Tar Heels in pros: Brooks has career game with 26 points, 20 rebounds; Huge late Little 3 in win; 17 points, 5 blocks, honor for Kessler

Garrison Brooks had the best game of his professional career to help the Westchester Knicks ended a four-game losing streak. Brooks put up career-high totals with 26 points and 20 rebounds as the Knicks won at home against the Windy City Bulls 121–120 on Sunday.

Good, Bad and Ugly Report: Duke on senior night

Stop me if you’ve heard this before … UNC has a second-half lead against a quality opponent with a chance to boost its postseason resume, yet finds a way to let the game get away with another close but disappointing loss. Or maybe you’ve heard this one before … Carolina is engaged in a rock fight against Duke, in a nail-biting, close game in the last four minutes, only to go ice-cold and unable to score more than two points down the stretch and the Blue Devils scratch out a win.

UNC’s pursuit of an ACC title begins Wednesday against either BC or Louisville

After a 62–57 loss to Duke in the regular-season finale, North Carolina likely has to win the ACC Tournament next weekend at the Greensboro Coliseum to make the NCAA tournament field. That pursuit will start at 7 p.m. on Wednesday (ESPN2) in the second round as the No. 7 seed against the winner of Tuesday’s 4:30 first-round game between No. 10-seed Boston College (15–16) and No. 15-seed Louisville (2–18).

Videos: Armando Bacot and RJ Davis talk about UNC’s loss to Duke

Here what Armando Bacot and RJ Davis had to say after Carolina’s loss to Duke.

Tar Heels in NBA: Johnson celebrates birthday with 20 points as Nets rally to upset Celtics; Barnes, Anthony and Bullock all have big games in wins

Cameron Johnson and Harrison Barnes each scored 20 points, and Cole Anthony hit 16 as all three earned victories Friday night after Reggie Bullock scored 15 in a Thursday win. Johnson scored 17 points in the second half as Brooklyn rallied from a 28-point deficit for a surprising 115–105 road win over Boston on his 27th birthday.

Carolina likely to play during evening session Wednesday at ACC men’s tournament

Carolina could be seeded 6th, 7th or 8th next week at the ACC men’s basketball tournament. That won’t get settled until Saturday, but it looks likely that the Tar Heels will play during the evening session of the second round at the Greensboro Coliseum on Wednesday.

Videos: Hubert Davis, Leaky Black press conferences ahead of Duke game

Here what Coach Hubert Davis and Leaky Black had to say ahead of UNC’s home finale Saturday against Duke on senior day.

Tar Heels just need average perimeter shooting to win, space out the floor

After Carolina made 47.1% of its 3-point attempts in the last two victories, there was a misconception among some fans that the Tar Heels have to shoot that well to keep winning. The reality is that average shooting from outside the arc has created enough spacing to help UNC win all season.

Tar Heels in NBA: Season-highs for Johnson, Anthony, who combine to score 61 points but their teams combine to lose by 46; White hits 14

Cameron Johnson and Cole Anthony had their best scoring games of the season on a night that they were one of the few bright spots in their teams’ blowout road losses. Both had season-highs for points and field goals and their second-best game scores, along with frustration over the results of their games.

Tar Heels in NBA: Barnes scores 29, leads Kings to fourth straight win; Johnson, Bullock have good games

Without Sacramento’s leading scorer De’Aaron Fox, Kings coach Mike Brown made Harrison Barnes the focal point of their offense on Tuesday night, and the 11-year veteran took advantage of the opportunity. Barnes came through with 29 points, four 3-pointers, nine rebounds, three assists and a 24.2 game score as Sacramento won at Oklahoma City 123–117 for the Kings’ fourth consecutive victory coming out of the All-Star break.