What to expect when No. 8 UNC men's basketball takes on No. 18 Duke

Tonight, the No. 8 North Carolina men’s basketball team travels the short distance from Chapel Hill to Durham to take on No. 18 Duke in what will likely be another tightly contested game between the two bitter rivals.

The Tar Heels and Blue Devils, who will play for the 243rd time tonight, split two meetings last season — the first a comeback win by Duke in the Smith Center and the second an ACC-clinching victory by UNC at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

How do they play?

The Blue Devils are a fairly balanced team, but they play best when causing havoc on the defensive end.

Duke ranks 31st in the country in defensive efficiency, according to kenpom.com, and the Blue Devils are allowing opponents to make just 30.1 percent of their 3-point attempts, good for 10th in the country — something that could pose a big problem for the Tar Heels.

North Carolina is making its 3-pointers at a 37.5 percent clip this season, but in its four losses, UNC has shot just 30.7 percent from behind the arc.

Duke also totes the third-highest scoring offense in the conference. And despite shooting just 36.8 percent from 3-point range, the Blue Devils have remained efficient by knocking down 54.9 percent of their shots from inside the arc.

Who stands out?

The Blue Devils have an All-American-caliber guard in sophomore Luke Kennard, who is putting up gaudy numbers through 23 games this season.

Kennard is third in the conference in scoring average, racking up 19.8 points per game. He’s also on pace to potentially crack the 50-40-90 club by season’s end — he’s currently knocking down 53.1 percent of his field goals, 45.8 percent of his threes and 85 percent of his free throws.

In the frontcourt, first-year Jayson Tatum has shown why many see him as a lottery pick in the 2017 NBA Draft.

At 6-foot-8, Tatum can play either the power forward or the small forward position in the Blue Devils’ lineup, an ability that can create mismatches on the floor. His length gives him an advantage against smaller defenders, and he’s shown recently he can step back behind the line and bury a few 3-pointers per game, as well.

What’s their weakness?

As has been the story for the past several years, this will be a matchup of one team that likes to spread things out and play behind the arc (Duke) and one that wants to feed the ball inside as much as possible (North Carolina).

Duke’s most used lineup over the past five games, per kenpom.com, has featured Tatum (6-foot-8) at the four and Amile Jefferson (6-foot-9) at the center position. The Blue Devils have bigger players behind them in forward Harry Giles and center Marques Bolden, but both have struggled with injuries and inconsistent play over the course of the season.

In its win in Durham last year, North Carolina outrebounded Duke by 35 and had almost as many offensive rebounds (27) as the Blue Devils had total rebounds (29). If Duke can’t keep it close on the glass, the trio of Kennedy Meeks, Isaiah Hicks and Tony Bradley should have a field day on the boards, giving the Tar Heels easy baskets all night.

How could they win?

While it won’t have a direct impact on the court, the return of Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski to the bench will have the Blue Devils primed for an upset tonight. Krzyzewski missed several games while recovering from back surgery, but Duke seemed to play with an extra jolt when he came back from his month-long hiatus on Saturday against Pittsburgh.

Given the magnitude of the rivalry, this game is probably going to be close anyway. If Krzyzewski continues to bring the energy on the sidelines, Duke could make a run and walk off the court victorious.

@jbo_vernon

sports@dailytarheel.com