Tar Heels legend has ludicrous excuse for Jae’Lyn Withers’ lane violation
With just 4.1 seconds remaining in the ACC semifinal matchup between Duke and North Carolina, Ven-Allen Lubin was shooting free throws for the Tar Heels when his teammate, Jae’Lyn Withers, stepped into the paint, committing a lane violation.
Just like that, the 24-point comeback that the Tar Heels had clobbered together was over as Duke’s Kon Knueppel went to the lane for the violation and sank both free throws, extending the Blue Devils’ lead to three points. Knueppel missed the three-point buzzer beater and, even without Cooper Flagg on the court, Duke had thwarted UNC’s comeback attempt.
Afterwards, Withers was understandably distraught as he had very likely cost his team a chance to advance to the ACC Tournament championship game. However, it happens. Even the greatest athletes of all time make mistakes.
When the court had cleared and the backlash for Withers’ mistake had stormed into social media, one Tar Heel legend came up with a completely ridiculous excuse for the lane violation…
Still my goat they pushed him forward https://t.co/0xOodNaVMf
— Armando Bacot Jr. (@iget_buckets35) March 15, 2025
Armando Bacot Jr. played for the Tar Heels from 2019 until 2024 and was a star for UNC as he led the team to a National Championship appearance during the 2022 season. However, to try and say that a Blue Devil pushed Withers into the paint is completely absurd.
If you watch a replay of the game, it is painfully obvious that Withers simply lost his balance and took a step into the paint as Lubin sank the game-tying free throw.
It’s unfortunate for the Tar Heels, and it is unimaginably painful for Withers, but for Bacot to try to say that he was pushed is ludicrous. Bacot may know ball, but his bias came out on this one.
The No. 1-seed Duke moved on to the ACC Championship, where the Blue Devils would face the No. 2-seed Louisville Cardinals on Saturday, March 15, at 8:30 p.m. ET.
