Duke vs. UNC Came Down to Second Chances

Last night I was all set watch one of the best rivalries in all of sports, Duke vs. UNC.  I bought a pizza, sat myself down, and prepared to watch an epic battle for the ACC title.  10 Minutes into the game I found myself trying to find something else to watch.  Duke was getting blown out and it wasn't pretty to watch.  I did watch most of the game and I noticed one thing that really separated the 2 teams, rebounding.

Basketball is a game that is won and lost on the boards.  Last night the Tar Heels won the battle of the boards and embarrassed the Blue Devils in the process.  UNC had 42 rebounds in last nights game and 13 of them were offensive rebounds.  That is 13 chances to extend a possession and potentially score points.  A better way to look at this stat is to focus on defensive rebounds in which UNC had 29.  That is 29 Duke possessions that ended without a single point.  I don't follow basketball to closely, but I know that is a lot of rebounds.

Duke was not impressive on the boards at all and on a night when they didn't shoot well in the first half that really hurt them.  The Blue Devils came away with only 7 offensive rebounds throughout the game.  UNC had twice as many second chance possessions.  Duke had 15 defensive rebounds so they were only able to keep UNC to half the number of pointless possessions that they were held to.  Dukes 22 rebounds left them short in opportunities and 18 points away form a victory at the end of the game.

18 points sounds like a real beat down, and it was, but let's look at in terms of rebounds.  18 points is 9, 2 point baskets.  So, if Duke could have gotten 9 more rebounds then it is possible the game would have been much different. 9 offensive rebounds could have led to 9 more baskets or a few 3 point baskets and some other misses.  9 defensive rebounds would have lead to at least 18 fewer points scored by UNC.  Any assortment of 9 rebounds could have given Duke a chance to win the game and ACC regular season title last night, but they were unable to come down with them.

Rebounding has always been an important aspect of basketball.  Control of the ball is the name of the game and good rebounding gives you more control over the outcome of a game.  UNC understands that and has become one of the better rebounding teams in the NCAA.  Duke will need to find a way to come away with more rebounds if they plan to win the ACC tournament or go far in the NCAA tournament later this month.