CHAPEL HILL – RJ Davis knows what it takes to win at Duke.

He’s done it three times in his North Carolina career and looks to win for a fourth time Saturday when the Tar Heels venture over to Cameron Indoor Stadium to take on the red-hot Blue Devils.

The task, however, hasn’t been this great for the Tar Heels during Davis’ time in Chapel Hill.

Duke was mediocre when he was a freshman, the Heels rose up and beat legendary former Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski in his final home game, Carolina was tied with three minutes remaining before falling by six points two seasons ago, and rode the hot hand of Cormac Ryan in last year’s victory in the Blue Devils’ sweltering hall.

This time, however, UNC is 13-9 overall and 6-4 in the ACC having dropped three of its last four games. Duke is 18-2 overall, 10-0 in the ACC, and has won 14 consecutive games.

“Staying positive, that’s the main thing,” Davis replied when asked how he infuses confidence in his teammates given their recent struggles. “When things don’t go your way and you’re losing a lot of games and you’re in those games as one possession, it’s easy to be negative and point the finger and to just go down the route that feels more comfortable because we’re losing.

“But I think the challenge in that is to face this challenge with positivity, and I think that’s how my approach is going to be for this team. Yes, we’ve lost three out of four, okay cool, but how are we going to respond? How are we going to pull ourselves together and approach this game with our heads high?”

Yet, as much as some players and coaches will say this is just another game, the reality is it isn’t. It’s the most high-profile game of every college basketball season, it’s considered by many as the greatest rivalry in American sports, and it always seems a bit more intense and frenzied when inside Cameron Indoor Stadium. Plus, that raises the degree of difficulty for the Tar Heels.

So, the old wise man who’s done this before and left three times a winner has sage advice for his younger mates.

“First and foremost, I would say your mindset,” he said. “You have to be mentally ready to play there. A great environment, obviously the fans get into it. But I would say mindset number one and at the same time just take it possession by possession. Basketball is a game of runs especially against Duke in the years I’ve played them; it’s always like a back-and-forth game and an exchange of buckets.

“So, just know that every possession matters. (Get) great shots… or either a stop as well. Mindset, possession, and staying together kind of just like having blinders on because of the environment, because of the rivalry, and a lot of anticipation always gets built up for these games. A lot of pressure.”

In his last three trips to Durham, Davis has averaged 13.7 points shooting 36.7% from the field, including 4-for-12 from the perimeter, plus he’s grabbed 12 rebounds and handed out 12 assists.

Davis’ appreciation for being a part of this game, its history, and having won three times gives him a sense of calm going into his final time in front of the Cameron Crazies.

“I’ve been in a lot of highly talented games, a lot of close games. I’m just grateful for the overall experience of the rivalry because it goes back even way before me. Just to be a part of it is something that you can only dream of as a kid…

“It’s just something I’m overall grateful for, and I’m going into Saturday with the mindset just go out there and have fun and come up with a win.”