North Carolina was heartbreakingly close to securing an NCAA Tournament berth
North Carolina was heartbreakingly close to securing an NCAA Tournament berth
North Carolina’s furious comeback against Duke in the ACC Tournament semifinals came up short after Jae’lyn Withers committed a lane violation on teammate Ven-Allen Lubin’s successful second free throw attempt — which had it counted, would’ve tied the game at 72 with seconds remaining.
For a North Carolina team that began the day on the wrong side of the bubble, it was as painful a way to lose to an arch-rival as you could draw up.
“I’m not answering that,” North Carolina coach Hubert Davis said postgame when asked if it was the appropriate call.
Although Lubin made the second free throw, the basket didn’t count because Withers stepped into the paint before the shot was released, a clear violation of the rules.
“I feel sick for that young man,” CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish said on X after Withers’ violation.
After Duke made a pair of free throws, Lubin missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer that would’ve sent the game to overtime, and Duke was able to escape with a 74-71 win without Cooper Flagg in the lineup to advance to Saturday’s ACC title game.
Here is the official explanation in the NCAA rulebook.
“e. No player shall enter or leave a marked lane space or contact any part of the court outside the marked lane space until the free-thrower has released the ball.
f. No opponent (player or bench personnel) shall disconcert (e.g., taunt, bait, gesture or delay) the free-thrower.
g. Players not in a legal marked lane space shall remain behind the free throw line extended and behind the three-point field-goal line until the ball strikes the ring, flange or backboard, or until the free throw ends.”
North Carolina trailed by as many as 24 points in the second half before going on a huge run after halftime behind 12 points each from Lubin and Seth Trimble. The Tar Heels completed the second-largest comeback in school history (21 points) earlier this season against Dayton in the Maui Invitational.
The Tar Heels entered the day listed as one of the “Last Four Out” in the latest Bracketology projections by CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm. North Carolina will have to wait until Selection Sunday to learn its faith about whether or not the program will miss the NCAA Tournament for the second time in three years.
“I still think this is an NCAA Tournament team,” North Carolina star RJ Davis told reporters.
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