A look at some of the most memorable Duke-NC State games

By Ryan Bisesi, WRAL multiplatform producer

North Carolina State Wolfpack	76
13Duke Blue Devils	64
Final

Raleigh, N.C. — When NC State and Duke square off for the right to advance to the Final Four, it will undoubtedly be under the most high-stakes circumstances in the history of the rivalry.

They've met since the 1950s, but in recent decades, their games haven't received the spotlight that usually accompanies a Duke-UNC game. That could get reassessed with what's on the line on Sunday in Dallas.

State's spirited run has fans rekindling memories of 1983 in hopes of reaching its first Final Four since then. Duke has hopes of adding a sixth championship banner to the rafters at Cameron Indoor Stadium and adding a signature win for second-year coach Jon Scheyer.

It's the first time the teams have met in the NCAA Tournament.

Here are five memorable games between the Blue Devils and Wolfpack that Sunday's battle hopes to live up to.

March 16, 2003: JJ Redick's masterpiece gives Duke 5th straight ACC crown

Duke's JJ Redick scored 30 points and spearheaded a comeback effort that saw the Blue Devils rally from a deficit as large as 15 points in the second half. State earned a 36-31 lead at halftime and led 55-40 with less than 12 minutes to play, appearing poised for its first ACC title since 1987.

Redick was just a freshman, but this performance cemented his status as an elite shooter as he and freshman teammate Shelden Williams would become two of the last great four-year players at Duke.

A 12-0 run after the final media timeout saw Duke go from down 69-63 to up 75-69, with Redick hitting multiple clutch 3s. Redick got 23 of his 30 points in the final 10:05 to give the Blue Devils their fifth straight ACC championship 84-77.

Jan. 23, 2017: NC State wins in Cameron for first time in two decades

State's Dennis Smith Jr. had the breakout game of his college career and the Wolfpack won at Cameron for the first time since 1995 in an 84-82 win. It was a bright spot in an otherwise unremarkable season that led to Mark Gottfried's firing, but the win against a Duke team featuring Jayson Tatum, Grayson Allen and Luke Kennard was plenty surprising, even with Coach K missing the game as he was recovering from back surgery.

Smith had 32 points and a thunderous dunk right after the buzzer that didn't count but captured the zeal of Wolfpack nation in the moment. The Wolfpack rallied from a 68-59 deficit in the final six minutes.

Tatum crossed halfcourt with possession with three seconds to play, but lost the ball after a crossover dribble.

Feb. 15, 2004: Hungry Wolfpack 'outeats' No.1 Duke

"When we hungry, we eat."

The game that made Julius Hodge an NC State folk hero was summed up with a goofy quote that exemplified his charisma. Hodge hit two free throws to seal a 78-74 win and snap an 18-game winning streak for Duke. It was the first hint of struggle for Duke at PNC Arena, where they've run into trouble against State and in the NCAA Tournament.

Hodge scored 14 of his 18 points in the second half to knock off Duke, who had been the nation's top-ranked team the previous four weeks. It was the Blue Devils' first conference loss and first defeat since falling to Purdue in the Great Alaska Shootout.

The win elevated State to No. 13 in the country, but Hodge downplayed all that after the game.

"We don't want to be ranked," Hodge said during a live interview. "We want to be out of the top 25, because we still hungry, and when we hungry, we eat."

Feb. 16, 2012: Duke pulls off huge comeback in Cameron

A week after Austin Rivers hit a legendary game-winner against UNC, the Blue Devils needed more dramatics to finish off the Wolfpack.

The game seemed all but over when Duke trailed 61-41 with 11:22 left. Duke kept chipping away with big shots from Rivers, Andre Dawkins and Seth Curry, who hit a 3 to make it 71-69 with just over three minutes to play.

Rivers hit a long 3 to give Duke its first lead of the game at 72-71. Lorenzo Brown had a good look at a 3 in the final seconds that would have tied the game, but the shot was no good. The Blue Devils hung on 78-73.

Jan. 18, 1996: Chris Collins' prayer answered in Reynolds

With State leading by two points in the waning seconds, Duke's Chris Collins waved off a weave from Ricky Price and shot deep 3 that appeared ill-advised at first.

Collins' shot hit the front of the rim, sailed up into the air and returned to the goal, eventually rattling in to give Duke a 71-70 lead with 5.5 seconds left that held.

State's Curtis Marshall had a chance to win it with a runner, but it spun around the rim and out, not getting the same favorable roll that Collins had just received at the opposite end of the floor. It was a momentous win for Duke for several reasons, one being that the Blue Devils started the season 0-4 in ACC play and desperately needed one to strengthen its standing within the league and return to the NCAA Tournament after finishing 13-18 in 1995.

The Blue Devils went on to reach the dance, but a 0-5 start in the conference play may have prevented that had Collins' shot not fallen.