Grayson Allen booty call the epitome of longstanding NCAA feud

IT STILL seems a bit odd: North Carolina and Duke playing an ACC Tournament game in Brooklyn. The concrete jungle looks nothing like Tobacco Row, and navigating the snow and subway systems seems to be more of an inconvenience than a slice of local culture.

Then again, Brooklyn might have been the perfect setting for the renewal of the ancient rivalry, especially when Duke guard Grayson Allen pulled a move that only Mike Tyson would have been proud of.

Long before North Carolina collected a 74-69 victory and a berth in the ACC Tournament final opposite top-seeded Virginia, Allen reminded us what blood-feuds are all about: doing whatever it takes to win. With 52.7 seconds left in the first half, the Duke senior and long-time Carolina antagonist stopped at half-court and stuck out his hip as Carolina’s Garrison Brooks was heading up the court.

Allen’s booty block sent Brooks toppling to the court, drawing the ire of everyone in the building wearing Carolina blue.

“I wasn’t hurt, but I was upset,” Books said. “I feel he stuck his leg out. That’s what he does. It didn’t surprise me. Once you’ve seen it before, you’re not surprised by it.”

Allen has a reputation for doing such things, which is probably why the referees stopped the action to look at a replay to determine the severity of the crime. After several looks at the tape and a brief conference, Allen ultimately was given a flagrant-1 and Brooks got revenge by burying two free throws to give Carolina a 34-27 lead.

Allen’s hip-check is the kind of thing that has made him a villain in most gyms outside of Cameron Indoor Stadium. But it seemed fitting in Brooklyn, where a rough-and-tumble approach is a way of life. Before Barclays Center was built, there were plenty of muggings in this neighborhood. Perhaps Allen was just fitting into the culture.

“They called foul,” Allen said simply, not bothering to defend himself.

North Carolina appreciated the ref ’s booty call, even if Duke fans didn’t. Jay Williams, the former Duke point guard turned ESPN broadcaster, posted on Twitter: “If it was any other player in

America that last play by Grayson Allen would have been called just a foul. But bc it’s Grayson, it was a flagrant 1. It is what it is people. Like it or not.”

North Carolina guard Joel Berry agreed — sort of.

“They’re always going to get on him about that,” Berry said. “Any little trip he does, if he puts a finger on somebody, you know they’re going to react. So it’s always a joking thing with me and Grayson.”

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski wasn’t laughing: “Do you think that was the only time someone got hipped in the game?”

The play wound up sparking North Carolina more than it did Duke. The Tar Heels came out and controlled the game through most of the second half, leading 70-55 with 6:36 remaining before Duke tried to make a late run. The Blue Devils closed to 72-69 with 49 seconds remaining when Allen took center stage again.

Needing a 3-pointer to tie, Allen (16 points) tried to draw a foul from Luke Maye, who didn’t go for the fake. Allen wound up shooting a desperate 3-pointer that wasn’t close. The Tar Heels grabbed the rebound and iced their 100th win in the ACC Tournament. They also won the best of three against Duke this season.

After looking at a stat sheet that saw Carolina shooting 39.4 percent from the field with just two points in the final five minutes, head coach Roy Williams wasn’t happy, and neither were the Tar Heels (25-9).

“Toward the end, we were just trying not to make mistakes, and we ended up making mistakes instead of continuing to be aggressive,” Berry said.

Williams knows the Tar Heels can’t play the same type of game against Virginia and win. The top-ranked Cavaliers beat Clemson 64-58 to advance to the finals.

“We have to play a lot better,” Williams said. “They’re the No.1 team in the country. We have to play a perfect game.”