Opening Night at the Dean Dome - #1 UNC vs #3 Duke - January 18, 1986

Today we go back to January 18, 1986 for the first game played inside the newly-constructed Dean Smith Student Activity Center on the campus of the University of North Carolina. Opening a new arena 18 games into the season seems odd but having an undefeated matchup between Duke and UNC made this a game every fan wanted to be in attendance for. 

This might not be a game everyone talks about in this series but it had a lot going for it, including Dean Smith vs Coach K, Johnny Dawkins and Kenny Smith, and another tight rivalry game.

Here's some of what we will get into: 

• Early ESPN College Basketball coverage with Alan Massengale anchoring in studio. 
• College starts Tito Horford and Scott Skiles in the news.
• Manual scoreboards
• Johnny Dawkins living up to the hype he still gets to this day from Duke fans. 
• Jay Bilas as a 6th man for the Blue Devils. 
• The legend of Steve Hale and an unexpected journey post basketball. 

Go back and watch the game for yourself here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnM9R3DhAWA