4 MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2005 DUKE FROM PAGE 1 one of the nets for himself, but he already had set his sights on a twine souvenir hanging in a gymnasium 800 miles west of Chapel Hill. “I didn’t want it,” said forward Jawad Williams. “I want another net the national championship net. That’s the one I want hanging around my neck.” For now, however, the strands of cloth draped over the ear of each jubilant Tar Heel player, strands earned in one of the most dramat ic conclusions in the history of the Duke-North Carolina rivalry, will have to suffice. Center Sean May, who has emerged as perhaps the most pow erful single force in the ACC, once again dominated play at both ends of the floor. He finished the game with 26 points and 24 rebounds the highest rebound total of any UNC player since Rusty Clark in 1968. “May was fantastic,” said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. “That’s just a magnificent individual per formance.” Shelden Williams led the Blue Devils (22-5,11-5 in the ACC) with 22 points, but he managed just four rebounds. Sharpshooting guard J. J. Redick scored 17, but not one of those points came in the second half. In the critical final minutes of the game, it was the tremendous determination of guard Raymond Felton that propelled the Tar Heels (26-3,14-2) past a Duke team that had led by nine points with 3:07 remaining. Seconds after forward Lee Melchionni buried his career-high fifth 3-point shot of the game, a critical fifth foul assessed to for ward Shavlik Randolph created an opening in the lane for North Carolina to exploit. “When you’re up nine with three minutes to go, you’ve got to take care of the ball, you’ve got to get to the ffee-throw line, not turn the ball over and get defensive rebounds,” Melchionni said. “We didn’t do any of those things.” Jawad Williams drew first blood, following misses by both Manuel and May with a tip-in to cut the lead to seven. But Felton domi nated the game from that point forward. The North Carolina point Fresl Timid HcJkltky Eidit^ PITAS SALADS VEGGIE OPEN OPTIONS LATE Catering for all occasions. WE DELIVER! 919.933.4456 115 E. Franklin, Chapel Hill www.pitapit.com VOTED 2004 Chapel Hill Tire Car Care Center Best Auto Repair! GET YOUR CAR READY FOR SPRING BREAK! 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Felton then made up his mind to drive relentlessly to the basket, and his second such attempt on the Tar Heels’ ensuing possession resulted in two free throws for Marvin Williams. The freshman sank both. After Duke rookie DeMarcus Nelson missed the front end of a one-and-one with 1:53 remaining, another penetration of the lane by Felton resulted in a May put-back and foul. Once again, the free throw found nothing but nylon, and Duke led by only two. Felton had a chance after both Melchionni and J.J. Redick missed shots at the other end, but his one handed floater missed and rolled out of play to give Duke posses sion. But when Ewing dribbled the ball into North Carolina territory, forward David Noel playing with four fouls deflected the path of the ball just enough to allow Felton to pounce on it and emerge with possession from a critical scrum. “My thoughts were, ‘Dave, don’t foul out of the game,’” Noel said. “I let him go by me and was able to get it from behind.” With the Tar Heels still need ing one basket with 27-8 seconds remaining, Felton once again drove to the basket. This time, he drew a foul on Nelson and a chance to tie the game from the line. The first shot sailed true, bring ing North Carolina within a single point, and his second shot rattled off the rim into a tussle of arms including Felton’s own. “Probably one of the most impor tant things of the whole game was how aggressively Raymond went after the offensive rebound on his own missed free throw,” said UNC coach Roy Williams. The ball eventually landed in the hands of Marvin Williams, how ever, and he banked a shot off the glass and into the net to drive the Smith Center crowd into hysterics with 17 seconds remaining. The opportunistic forward hit his ensuing free throw, and after both Redick and Ewing missed shots at the other end, May cradled the rebound that clinched the Tar Heels’ dramatic victory. From Page One UNC 75, Duke 73 Duk* 41 32 73 North Carolina 47 28 75 Onto (73) nfn im m M ■ pf