Duke basketball takes advantage of full roster in rivalry win over North Carolina
It had been nearly three weeks, but No. 2 Duke finally had all its players healthy and available once again.
Maliq Brown, a 6-9 forward who is the Blue Devils’ top reserve player, suited up for Saturday night’s game against North Carolina at the Smith Center — and he had a definite impact on the game.
Brown finished with eight points, three rebounds and three assists. That included making a pair of 3-pointers in the second half.
“Maliq, I wish I had his spirit,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “To be off this entire time, to come out and hit those threes and make those plays.”
Brown has been out since Feb. 17, when he dislocated his left shoulder during Duke’s 80-62 win at Virginia. This was the first time he’d been in uniform for a game since that night.
Thursday, Scheyer said Brown would practice Thursday and Friday to test how the shoulder would hold up.
The Blue Devils (28-3, 19-1 ACC) wrapped up the ACC regular-season championship and earned the No. 1 overall seed for next week’s ACC Tournament with its 82-69 win over the Tar Heels on Saturday.
“I thought Maliq Brown was a huge key,” said UNC coach Hubert Davis, who called Brown’s defense “elite.”
Brown, a junior who transferred to Duke last summer after two seasons at Syracuse, missed four games with the shoulder injury. He missed four games in January due to a sprained knee, and missed on game in December due to a toe injury.
Duke played without Brown and Tyrese Proctor (bruised knee) when it beat Florida State, 100-65, on March 1. Proctor returned to the starting lineup when the Blue Devils hammered Wake Forest, 93-60, at home last Monday night.
This story was originally published March 8, 2025 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Duke basketball takes advantage of full roster in rivalry win over North Carolina."