No. 2 seed North Carolina will meet rival Duke in tonight's ACC semifinals

CHARLOTTE — For the third consecutive year, Tobacco Road rivals North Carolina and Duke will meet in the ACC Tournament semifinals.

The No. 2-seeded Tar Heels and No. 3-seeded Blue Devils are set to tip off at 9 p.m. on Friday night in the Spectrum Center. It's just the second time ever that UNC and Duke have met in the ACC Tournament while both are ranked in the AP top five.

In the ACC quarterfinals, the Tar Heels notched a comfortable 83-70 win over No. 7 seed Louisville. Coby White and Luke Maye both had 19 points, and Cameron Johnson, a recent All-ACC First Team selection, added 14.

Duke won its ACC Tournament opener by a similar margin, beating No. 6 seed Syracuse, 84-72. First-year phenom Zion Williamson, who missed the previous six games with a sprained knee, had 29 points on a perfect 13-13 shooting, along with 14 rebounds.

The stage is now set for a third meeting between two of the ACC's premiere programs. 

During the regular season, North Carolina recorded its first sweep of Duke since the 2008-09 season. On Feb. 20, a triumvirate of Luke Maye (30 points, 15 rebounds), Cameron Johnson (26 points) and Garrison Brooks (14 points) led UNC to a 88-72 win over then-No. 1 Duke.

And on March 9, strong performances from Coby White (21 points) and Kenny Williams (18 points) helped UNC win 79-70 and clinch a share of the ACC regular-season title.

Williamson, however, was injured 34 seconds into the first UNC-Duke game. On Friday night, the high-flying forward will make his much-anticipated debut against North Carolina's frontcourt.

The Tar Heels have not beaten Duke three times in a season in Mike Krzyzewski's tenure, which stretches back to 1980. UNC last beat the Blue Devils three times in the 1975-76 season.

@chapelfowler

@DTHSports | sports@dailytarheel.com