Duke's coach insists his staff was assaulted, but the DA refutes claims, stating zero evidence of punches or brawls during the UNC court storming.
Duke head coach Jon Scheyer is still salty about North Carolina storming the court after beating the Blue Devils 71-68 on Feb. 7.
Scheyer claimed some Duke staffers were punched when Tar Heels fans rushed the court after upsetting their bitter rival.
On Monday, North Carolina graduate and district attorney for Orange County, Jeff Nieman, claimed to find no evidence that any Duke staffer was punched in the face.
"A week has passed, and what seemed likely is now patently obvious," Nieman posted on X. "There is zero evidence that anyone from Duke’s basketball program was “punched in the face” at the Smith Center last week.
"Nor is there any evidence that a staffer was “trampled on the floor” or “in a complete brawl”, for that matter. Some have asked why I’m talking about this. It’s certainly not because of a sports rivalry. That’s no business of the DA’s Office. "
Nieman suggested Scheyer should have been more cautious with his comments after the emotional upset.
"But I’ve seen firsthand how reckless accusations of violence incite more violence, and that is my business," he wrote.
"Someone with the power and influence of a major men’s basketball coach should exercise more discretion before just saying things that can have real-world consequences."
Per Myron Medcalf of ESPN, Scheyer addressed Nieman's message in his news conference following Duke's 101-64 win over Syracuse. He didn't back down, saying he knew "what happened" with his staff after the loss to UNC.
"I'll tell you that I know what I saw and I know what happened with our staff after the game -- and that's the bottom line," Scheyer said. "I'm not going to circle back or get into -- I don't know what was said or wasn't said or what people want to claim.
"But I know what happened, and I'm always going to support our staff in those situations and, again, I could have even said more, but I'm not going to do that."
No. 3 Duke is 24-2 overall and 13-1 in ACC play.
The Blue Devils will face No. 16 North Carolina on March 7 to finish their regular season. The contest at Cameron Indoor Stadium could have some fireworks after February's postgame.