Opening Game Highlights Key Area Duke Basketball Will Dominate UNC

The Duke Blue Devils got the job done to kick off the regular season.

Duke took down Army 84-50 at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Monday night. Although there were some early hiccups on the offensive end of the floor, the Blue Devils looked extremely impressive defensively, as they did throughout their three preseason games.

Simply put, the Blue Devils have looked like one of the best teams in college basketball in-game so far. The same can't be said for North Carolina, which barely squeaked by Western Carolina in its opener. It's only taken one game to see one area where Duke will dominate the Heels in both matchups this season.

Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer makes adjustments against Kansas Jayhawks during the exhibition game inside Allen Fieldhouse in Lawrence, Kansas on Oct. 25, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The Glass: Duke Strength and UNC Weakness

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that Duke will probably be a really good rebounding team. It's the fourth-tallest team in the country, according to KenPom, and with a plethora of big bodies to crash the glass each time a shot goes up, it's probably a safe bet to assume that Duke will win the rebounding margin in more games than not.

Against Army on Monday night, Duke won the glass battle 37-28 and 14-10 on the offensive glass. It turned those 14 offensive boards into 20 points. Even though the actual margin wasn't too heavily in favor of the Blue Devils, it's easy to see why this team should be dominant on the glass.

Not only has North Carolina struggled on the glass so far this season, but it's been a pretty significant weakness. Carolina played three exhibition games and lost the rebounding battle in two. Combined in those three games, the Heels lost the rebounding battle 108-122 (-14). That trend continued in their opener against Western Carolina.

In Michael Malone's debut as head coach, UNC squeaked by with an 80-72 win over the Catamounts, but lost the rebounding margin 41-32, including losing the offensive rebounding margin 13-7. UNC gave up 13 second-chance points to Western Carolina in the contest.

The Heels are a pretty interesting team. Malone and his staff certainly have talent, but how it all fits still seems very up in the air. The backcourt of Neo Avdalas, Matt Able, and Terrence Brown looks solid on paper, but it remains to be seen how effectively those three can play alongside each other.

North Carolina's frontcourt was probably the biggest question entering the year, with Jarin Stevenson as the lone key returner for the club and freshman international prospect Sayon Keita operating as the starting five man. Carolina has looked shaky so far, especially on the glass.

UNC actually ranks 12th in average height, according to KenPom, but securing rebounds on both ends of the floor has probably been the club's most glaring issue early on. That hasn't been the case for Duke, and it's hard to imagine rebounding becoming a consistent issue for it this season.

Carolina Could Bolster Frontcourt Later On

Malone and Co. signed fifth-year South Dakota seven-foot transfer Cameron Fens this offseason, who averaged 14.4 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 1.5 blocks a night last season en route to earning Summit League All-Defensive Team honors. However, he was ruled ineligible to play in games and remains ineligible after the Tennessee Supreme Court denied a motion to lift a stay from August.

Fens wouldn't be an all-star addition for UNC, but it would certainly bolster a frontcourt and rebounding attack that clearly has some issues right now.

The Blue Devils and Tar Heels are in very different spots, as they have been over the last few seasons. There are still several months to go before we get to the first matchup between the two blue-blood programs, but it's only taken one game to see one area of the game where Duke will likely dominate its archrival.

Add us as a preferred source on Google