CHAPEL HILL, N.C. ? J.J. Redick praised the defense he faced and gave himself passing marks for his own performance. Then, he saved his highest praise for Duke’s effort against its biggest rival.

“Very few teams playing on the road, in a big game like this, with such a big momentum swing, could have made enough plays to pull out a win,” Redick said. “I think we’re one of those teams that’s capable of doing that.”

The shooting star had 22 of his 35 points in the second half, freshman Josh McRoberts added a season-high 17 points, and the second-ranked Blue Devils held off No. 23 North Carolina, 87-83, Tuesday night.

Playing for the final time in the Dean Smith Center, Redick was 12-for-22 from the field – including five three-pointers – and set a career high with four steals. Three of those led to breakaway layups.

“It’s very satisfying to win the ballgame,” Redick said. “I guess I’m leaving here 2-2 at the Dean Dome, which is not bad. To go out with a win as a senior, it feels good.”

Duke's J.J. Redick reacts after a three-point shot against North Carolina. Duke won, 87-83, Tuesday in Chapel Hill, N.C. Redick led all scorers with 35 points.

His previous best against the Tar Heels was 18 points, but he struggled with his shooting in the previous seven matchups (34 percent). There was no such problem in this one, and Redick saved his best for last.

With Duke (22-1, 10-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) clinging to a one-point lead, Redick calmly swished a three over Wes Miller to increase the margin with 1:54 remaining. He later added another with the shot clock winding down to make it a seven-point game.

“You’ve got to give J.J. credit,” North Carolina coach Roy Williams said. “He made two big-time shots.”

It was enough to hold off a furious rally by the Tar Heels (14-6, 5-4) and help the Blue Devils pick up their 16th victory in the past 19 games in this Tobacco Road rivalry. Yet the latest was far from easy.

David Noel made two free throws, and Tyler Hansbrough converted four, helping the Tar Heels complete a 12-0 second-half run to get back in it. They eventually took a five-point lead on a free throw from QuentinThomas before Redick had five quick points to tie it.

“They came back and when we lost the lead, I think we showed the spirit that I’ve sensed in this team throughout the year,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “We just have a good spirit that we’re going to win. We kept our poise and hit some big shots.”

None more so than Redick’s, which surprised none of his teammates.

“We’ve got J.J. Redick. You know he’s going to make big shots,” Dockery said.

Reyshawn Terry had 17 points for North Carolina, and Hansbrough added 14.

Dockery finished with 14 points, and Shelden Williams scored 13 for the Blue Devils.

“It showed a lot for us,” Hansbrough said. “We were down 17, came back, made a big run and got right back in it. It shows what type of team we can be.”

No. 4 Villanova 71, Saint Joseph’s 58

Philadelphia – Kyle Lowry scored 17 of his 25 points in the second half, and Randy Foye and Allan Ray each had 14 points for Villanova in a victory at the Palestra that gave the Wildcats the Big 5 title. After a lackluster start that saw them shoot 30 percent and trail by 12 points at halftime, the Wildcats came out running, trapping and scoring at a rapid rate.

No. 11 Tennessee 75, Kentucky 67

Lexington, Ky. – Chris Lofton had a career-high 31 points – including 7 three-pointers – and Tennessee snapped an eight-game losing streak to Kentucky. Tennessee won its sixth straight SEC game for the first time since 1989. The Volunteers won at Rupp Arena for the first time since 1999.

Randolph Morris had 20 points for Kentucky, which dropped to 2-3 in conference home games.

No. 25 Northern Iowa 68, Wichita State 56

Cedar Falls, Iowa – Eric Coleman scored 20, and Ben Jacobson added 15 for Northern Iowa. The Panthers (21-4, 11-3 Missouri Valley Conference) have won seven of their last eight games and completed a season sweep of Wichita State (19-6, 10-4).