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Duke Blue Devils staff members “got punched in the face” when North Carolina Tar Heels fans stormed the court to celebrate their rivalry’s victory, head coach Jon Scheyer said Saturday.
No. 14 North Carolina edged No. 4 Duke, 71-68, after Tar Heels guard Seth Trimble hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left. Tar Heels fans arrived on the court thinking the game was over, but had to be corralled back to their seats once the referees added less than a second to the clock.
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Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer reacts in the first half at the Dean E. Smith Center on Feb. 7, 2026. (Bob Donnan/Image Images)
Scheyer said some team personnel were hit during the fight.
“It’s hard for me to talk about the game when what I’m most concerned about is the safety of our players after the game,” Scheyer said. “I don’t want to talk about that, because Carolina played a great game to win. And that is a heartbreaking loss for our team.
“I had staff members getting punched in the face. My family, pushing people away, trying not to get stepped on. That’s not what this game is about.”
North Carolina athletic director Bubba Cunningham said he apologized for the incident but had no details about the injuries.
“As they ran onto the field, several people were run over,” Cunningham said. “But then we had to clear the court again. So when we normally have something like rushing on the court and the game ends, we have a line by the benches for people to get out safely.
North Carolina fans take the floor and celebrate after the team defeated Duke in the final seconds of an NCAA college basketball game on Saturday, February 7, 2026 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)
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“Obviously, if someone gets hurt, it’s really disappointing. We’ll do the best we can to make sure that doesn’t happen, but again, I apologize to Duke for that.”
A Duke official told multiple outlets that a person linked to the program had been injured but had no further details.
Scheyer and Duke suffered a similar incident after Duke lost to Wake Forest in 2022. Then-Blue Devils player Kyle Filipowski was left concussed after a Demon Deacon fan collided with him during his celebration.
Scheyer, who in 2022 was wondering when courthouse break-ins would be banned, was asked if he still thought it should be banned.
“We shouldn’t let people get punched in the face,” he said. “We shouldn’t put our players in a position where they are face to face with people who can do anything at that moment. It just takes a reaction. Even today, I had to push people away just to try to protect our players.
North Carolina guard Seth Trimble (7) celebrates with fans after an NCAA college basketball game against Duke, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (AP Photo/Chris Seward)
“They won, they should celebrate. They want to storm the court, storm the court. But let’s get our guys out safely, that’s all. That’s where I’m at with that.”
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Duke fell to 21-2 on the season with the loss. North Carolina improved to 19-4.
