By Joseph Ochoa, WRAL multiplatform producer.

North Carolina Tar Heels
2Duke Blue Devils
ESPN | Saturday, February 1st 6:30 PM EST

Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer and North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Hubert Davis face different fates heading into the season’s first Battle of the Blues on Saturday in Durham.

Scheyer said he and his players know the game isn’t just any other game even if both teams are treading in opposite directions.

“I think to sit up here and say ‘just like another game,’ I don’t think I can say that,” Scheyer said. “The anticipation. The noise around it. I’m not going to act like that that’s not there. That is, but that’s also what you want to be in.”

Coming into the game, the Blue Devils have been one of the best, if not the best, teams in the country this season, with an undefeated conference record and ranked No. 2 in the nation by the Associated Press, having two single-digit losses on the season to both the Kentucky Wildcats and Kansas Jayhawks, both of whom are ranked in the AP Top 25 Poll.

Powering the Blue Devils is freshman Cooper Flagg, who has posted a monster season so far, averaging nearly 20 points and eight rebounds per game and is widely considered the frontrunner for the Naismith National Player of the Year honor.

In Tuesday’s game against the NC State Wolfpack, Flagg came alive after being stymied in the first half, scoring 23 of his team-high 28 points in the second half, powering the team to a 74-64 win.

Scheyer said he wants to keep his team focused on defense and patient on offense heading into Saturday’s matchup against the Tar Heels after two close games against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and the Wolfpack.

“We’re going to be who we are…It’s easier to do that when you get stops,” Scheyer said. “I thought it was our first time, in a while, where we rushed some shots. We also missed some open shots…that can be contagious sometimes.”

For UNC, it’s a bit of a different story.

The Tar Heels have stumbled a bit this season, posting a 13-9 record, and are currently 7th in the conference standings. The team comes limping into the Tobacco Road matchup, having lost three of their last four games by a combined 10 points.

“In our last game, we had 14 turnovers and it resulted in 22 points,” he said. “[It’s] very difficult to come on the successful side when you’re turning the basketball over, but the opposing team is converting at such a high percentage.“

The Tar Heels still are capable of scoring with an offense that scores 81 points per game, which is tied for the 37th-best in the nation, but could get beat on the boards by a long Blue Devils team, as the Tar Heels rank 97th in rebounds per game.

Davis said Duke’s length in their starting lineup is something the Tar Heels are aware of.

“They have tremendous length at every size,” he said. “It’s why they’ve been so good defensively. You have to have tremendous spacing…they have the ability to switch everything.”

Davis said he believes the key to the game will be ‘hitting singles, not just home runs,” and reiterated that he feels the team is prepared.

“I focus on us, and we’ll be ready to go on Saturday,” Davis said.

Scheyer said he has ‘a ton of respect’ for Davis, adding that the two have empathy for one another having served as players and now coaches in the rivalry.

“We’re not going to dinner you know, but I have a ton of respect for him,” Scheyer said. “It’s a different day and age. The brand they have, the school they have. I think’s he’s done a terrific job and this thing’s really fragile…And I know he’d say the same when we step across those lines.”

One player who will be ready for the game is Tar Heels guard RJ Davis, who is playing his final season with the Tar Heels. Davis feels the team will carry an us-against-the-world mentality going into Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday.

“I feel like people are counting us out,” he said. “I see the vision for the team, I see how we could be great and how we overcome this little obstacle…we just have to take it one game at a time.”

Tip-off for Saturday’s game is at 6:30 p.m.

Source: wralsportsfan.com