everything that's on my mind
(as if there's not already enough people doing this)Monday, December 05, 2005
The ghost of Laettner past
It seems that every year I forget about a Duke game that's televised, and either miss it entirely or remember before it's over and see the end. Last night was such a night. I'd remembered all week, even reminding myself on Saturday, that Duke-Virginia Tech was on Fox Sports Sunday night at 7:00pm. But for some reason it completely slipped my mind yesterday.
I realized it late in the game and tuned in with just over 3 minutes left. Duke was up 74-63, and it looked like they had the game at this point. Then, Virigina Tech proceeded to score the next 12 points. Duke simply could not score. After a tip-in gave the Hokies a 75-74 lead with 1.6 seconds left, it appeared they'd won the game. Here's the lesson they learned: don't leave time on the clock.
Duke and Kentucky played what was arguably the greatest college basketball game
in history on March 28, 1992, in the East Regional final. Kentucky's Sean Woods hit a ridiculous driving bank shot with 2.6 seconds left in overtime to put Kentucky ahead 103-102. So much was on the line. Kentucky, with their "unforgettables" who stayed through their dark years in the late-80's/early 90's, and a program on the way back with coach Rick Pitino. Duke, defending champions, trying to repeat, and trying to go to their 5th final four in a row and 6th in 7 years. And now, it looked like the king was dead, and Kentucky would make an improbable trip to the final four. Unfortunately for them, they left time on the clock, and Christian Laettner, receiving a long pass from Grant Hill, hit a turn-around jumper at the buzzer to keep the Duke dynasty alive.
Last night, Duke had 1 less second to work with when Josh McRoberts launched a pass from underneath the Virginia Tech basket with 1.6 seconds left. Sean Dockery received the pass at half court, took one dribble, and then launched a 40-footer that rattled in. Cameron erupted. The Virgina Tech players were crushed - they had the game and it was taken away. Duke wins 77-75 and remains undefeated and #1.
As I said, I didn't see the whole game, but according the articles, it appears Duke had an "off night", at least according to some sportswriters. Coach K summed it up this way:
UNC makes a statement
Looks like Carolina isn't dead yet. They have officially served notice that they're still a team to be reckoned with. Not much was expected of the Heels after losing their top 7 scorers from last seasons championship team, but the unranked Carolina team went to Rupp Arena Saturday and upset a Kentucky team that is ranked in the top 10. Of course, as usual, Kentucky is probably overrated, as they are every year.
Here's the thing about Kentucky: yes, they've had some great teams - that can't be argued - but they go on and on about how many wins they have over the years. They're almost always picked to win the SEC and therefore ranked high. But pretty much any decent basketball school could do that - they are the only basketball school in a FOOTBALL conference. I lived in Alabama for 4 years. Alabama's basketball team reached the top 5 in the rankings two different years while I was there, and people barely noticed. They were more concerned about what was going to happen the following fall when football season started again.
So, while Kentucky has racked up wins against basketball powerhouses like Tennessee, Auburn and Ole Miss over the years, Duke and Carolina have been winning just as many against each other, Wake Forest, NC State, Maryland, and the rest of the ACC. That's just a little more impressive to me.
I realized it late in the game and tuned in with just over 3 minutes left. Duke was up 74-63, and it looked like they had the game at this point. Then, Virigina Tech proceeded to score the next 12 points. Duke simply could not score. After a tip-in gave the Hokies a 75-74 lead with 1.6 seconds left, it appeared they'd won the game. Here's the lesson they learned: don't leave time on the clock.
Duke and Kentucky played what was arguably the greatest college basketball game
in history on March 28, 1992, in the East Regional final. Kentucky's Sean Woods hit a ridiculous driving bank shot with 2.6 seconds left in overtime to put Kentucky ahead 103-102. So much was on the line. Kentucky, with their "unforgettables" who stayed through their dark years in the late-80's/early 90's, and a program on the way back with coach Rick Pitino. Duke, defending champions, trying to repeat, and trying to go to their 5th final four in a row and 6th in 7 years. And now, it looked like the king was dead, and Kentucky would make an improbable trip to the final four. Unfortunately for them, they left time on the clock, and Christian Laettner, receiving a long pass from Grant Hill, hit a turn-around jumper at the buzzer to keep the Duke dynasty alive.Last night, Duke had 1 less second to work with when Josh McRoberts launched a pass from underneath the Virginia Tech basket with 1.6 seconds left. Sean Dockery received the pass at half court, took one dribble, and then launched a 40-footer that rattled in. Cameron erupted. The Virgina Tech players were crushed - they had the game and it was taken away. Duke wins 77-75 and remains undefeated and #1.
As I said, I didn't see the whole game, but according the articles, it appears Duke had an "off night", at least according to some sportswriters. Coach K summed it up this way:
"I feel very badly for Virginia Tech," Krzyzewski said. "They gave a winning effort. They never quit and they were certainly deserving to win. I'm not sure we were."They need to get it together for Penn Wednesday night, and definitely for Texas this weekend.
UNC makes a statement
Looks like Carolina isn't dead yet. They have officially served notice that they're still a team to be reckoned with. Not much was expected of the Heels after losing their top 7 scorers from last seasons championship team, but the unranked Carolina team went to Rupp Arena Saturday and upset a Kentucky team that is ranked in the top 10. Of course, as usual, Kentucky is probably overrated, as they are every year.
Here's the thing about Kentucky: yes, they've had some great teams - that can't be argued - but they go on and on about how many wins they have over the years. They're almost always picked to win the SEC and therefore ranked high. But pretty much any decent basketball school could do that - they are the only basketball school in a FOOTBALL conference. I lived in Alabama for 4 years. Alabama's basketball team reached the top 5 in the rankings two different years while I was there, and people barely noticed. They were more concerned about what was going to happen the following fall when football season started again.
So, while Kentucky has racked up wins against basketball powerhouses like Tennessee, Auburn and Ole Miss over the years, Duke and Carolina have been winning just as many against each other, Wake Forest, NC State, Maryland, and the rest of the ACC. That's just a little more impressive to me.
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