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Top-10 ranked Duke, UNC lose to unranked teams on same day

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Seeing Duke and North Carolina lose basketball games is rare.

But seeing Duke and North Carolina lose basketball games on the same day to unranked teams when both are ranked in the top 10 is especially rare. 

No. 5 Duke lost to Virginia Tech and No. 9 UNC lost to Georgia Tech on Saturday, marking the first time since 1989 the two top 10 ranked programs have lost to unranked ones on the same day. 

Saturday was just the third time in history that such losses coincided, according to ESPN Stats and Info. 

The Blue Devils, who were without Grayson Allen, were overpowered by the Hokies, 89–75, in the ACC opener for both teams. Duke guard Luke Kennard scored 34 points, but was outpaced by a team effort by Virginia Tech that saw five different players score 13 points or more.

The Tar Heels fell to the Yellow Jackets, 75–63. Josh Okogie led the scoring effort for Georgia Tech with 26 points, five rebounds and three assists. Justin Jackson was the high scorer for UNC with just 16 points.