It was a small gesture meant to shield the North Carolina veteran from additional scrutiny after his lane violation with 4.1 seconds to play erased a made free throw that would have tied the score, sending the Tar Heels to a third loss to Duke this season,

"I told Pat (Ngongba) not to do anything stupid, like get a lane violation," Kon Knueppel said about the final moments of Duke's win over UNC.

UNC lost to Duke for a third time this season Friday – this time in the ACC Tournament Semifinals. Hubert and RJ Davis spoke to the media afterwards.

Duke, the winners of the ACC Tournament, received a No. 1 seed in the East Region. Why it matters: North Carolina's appearance in the tournament was not a given, with many experts pointing to their weak showing against elite teams this season.

The No. 2 seed Duke Blue Devils (26-7) will look to defeat the No. 15 seed Lehigh Mountain Hawks (27-6) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Friday at Cameron Indoor Stadium. This matchup tips off at 8 p.m. ET. See the article below to find out how to get tickets to watch this contest in person.

Auburn is the top overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, with Duke, Houston and Florida joining the Tigers on the No. 1 line in the March Madness brackets released Sunday.