CHAPEL HILL - And to think Shane Battier almost wasn't missed.
Considering the fact the 6-foot-8 forward sat out Saturday night's game to make sure his sprained left ankle wasn't reaggravated, North Carolina had to feel pretty good about its chances.
Duke was without one of its big men, and a team that hadn't outrebounded the Tar Heels in seven years certainly wasn't likely to pull the trick this time around.
Guess again.
Battier's absence instead opened the door for Corey Maggette, who calmly turned in his strongest performance in a big game. After scoring a combined 10 points with five rebounds in Duke's four previous "big" games against Maryland (twice), UNC and Kentucky, the freshman responded in the Smith
"It felt pretty good," Maggette admitted after the game. "I came out rebounding well tonight and just wanted to play hard. I think I did that."
Maggette became one of the Blue Devils' most effective players by staying tough around the basket. Two of his baskets came on putbacks, two others on drives to the hole.
His only outside shot, a deep three-pointer from straight out top, ended a 7-0 Carolina run in the first half and staked Duke to a 32-27 lead, helping to ensure that the Blue Devils would never trail the rest of the game.
"He came in and played one of his best games of the year," Trajan Langdon said. "He was rebounding well and driving to the basket and finishing. He was an unbelievable spark for us off the bench."
Along with his two putbacks, Maggette had four other offensive boards. The Blue Devils gave up height to UNC's core of Brendan Haywood, Kris Lang, Vasco Evtimov and Brian Bersticker, all of whom measure over 6-10, but countered with athleticism.
And no one for Duke is more athletic than Maggette. It was a matter of stepping up in a big game. He did just that Saturday night and made Battier's absence an afterthought.
"I told the team not to concentrate on Battier being out or on Carolina or last year," coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "I told them to concentrate on blocking and executing, things we could be in control of. They did that the whole second half."
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