UNC Basketball's Archrival Fails the Conference in ACC/SEC Challenge

Although ranked lower all season thus far, the UNC basketball team appears considerably more formidable than Duke.

UNC basketball head coach Hubert Davis (Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports)

UNC basketball did its part on Wednesday night. Archrival Duke did not, costing the conference an overall victory in the inaugural ACC/SEC Challenge.

The No. 17 Tar Heels (6-1, 0-0 ACC), who were looking to build on their dominant second-half performance in an 87-72 win over Arkansas in the Bahamas on Black Friday, defeated visiting No. 10 Tennessee (4-3, 0-0 SEC), 100-92, in the Dean E. Smith Center.

Granted, UNC, which raced out to a 61-39 halftime lead, allowed the Volunteers to creep back into the game late. But Hubert Davis' players get a pass for that in light of their absolutely brilliant first half on both ends of the floor.

Their win was the fourth of five straight by the ACC, gifting the conference a 7-4 advantage with only three outcomes remaining.

Challenge Accepted. pic.twitter.com/aUf2xfSAZK

— Carolina Basketball (@UNC_Basketball) November 30, 2023

As for Jon Scheyer's Blue Devils (5-2, 0-0 ACC), they were on the road facing an unranked Arkansas team (5-3, 0-0 SEC) that was without point guard and top scorer Tramon Mark, who scored 34 points against the Tar Heels before suffering a back injury late.

It was the last battle to finish in the 14-game ACC/SEC Challenge. At the time, the ACC led, 7-6, needing the Blue Devils to do their job as a blueblood and top-10 team to seal what would have been a strong statement by the conference to boost its overall standing in the eyes of AP voters.

Duke fell, 80-75.

Scheyer's second batch of Blue Devils looked extremely limited on offense (only 27 combined points from those not named Kyle Filipowski or Jeremy Roach) and overpowered on defense. Their intensity improved late. However, they ran out of gas and time in their attempt to climb back from a 14-point deficit with under seven minutes to play.

Here's how the ACC/SEC Challenge, which featured seven games apiece on Tuesday and Wednesday, played out:

1. Mississippi State 59, Georgia Tech 67 (ACC led, 1-0)
2. Notre Dame 53, South Carolina 65 (tied at 1-1)
3. LSU 57, Syracuse 80 (ACC led, 2-1)
4. Missouri 71, Pittsburgh 64 (tied at 2-2)
5. Miami 73, Kentucky 95 (SEC led, 3-2)
6. NC State 52, Ole Miss 72 (SEC led, 4-2)
7. Clemson 85, Alabama 77 (SEC led, 4-3)
8. Texas A&M 47, Virginia 59 (tied at 4-4)
9. Florida 71, Wake Forest 82 (ACC led, 5-4)
10. Tennessee 92, North Carolina 100 (ACC led, 6-4)
11. Boston College 80, Vanderbilt 62 (ACC led, 7-4)
12. Virginia Tech 57, Auburn 74 (ACC led, 7-5)
13. Georgia 68, Florida State 66 (ACC led, 7-6)
14. Duke 75, Arkansas 80 (tied at 7-7)

HALFTIME REPORT: Tar Heels Dominating Vaunted Tennessee D

Stay tuned to All Tar Heels on SI.com for more UNC basketball news.