Seniors Jackson and Mair Lead No. 11 Duke to Victory over No. 21 UNC

Sunday, February 15

Durham, N.C.

1 p.m.

Duke University

19-6,14-0ACC

North Carolina

21-6,10-4ACC

North Carolina

Duke

Photo by: Duke Athletics

Seniors Jackson and Mair Lead No. 11 Duke to Victory over No. 21 UNC

2/15/2026 5:07:00 PM | Women's Basketball

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DURHAM, N.C. – A trio of Duke guards combined for 41 points and 15 rebounds to lead the 11th-ranked Blue Devils to a thrilling 72-68 win over rival, and 21st-ranked, North Carolina in ACC women's basketball action Sunday afternoon at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Seniors Ashlon Jackson and Taina Mair both registered 14 points to celebrate their Senior Day in style. Mair was excellent all around, adding seven rebounds, seven assists, two steals and a block, while committing just three turnovers. Jackson picked up five rebounds, dished four assists and had three steals. Riley Nelson rounded out the double-digit scorers with 13 points.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Duke and North Carolina traded baskets in the early minutes of the game with Delaney Thomas scoring four of the team's first nine points to put the Blue Devils up 9-8 at the first media timeout.
The Blue Devils held the Tar Heels to just 4-of-11 from the field in the first five minutes.
The back and forth continued out of the break as Jackson sank a pair of free throws coming out of the timeout before North Carolina answered with its first three of the afternoon to tie the game at 11 apiece.
Nelson's pull-up jumper from the left elbow in the final minute put Duke in front 19-18 at the end of the first quarter that featured 10 lead changes. Nelson led all first-quarter scorers with seven points.
North Carolina used a 9-2 run in the ensuing minutes to surge ahead, 31-25, with under five minutes to play in the opening half. Redshirt freshman Arianna Roberson got the crowd on its feet by responding with a trifecta that pulled the Blue Devils within three, 31-28, at the stanza's media timeout.
Trailing 33-28 with three minutes to play in the first half, the Blue Devils roared back ahead thanks to a 13-0 run highlighted by a trio of threes from Jordan Wood. Toby Fournier mixed in an old-fashioned three-point play to send Duke into halftime up, 41-33. Wood's third trifecta came as the buzzer sounded for the half. Defensively, Duke held North Carolina without a point for the final three minutes.
Fournier extended Duke's lead to 10 with a layup in the first minute of the third quarter, but the Tar Heels refused to go away as they clawed back to within six, 47-41. North Carolina forced the Blue Devils into 2-of-7 shooting and six turnovers in the first five minutes to cut into the double-digit deficit.
With Duke up eight, 56-48, North Carolina put together a 6-0 run to pull within two before Jackson knocked down a mid-range jumper to put Blue Devils up a four, 58-54, with one quarter left to play.
After North Carolina made it a two-point game, Jackson drained her lone three of the day to stretch Duke's lead back to five, 61-56. However, North Carolina's Lanie Grant responded with a three of her own to make it a one possession game again with over seven minutes to play.
The Blue Devils buckled down on defense over the next four minutes, holding the Tar Heels to only two points while forcing three turnovers, including a drawn charge by Jackson.
Jackson's two free throws following the charge stretched the Duke lead back to six, 67-61. With the Tar Heels threatening to make it a one score game again, Mair came up with a huge steal and layup to put the game away at 69-63 with 2:19 to play.
Duke held North Carolina to 1-of-4 shooting in the final two minutes, and Jackson intercepted a pass in in the last second to seal the Blue Devils' 72-68 victory.

UP NEXT

The Blue Devils round out their three-game homestand against NC State, Thursday Feb. 19 at 7 p.m., on ESPN.

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