duke, the sky was definitely a brighter blue when the sun came up Sunday.
There’s no denying how overlapping such losses can be for the opposite program. Both fan bases remember the highs and lows of each rivalry game, but also how their foe did on the national stage in the NCAA tournament…