Less than 10 miles stand between the University of North Carolina and Duke University.
Wednesday night, the Tar Heels’ Men’s Basketball team will make the cross-town trip to a packed Cameron Stadium for their first highly-anticipated matchup of the year.
Duke has had the upper hand in this game in recent seasons, and considering the home-court advantage and current hot streak the team is riding, they’d appear to be the favorite in the upcoming contest, as well.
Tonight is the 73rd meeting all-time between Duke & North Carolina with both teams ranked.
In the previous 72:
Duke: 36 wins
UNC: 36 wins
— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) February 18, 2015
But, of course, with a rivalry as heated as UNC-Duke, no team can truly claim an advantage. History, records, accolades and rankings go out the window as passion and grit fuel games of such prestige.
There are several notable statewide college basketball rivalries — Michigan-Michigan State, Iowa-Iowa State and Louisville-Kentucky, to name a few.
But, arguably, no other achieves quite the same stature as the ACC throwdown between the Tar Heels and Blue Devils.
Proximity in campuses creates the foundation for why UNC-Duke is America’s greatest rivalry. It’s like a high school sports rivalry on steroids. Quite literally, the team down the road is the initial step toward national prominence.
So, what’s in a rivalry?
An unparalleled excitement and knowing that after the big game, one program will ecstatically celebrate a momentous win, while the other will experience the crushing letdown of loss that only comes as a result of the highest stakes.
