Thursday night, at last, was about basketball. And it turns out, Duke might be damn good after all. It may have been a stroke of good timing, or it may have been the presence of its bitter rival at Cameron Indoor Stadium and the accompanying chants of “Go to hell, Carolina, go to hell!” Whatever the impetus, the Blue Devils put the rest of college basketball on notice with a 86-78 victory over North Carolina: They are the national title contender everybody expected them to be.

That may seem like an overreaction, given the lack of statement victories before their triumph over UNC at Cameron Indoor Stadium. That’s without mentioning UNC played without injured Isaiah Hicks, its best big man. But Duke’s ceiling has never been questioned, only its ability to get its act together in time for March. The resounding victory, and the developments that spilled from it, suggested the Blue Devils have done so.

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“We’ve had more interruptions than six teams,” Coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “No excuses. Just, that’s the way it is. Now we’re coming together.”

Duke’s good news started with Grayson Allen, the most dissected player in the country. He scored 25 points, his highest total since a blowout victory over UNLV on Dec. 6, while draining seven three-pointers and despite fouling out in the final minute. He played more aggressively, and with more apparent joy, than at any point during his trying junior season.

Krzyzewski suspended him for one game early in the season after he tripped an Elon opponent, a reprisal of his two infractions last season. It was a weak punishment, and Allen became the subject of debate. Ever since, Allen had struggled to rediscover his confidence, and every time he became entangled with an opponent — which happens just about every game — it has been studied like the Zapruder film.

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Thursday night, Allen bombed three-pointers with confidence and riled up the frenzied crowd. At the end, he hugged teammate Luke Kennard, then smiled as he joined his teammates as they lined up and slapped hands with the first row of the student section.

Duke’s vaunted freshman class has not reached its potential, but it showed flashes Thursday. Forward Jayson Tatum scored 19 points, all in the second half, on a mix of powerful drives and graceful midrange shots. Henry Giles, a candidate to be the first pick in the NBA draft before injuries slowed him at the outset of the season, played only 10 minutes, but provided energy and scored six points. Guard Frank Jackson hit all four of his shots in 20 minutes off the bench.

“They’re coming on,” Krzyzewski said. “They haven’t played to the level that they will play, eventually.”

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The Blue Devils may have been stabilized by the return of Krzyzewski, who reappeared on the sideline following back surgery last Saturday in a tight win over Pittsburgh. Krzyzewski bounced and settled into defensive stances on the sideline, showing no ill effects, particularly for a 69-year-old man.

Duke (19-5, 7-4 ACC) had fallen to No. 18 in the Associated Press rankings entering Thursday night, but that should be discarded in the pursuit of gauging its talent and its capacity. Duke owned the most heralded freshman class in the country at the season’s start, with apologies to Kentucky and UCLA. At a preseason booster luncheon, Louisville Coach Rick Pitino declared, with perhaps a touch of hyperbole, “Duke may be the finest team that’s come along in the previous 25 years.”