Is it March yet???? Is it the final stretch before the Madness?? All around the nation, games were being decided by 2 points, by overtime, bubble teams scrambling for marquee wins, underdog teams pulling out all kinds of monumental individual career highs (Rice! Singletary!). But in Raleigh, we’re not going to need a miracle. We’re back on the right track. After 2 road losses, we buckled down and came up with a fantastic defensive effort in the GT game to get back in the race for the ACC title. No, this game won’t come down to a must-win for some post-season tournament hope – it is for something far greater. It’s a must-win, for one extraordinary coach – and the team that he’s put together that defies all preseason expectations. For a team, one year removed from a 22-11 season, to be talking #1 seed possibilities – is just mind-boggling. How many of us had dared to dream this big when this season began? How many of us still remember arguing on the boards about how Duke could possibly beat UNC (“that is why the games are played”), or the difference between believing we can go to the Final Four (far-fetched, but allowed) to actually thinking we can go (unthinkable)?
One man did: Mike Krzyzewski. He has taken Duke this year – and actually made them underrated! No small feat! And today, he is going for his 800th career win. Whichever Wolfpack we will see today – the team that gave us hell in the first half back on Jan 31, or the one that’s lost 6 straight since, getting no closer than 10 points in any of them? Doesn’t matter. We will be ready. If college basketball is a game of emotions – hey, just look at what Indiana did to Michigan State when told they might lose their coach, Kelvin Sampson. We will be ready. Senior Day or not.
Courtney Fells attacks Kyle Singler on the very first possession and draws a blocking foul in 14 seconds flat. UGH! They go ZONE on Duke, a 2-3 eerily similar to what Miami employed so well, and now let’s see if Duke had learned anything from that game? We pass the ball around, set some screens, Paulus draws 2 defenders because of his ability to drill the 3, and then he sends it to Singler at the top of the key for a long 3 – too hard – but the rebound bounces off to Thomas, who gives it to Nelson for the point-blank layup – missed! but Henderson grabs the rebound and goes right into attack mode! Fouled. 2-2.
Oh my – HEY! Son of a bitch! Greg is bleeding under his right eye. The blood is quickly spilling over the wound, and he wipes it off without a word, getting up in a maelstrom of hate. The NC State crowd is booing him, loudly – are they blind, or heartless, or both? And as he jogs back to the bench, he turns around to say something, or react to something, with a withering look that all but screams “Hey! Back off! Let me know how you feel after you get socked in the face.” As they show the replay: it is the same old trick, and the kid should be tossed for this second attempt. In the first NC State game, Javier Gonzales swings a vicious forearm to dislodge Greg from his side – right in front of the Duke bench. No call. Greg goes to the bench with a groggy look, but later comes back to scorch them with 5 three-pointers. In this game, barely 2 minutes in, Gonzales pulls the exact same kind of crap. Sick of Duke’s full-court pressure, he swings his elbow right into Greg’s face – and again, this foul does not get called what it rightfully is – intentional. Maybe even flagrant. The announcers agree that it’s way out of line. “That looked like an intentional foul.” “Sure was.” But of course, as we go back to the game, no such foul is called. Play on. 2-4, 18:40.
Off the inbounds play, Nelson is promptly fouled by Tracy Smith, a guy I didn’t even know was on the team, much less in the starting lineup. That’s 4 fouls on 4 possessions, not even counting Gonzales’ on Paulus. Nelson knocks down the first . . and the second! Hurray, Nelson! They show Greg being patched up on the bench, and the announcers give him props for wanting to get back into the game, saying “It hurts Mom more than anyone! I assure you.” Sure . . go tell that to Singler, who has an ACC-high of 21 stitches so far.
5th foul on 5 possessions now, as Courtney Fells gets loose and Gerald Henderson flies in to swat the ball away, but gets his hands too, and Fells goes down hard onto the floor. For a brief second I’m afraid that he’ll get a bloody nose or something, and then Henderson’s “reputation” from last year will wrongly influence the officials to . . never mind. Thank God Fells is fine as he gets up. Sinks both free throws.
Oh, that’s crazy. Absolutely insane. Nolan Smith runs with Gonzales trying to pressure him, and I can’t even see nothing, but they call a foul. Coach K is understandably livid – throwing an elbow to demonstrate the injustice of the foul on Paulus being equated the same as this tiny cheap foul by our freshman. Play goes on. Wow, Gavin Grant under all kinds of pressure by Nelson buries an off-kilter 15 footer! Then Gonzales trips Nolan, sending him flat onto the floor, and finally we get rid of him with 2 fouls to the bench. 4-8, 17:39.
I hate this zone. It’s so hard to play against, we can’t drive and kick, and it sure ain’t pretty to watch. It will contain us to the low 70s in the score, if that. But Greg answers back emphatically with a THREE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let’s get that heated up!!! A looong 3, with a hand flying in his face too! Then Kyle, having missed his first 3, is not going to go 1 for 6 anymore, and, zone or not, bullies his way inside, gets the ball, doesn’t want to settle for some turnaround jumper, and continues to attack the basket against the 6’7” svelte Grant all the way in before drawing the foul. As he’s shooting his free throws . . huh. A huge round of applause erupts, and I’m looking around for the celebrity that must’ve just stepped into the game. Ah ha – Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter movies is on the squad! That’s definitely someone we didn’t scout! As Ron, under the moniker “Trevor Ferguson”, with a head full of moppy-red hair, steps to the free throw sidelines, Kyle sinks his second free throw. We’re perfect at the line so far! 9-10.
Brandon Costner is in, and immediately swipes the ball away from Paulus, 20 feet in front of their goal. S***! But we dish it right back and draw the offensive charge. Paulus then gets too aggressive with 2 consecutive misses – both too early in the shot clock and too hard, bouncing off the back iron each time. We are air-tight defensively, though, with Zoubek scaring the heck out of a NC State guy and then Greg taking a charge from their backup PG, Marques Johnson, who now also collects 2 fouls and goes to the bench. Holy cow, did Fells just block Zoubek?
Nelson is whistled for an offensive foul, his second, and must sit at the 13:01 mark. This is not good; they are getting anything they want, while we are . . 1 of 10??? Is that right? As Nolan misses . . we’re taking shots too fast, too hurried, and too many long jump shots. Have some patience! Let’s get some ball movement and exploit this zone! As big Z finally ends the drought with a put-back. Henderson with that great loping stride coming up the court, is determined to right the ship – and attacks the heart of the zone defense, throwing up a last-minute runner as the whistle is blown that goes IN! Awwww – NO BASKET??? Why the hell not? Oh, whatever, foul before the shot. I’ll rather have the shot. But G erases my worries with 2 great free throws. 13-15.
JJ Hickson gets free for an easy deuce, but Jon Scheyer penetrates and single-handedly folds the zone defense from a 2-3 into a 0-5, herding almost everyone back into the low block, before sending a breathless pass out to Henderson, who fires – and HITS!!!!!!!!!!!!! THREE-BALL! “Mm-mm!” The announcer says, because there are no words to describe this – hilarious!
G loved that trick by Scheyer, and emulates him the next trip down, driving right into the heart of the defense and folding them like an accordion to finish at the rim. 20-21, 10:17. D-Marc now comes in for G, and immediately, he makes his presence felt with a deadly THREE! Transition basket, before that damn defense is set! For the LEAD, Markie! “You leave that guy alone and you can say good night!’ 23-21, our first lead of the day, 9:51.
The offense is finally starting to come alive. First, Kyle Singler does a great defensive job on Hickson, putting up a wall in front of him and making him lose the ball out of bounds. Then Paulus with a snap pass to Nelson underneath the basket for a layup – our 6’4” guard, posting up! Kyle misses a soft 6-footer, but the next time down takes it more aggressively to the hoop and draws the foul on Hickson, sinking both free throws. This is an astounding statistic: both teams are hitting free throws at a 100% clip! Duke: 12 of 12. NC State: 10 of 10. As Thomas draws the offensive charge from Hickson to help out Zoubek with the double team – great job, Lance! – he’s wearing a black bandage around his right wrist? Oh no – is this another unannounced injury? That’s now 2 fouls on JJ Hickson as well, 8:01 remaining, and he sits.
Oh, great overhead pass from Nolan to Zoubek, who almost cannot believe it – he’s wide open! – and he does a double take before putting it up there, almost disappointed that he isn’t challenged more! Yo, Brian! Hickson’s out! No one’s gonna block you anymore if you go up there strong – and fast! 29-26!!!
Ugh, I spoke too fast. Gonzales takes a 3 and nails it – right in Nolan’s face! Then – he blows by Nolan and no one rotates over??? We are one and done at the other end, Thomas can’t make a zero-range put-back, and it’s 29-31 in a heartbeat. Nolan with a tough pass up high to Zoubek, who can’t handle it, and that’s another 35-second shot clock wasted in about 2. They get a slam at the other end. This is alarming: Duke has only made 7 of 22 field goals??? While NC State only needs 14 to make 10. Wow. Utterly unreal. In that light, being down 29-33 is almost miraculous. 6:29.
McCauley with a 3 point play – man, he’s showboatin’ and stompin’ like he’s never gotten a 3 point play before! – and now the deficit is a dangerous 31-38 with 4:49 left. They are hitting 71% - yes, 71%! I’m aware that we usually allow a high percentage of 2s around the basket, due to our lack of interior defense – but where is our trump card? Where is the havoc we generally wreck on opposing backcourts to negate that high percentage allowed? This is not exactly a name-brand backcourt we’re facing, guys! Ah, Scheyer! Who comes to the rescue by drawing the 3rd foul on Fells and stops the bleeding with a pair of free throws. 33-38, 3:47. Is that a piped-in wolf howl in the RBC Center I hear?
Duke is now trying a 2-3 zone ourselves. Give you a little taste of your own medicine! Well, what do you know, they hit a 3. Way to go. 33-41?? Henderson spins, shoots, it doesn’t work, but King grabs the offensive board and kicks it out to Scheyer, who drains the THREE! 36-41. Paulus then tries a 3, but his shot has been awful all night. OH, HENDERSON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! REJECTION CITY! From what looked like a surefire dunk – G is there to send that out of the gym – and as we pick it up and go the other way – Paulus finally hits with a good-looking THREE from the top of the circle! 39-41!!!!
We go back to zone, but King is called for a foul trying to get the steal. Then he draws one on the other end from Horner, but . . wow. Poor kid can’t buy one. First miss at the line by either team tonight. Misses BOTH?? Scheyer draws a foul and gives us 2 more, but now we go to a 1-2-2 press, and they beat it with ease, getting an uncontested layup at the other end. It is now 41-47, and the crowd is just going berserk. Is an upset of the #6 team in the country in the offing? Can a 4-10 team beat a 11-2 team? Can it???? Timeout, Duke, 47 seconds left.
KING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH, SWEET JESUS! He FINALLY gets one! A deep three from the corner from a Henderson kick-out, and Taylor King is on the board! 44-47. 22 seconds left, they hold for the last shot, and our zone forces a 3 from Ron Weasley, who can’t hit. Halftime, and that wolf howl is sounding a little better and better with each glance at the score.
Second half: First possession for Duke, Paulus comes out on fire and a great drive into the paint, gets the runner – but crap, offensive foul? Greg claps his hands in frustration. They get a put-back at the other end, but we don’t care, we’re running the floor, G sees the zone defense nowhere to be found and cackles with delight, zeroing in like a cat to a mouse for the DUNK – OH! But fouled!!! UGHHHHH! Yet he won’t be denied, sinking both free throws despite all those waving flag balloons in the endzone. 46-49.
OHHHHHH, SINGLER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just taps that ball out of Fells’ hands and out in front of him, one smooth motion, no look back, no scramble, no sweat even, just blazing up the court and then the emphatic DUNK! OOWWWHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Duke is flexing its muscle! 48-49.
Nelson picks up his 3rd foul, over the back, 18:35. Singler wants the ball. Claps his hands for it from Henderson, but gives it back when he doesn’t see anything. Next trip – he drives right inside, spins, handles, gets the mop-haired kid all kinds of confused and gets right up to the backboard and kisses it off the glass. “The handle! The delivery! The smooch!” Awww, beautiful pass from Paulus to Nelson threading through the running defense – but Nelson can’t finish!
Oh, s***. They make us pay on the double team, hitting 2 consecutive threes from either corner, and suddenly the deficit is 53-61 with 5 minutes gone. Can’t believe it. Who are these people? Aren’t they supposed to be 4-10???? Did they just decide to roll all their energy into one against us?? As the wolf howl permeates the gym, the crowd goes nuts, baying for an upset. C’mon, Devils. Shore up. Take them off the dribble. Attack that zone! C’mon, Nelson! This is March now! You gonna let them walk all over you?
Ron – sorry, Ferguson – with the put-back? “He’s not supposed to do that!” Seconds after they show Gonzales having reached his career high with 13 points despite there still being 15 minutes left in the half . . what has this game become? 55-61 already, on track to the 90s? And we can’t keep up! As they kill us with another transition 3 from Gonzales – it is 55-66. The deficit is the largest of the game so far, at ELEVEN. WOW. I am speechless. What’s going on? Do we not want to win number 800 for Coach K? Do we not care about winning the ACC conference outright?
Oh, we care. We care very much. Singler runs the floor and raises his hand to show he’s wide open, and Henderson gets him the ball low in the paint, where all he has to do is eye the basket and put it up. 57-66. Off a deadball, Coach K immediately sends in 3 fresh bodies: Nolan, DeMarcus, and Taylor. It doesn’t help though. McCauley burns our interior defense twice, once with a step-through and layup, and once with an uncontested jumper. Meanwhile, we keep up our brick-fest. 57-70 now, with every tick of the clock threatening to turn this into another Miami road loss. And now Ben McCauley has hit his season high, with 15 points. Ridiculous. Meanwhile, all our players are looking to hit their season lows. 12 minutes left.
Scheyer lets Gonzales fly by him and then calmly steps over a smidgen for the three. 60-70. Nelson attacks the rim and gets the whistle – awww, the ball rims out. 2 free throws – great job, D! – 62-72. King gets fouled on a 3 pointer, as 2 kids jump out at him as if in a back-alley – and he hits all 3 free throws! Nice! 65-72. But they come right back, with McCauley getting Zoubek called for a foul – and the bucket! No more stompin’ this time? K immediately pulls Zoubek and sends in Kyle. 65-75.
Paulus fouls Johnson 30 feet out from the basket, and I throw up my hands. We’re done. We’re beat. Our defense sucks, we are being forced into a halfcourt game, and we just can’t do anything for some reason against a 2-3 zone. No finishes around the rim. No three-point prowess. No steals or run-outs or anything fun. We are making our living at the free throw line, and thank god we’re quite good there, but they are equally lethal, so that cancels itself out. I squeeze my eyes shut. I have to come to terms with it. We are going to lose. We will finish 2nd in the league. We’ll get a #2 seed. And that’s going to be fine. We have overachieved all year anyway. 7:53.
Do we have a window of opportunity? Do we? They are in foul trouble, with 2 guys having 4 fouls each, Fells and Grant. Gonzales and Johnson each with 3. Let’s attack them! No more threes! They’re obviously not falling, and we’re being out-rebounded terribly to boot. And just as I say that – Greg “never say die” Paulus with a ridiculously long 3, just catches and shoots – FOR THREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 70-75!!!
We trap, make the big guy handle the ball and make the decision – and off the hand-off – Thomas with a STEAL! Taps it out and runs off – but “jog” is maybe a better word – and just as he’s going up for what is seemingly an uncontested layup – in flies Costner to throw him to the floor! INTENTIONAL FOUL! YES SIR! Singler grabs him immediately as he gets up to avoid any Ts, and the officials are quickly talking to them, explaining the situation, not wanting any confrontations. On the replay – oh yeah, Costner was going for his hands, his head, actually, rather than any part of the ball – but you know what? The announcers are right. Off that steal, Thomas should’ve been sprinting like hellfire down there to make the dunk, not half jogging. C’mon, Lance – we need all the points we can get, and whatever happened to aggressive Lance from the UNC game? But, to be fair, I think it was his first steal in the open court like that, and he just got too excited.
So now he’s going to shoot two. Thank God it’s two and the ball – otherwise, we get no good out of this. And I’m right. Look, I want to believe – really, I do. Nelson has been soooo solid at the line, making ALL his free throws. But Lance? “You know he’s not a good free throw shooter.” Yeah, I know. His teammates know. We all know. And though Lance tries, and tries hard – thumping his chest, nodding vigorously to the encouraging words of Greg and Kyle and Nelson – he just can’t hit it. First one, short. Second one, short. You just can’t leave a 50% FT shooter all alone down there for the intentional foul, and then expect him to make it in that raucous din. It’s okay, Lance, still 7 minutes left in the game. We get the ball, and what do we do? Drive and kick, baby!!!!! Nelson with the THREEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Aww, perfect!!! 73-75, we’re making a comeback!
Or, um, not so much. They reel off 6 straight, we can’t get our 3s to fall, and now it’s under 5 minutes to play. 73-81, all our hard work has vanished. And I’m really having a problem with Paulus today – what is up with him? A shoot-first PG now more and more – yes, we needed your scoring last year, but how about finding some other people now before launching a long three from about 30 feet out, 5 seconds into the shot clock? Have you looked at your box score today?
Singler with another 3 – and miss. “They’re taking a LOT of 3 point shots,” the announcers say, shaking their heads. No kidding. Nelson agrees, and goes to his specialty – attack the rim! – and gets the foul. Pleading the case for the basket too – no. 4 for 4 from the line today! But no go on this one. The roar of the crowd as the Wolfpack pull it off the front iron is just chilling to the bone. 4:10 left, and we’re still down a miserable 8 points. No one is stepping up. No Nolan going coast to coast. No Scheyer stealing and trapping and firing off 3-bombs from all over the court. Ah, but here is Scheyer – with a STEAL! And the subsequent THREE! by Paulus in transition! 76-81, 3:47 left. Henderson is fouled on the way to the basket and makes 1 of 2, 77-83. 3 minutes left.
DeMarcus Nelson grabs the loose ball and tears up the court, zip-zagging right, left, then going all the way to the basket! And fouled! By Gavin Grant, who’s GONE. Wow, poor Gavin. He only nets 6 points today before fouling out. On Senior Day, no less. But his team is up, aren’t they? He goes to the bench with a dazed look on his face, so disappointed. Their lone senior leader. Meanwhile, our lone senior leader is at the line shooting free throws . . and willing to do whatever it takes . . even defy his normal 60% free throw shooting percentage, to get us the win. First one . . good. Second one . . GOOD! 79-83!
Awwwwww – NO! Singler with such a cheap, cheap foul away from the basket that the announcers call it from “Finley’s Basement.” Oh, nice, Gonzales misses his first. Makes the 2nd. 79-84.
Nelson takes it up the court, and everyone has that look in their eye, glancing at each other – this is it, it’s crunch time. We better win this one, guys, if we have any hope of surviving tournament games. We are so close! We can’t let these ones get away! Think Sweet 16. You’re 2 minutes away from the Elite 8 – or going home. Which one do you want? Do you want it???? That damn zone again. But we are patient. And we run the classic Duke offense – crisp passes around the perimeter, move the ball around, screen, Henderson, Paulus drives, Scheyer spins, someone on defense falls down, and that leaves a wide open DeMarcus Nelson, who has the luxury of pausing and realizing he’s not beyond the arc, then stepping back, before jumping and launching – and it’s the MONEY BALL! Oh, NELSON!!! 82-84, 2:04 and we’ve got a shot! We’re alive! We can come back!!!
Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me! Kid-ding!!! Greg Paulus for THREEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And that’s courtesy of G Henderson with the scissor-kick in the lane to give up that 2, in order to trade for 3, and Greg Paulus rewards him big by being wide open on the perimeter. Classic, classic, classic Duke shot. TIE GAME, 85-85, 1:30 to go! Goddamn! Have we ever led by more than a few seconds? Or ever, in the 2nd half???
“F***.” Damn. Fourth foul on Singler, 1:11 away from the ball. McCauley on the line, but like Gonzales before him, he can only make 1 of 2. Watching that ball bounce out – Kyle yells to his teammates to get in position, get ready, box out for this crucial rebound, and bends down in warrior stance. His hands on his knees, he’s ready to use his muscle and his remaining strength to keep #23 out of the lane for the rebound. His 3s are not falling – due to some mystical ailment – but he’ll help out, he’ll continue to contribute, in any way possible. There is so much fight in him that I want to leap out into the TV and help him rebound. Just one more minute! One minute, between victory – or defeat.
Nelson is our go-to guy. He’s gonna take it. With the bigger McCauley on him – he drives right away, no hesitation, no fake, just drives, and the whistle cuts across the raucous din of the arena like a knife. McCauley looks exasperated – throws up his hands, complaining about Nelson with the hook afterwards. Hey, you fouled first, buddy. Speed trumps size! 85-86, 1:01 remaining, and Nelson . . my God, how solid has he been? His free throws, long a hole in his game, is as air-tight as his defense today. With so much imperfection everywhere else – this perfection, no matter how small it might seem to the casual bystander, is HUGE to me. It speaks volumes about his attitude . . his emotions . . his will. And as he hits the first one – phew! TIES IT, 86-86. Second one, as Singler prepares to fight for the rebound – GOES! AWWWWW! 87-86!!! It’s a ballgame! Our FIRST LEAD of the half!
They go twice to McCauley in the post. The first one is tipped out by Singler, but they don’t learn, and try again, with the second one erratic and too high and sails harmlessly out of bounds. Turnover, Duke ball. 40 ticks left. If we can hold onto this possession . . .
4 corners. Paulus dribbling. This familiar sight when we have the lead is suddenly so alien that I have to come out of my seat and remember to breathe. How can they be so calm??? Singler making small moves to keep them honest. 40 seconds left . . 30 . . 20 . . 19, with 14 on the shot clock, and Coach K calls a timeout. Who will take the last shot?
Out of the timeout – Scheyer now handles the ball off the inbounds – Nelson tries to drive but finds no seams – their defense is suddenly air-tight – and with the clock running down, it’s Scheyer, with a desperation three at the buzzer – NO GOOD! Damn! But they only have 5 seconds left, and their shot – goes nowhere! DUKE WINS! DUKE WINS! OH MY GOD! 87-86??????
And the first thing Scheyer does is go hug Coach K. Then the entire team is on him, surrounding him, congratulating him on his 800th victory, and K is smiling, knowing that it was his kids that pulled it out. Extraordinary. What a game, huh? The Wolfpack played gangbusters, Gonzales stepping up big – but they couldn’t keep their composure in the heat of the fire, and they lost. Now they’re on the court with dazed looks in their eyes, like they can’t believe it – I can’t believe it – how did it happen?? Our 3s weren’t falling all night – and then suddenly we make back to back threes for the tie? DeMarcus Nelson, whose free throws have been suspect all year long – suddenly makes everything they give him, for the lead? WOW. Just . . wow. I still can’t believe that we’ve won. It’s almost illogical. I still feel like, somehow, we’d lost. We played poorly all game long. There was no sustained run to get us back in the ballgame. We NEVER LED after the 7:52 mark in the first half – until now, until deep, deep in the second half when the game is nearly done – and then suddenly, with 1 minute left to go, and the clock stopped, on the free throw line – we get it back. Our senior leader gets it back for us. Our poise. Our fight. Our cohesion.
CONGRATS, COACH K, ON WIN #800!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Post-game thoughts:
One man did: Mike Krzyzewski. He has taken Duke this year – and actually made them underrated! No small feat! And today, he is going for his 800th career win. Whichever Wolfpack we will see today – the team that gave us hell in the first half back on Jan 31, or the one that’s lost 6 straight since, getting no closer than 10 points in any of them? Doesn’t matter. We will be ready. If college basketball is a game of emotions – hey, just look at what Indiana did to Michigan State when told they might lose their coach, Kelvin Sampson. We will be ready. Senior Day or not.
Courtney Fells attacks Kyle Singler on the very first possession and draws a blocking foul in 14 seconds flat. UGH! They go ZONE on Duke, a 2-3 eerily similar to what Miami employed so well, and now let’s see if Duke had learned anything from that game? We pass the ball around, set some screens, Paulus draws 2 defenders because of his ability to drill the 3, and then he sends it to Singler at the top of the key for a long 3 – too hard – but the rebound bounces off to Thomas, who gives it to Nelson for the point-blank layup – missed! but Henderson grabs the rebound and goes right into attack mode! Fouled. 2-2.
Oh my – HEY! Son of a bitch! Greg is bleeding under his right eye. The blood is quickly spilling over the wound, and he wipes it off without a word, getting up in a maelstrom of hate. The NC State crowd is booing him, loudly – are they blind, or heartless, or both? And as he jogs back to the bench, he turns around to say something, or react to something, with a withering look that all but screams “Hey! Back off! Let me know how you feel after you get socked in the face.” As they show the replay: it is the same old trick, and the kid should be tossed for this second attempt. In the first NC State game, Javier Gonzales swings a vicious forearm to dislodge Greg from his side – right in front of the Duke bench. No call. Greg goes to the bench with a groggy look, but later comes back to scorch them with 5 three-pointers. In this game, barely 2 minutes in, Gonzales pulls the exact same kind of crap. Sick of Duke’s full-court pressure, he swings his elbow right into Greg’s face – and again, this foul does not get called what it rightfully is – intentional. Maybe even flagrant. The announcers agree that it’s way out of line. “That looked like an intentional foul.” “Sure was.” But of course, as we go back to the game, no such foul is called. Play on. 2-4, 18:40.
Off the inbounds play, Nelson is promptly fouled by Tracy Smith, a guy I didn’t even know was on the team, much less in the starting lineup. That’s 4 fouls on 4 possessions, not even counting Gonzales’ on Paulus. Nelson knocks down the first . . and the second! Hurray, Nelson! They show Greg being patched up on the bench, and the announcers give him props for wanting to get back into the game, saying “It hurts Mom more than anyone! I assure you.” Sure . . go tell that to Singler, who has an ACC-high of 21 stitches so far.
5th foul on 5 possessions now, as Courtney Fells gets loose and Gerald Henderson flies in to swat the ball away, but gets his hands too, and Fells goes down hard onto the floor. For a brief second I’m afraid that he’ll get a bloody nose or something, and then Henderson’s “reputation” from last year will wrongly influence the officials to . . never mind. Thank God Fells is fine as he gets up. Sinks both free throws.
Oh, that’s crazy. Absolutely insane. Nolan Smith runs with Gonzales trying to pressure him, and I can’t even see nothing, but they call a foul. Coach K is understandably livid – throwing an elbow to demonstrate the injustice of the foul on Paulus being equated the same as this tiny cheap foul by our freshman. Play goes on. Wow, Gavin Grant under all kinds of pressure by Nelson buries an off-kilter 15 footer! Then Gonzales trips Nolan, sending him flat onto the floor, and finally we get rid of him with 2 fouls to the bench. 4-8, 17:39.
I hate this zone. It’s so hard to play against, we can’t drive and kick, and it sure ain’t pretty to watch. It will contain us to the low 70s in the score, if that. But Greg answers back emphatically with a THREE!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let’s get that heated up!!! A looong 3, with a hand flying in his face too! Then Kyle, having missed his first 3, is not going to go 1 for 6 anymore, and, zone or not, bullies his way inside, gets the ball, doesn’t want to settle for some turnaround jumper, and continues to attack the basket against the 6’7” svelte Grant all the way in before drawing the foul. As he’s shooting his free throws . . huh. A huge round of applause erupts, and I’m looking around for the celebrity that must’ve just stepped into the game. Ah ha – Ron Weasley from the Harry Potter movies is on the squad! That’s definitely someone we didn’t scout! As Ron, under the moniker “Trevor Ferguson”, with a head full of moppy-red hair, steps to the free throw sidelines, Kyle sinks his second free throw. We’re perfect at the line so far! 9-10.
Brandon Costner is in, and immediately swipes the ball away from Paulus, 20 feet in front of their goal. S***! But we dish it right back and draw the offensive charge. Paulus then gets too aggressive with 2 consecutive misses – both too early in the shot clock and too hard, bouncing off the back iron each time. We are air-tight defensively, though, with Zoubek scaring the heck out of a NC State guy and then Greg taking a charge from their backup PG, Marques Johnson, who now also collects 2 fouls and goes to the bench. Holy cow, did Fells just block Zoubek?
Nelson is whistled for an offensive foul, his second, and must sit at the 13:01 mark. This is not good; they are getting anything they want, while we are . . 1 of 10??? Is that right? As Nolan misses . . we’re taking shots too fast, too hurried, and too many long jump shots. Have some patience! Let’s get some ball movement and exploit this zone! As big Z finally ends the drought with a put-back. Henderson with that great loping stride coming up the court, is determined to right the ship – and attacks the heart of the zone defense, throwing up a last-minute runner as the whistle is blown that goes IN! Awwww – NO BASKET??? Why the hell not? Oh, whatever, foul before the shot. I’ll rather have the shot. But G erases my worries with 2 great free throws. 13-15.
JJ Hickson gets free for an easy deuce, but Jon Scheyer penetrates and single-handedly folds the zone defense from a 2-3 into a 0-5, herding almost everyone back into the low block, before sending a breathless pass out to Henderson, who fires – and HITS!!!!!!!!!!!!! THREE-BALL! “Mm-mm!” The announcer says, because there are no words to describe this – hilarious!
G loved that trick by Scheyer, and emulates him the next trip down, driving right into the heart of the defense and folding them like an accordion to finish at the rim. 20-21, 10:17. D-Marc now comes in for G, and immediately, he makes his presence felt with a deadly THREE! Transition basket, before that damn defense is set! For the LEAD, Markie! “You leave that guy alone and you can say good night!’ 23-21, our first lead of the day, 9:51.
The offense is finally starting to come alive. First, Kyle Singler does a great defensive job on Hickson, putting up a wall in front of him and making him lose the ball out of bounds. Then Paulus with a snap pass to Nelson underneath the basket for a layup – our 6’4” guard, posting up! Kyle misses a soft 6-footer, but the next time down takes it more aggressively to the hoop and draws the foul on Hickson, sinking both free throws. This is an astounding statistic: both teams are hitting free throws at a 100% clip! Duke: 12 of 12. NC State: 10 of 10. As Thomas draws the offensive charge from Hickson to help out Zoubek with the double team – great job, Lance! – he’s wearing a black bandage around his right wrist? Oh no – is this another unannounced injury? That’s now 2 fouls on JJ Hickson as well, 8:01 remaining, and he sits.
Oh, great overhead pass from Nolan to Zoubek, who almost cannot believe it – he’s wide open! – and he does a double take before putting it up there, almost disappointed that he isn’t challenged more! Yo, Brian! Hickson’s out! No one’s gonna block you anymore if you go up there strong – and fast! 29-26!!!
Ugh, I spoke too fast. Gonzales takes a 3 and nails it – right in Nolan’s face! Then – he blows by Nolan and no one rotates over??? We are one and done at the other end, Thomas can’t make a zero-range put-back, and it’s 29-31 in a heartbeat. Nolan with a tough pass up high to Zoubek, who can’t handle it, and that’s another 35-second shot clock wasted in about 2. They get a slam at the other end. This is alarming: Duke has only made 7 of 22 field goals??? While NC State only needs 14 to make 10. Wow. Utterly unreal. In that light, being down 29-33 is almost miraculous. 6:29.
McCauley with a 3 point play – man, he’s showboatin’ and stompin’ like he’s never gotten a 3 point play before! – and now the deficit is a dangerous 31-38 with 4:49 left. They are hitting 71% - yes, 71%! I’m aware that we usually allow a high percentage of 2s around the basket, due to our lack of interior defense – but where is our trump card? Where is the havoc we generally wreck on opposing backcourts to negate that high percentage allowed? This is not exactly a name-brand backcourt we’re facing, guys! Ah, Scheyer! Who comes to the rescue by drawing the 3rd foul on Fells and stops the bleeding with a pair of free throws. 33-38, 3:47. Is that a piped-in wolf howl in the RBC Center I hear?
Duke is now trying a 2-3 zone ourselves. Give you a little taste of your own medicine! Well, what do you know, they hit a 3. Way to go. 33-41?? Henderson spins, shoots, it doesn’t work, but King grabs the offensive board and kicks it out to Scheyer, who drains the THREE! 36-41. Paulus then tries a 3, but his shot has been awful all night. OH, HENDERSON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! REJECTION CITY! From what looked like a surefire dunk – G is there to send that out of the gym – and as we pick it up and go the other way – Paulus finally hits with a good-looking THREE from the top of the circle! 39-41!!!!
We go back to zone, but King is called for a foul trying to get the steal. Then he draws one on the other end from Horner, but . . wow. Poor kid can’t buy one. First miss at the line by either team tonight. Misses BOTH?? Scheyer draws a foul and gives us 2 more, but now we go to a 1-2-2 press, and they beat it with ease, getting an uncontested layup at the other end. It is now 41-47, and the crowd is just going berserk. Is an upset of the #6 team in the country in the offing? Can a 4-10 team beat a 11-2 team? Can it???? Timeout, Duke, 47 seconds left.
KING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH, SWEET JESUS! He FINALLY gets one! A deep three from the corner from a Henderson kick-out, and Taylor King is on the board! 44-47. 22 seconds left, they hold for the last shot, and our zone forces a 3 from Ron Weasley, who can’t hit. Halftime, and that wolf howl is sounding a little better and better with each glance at the score.
Second half: First possession for Duke, Paulus comes out on fire and a great drive into the paint, gets the runner – but crap, offensive foul? Greg claps his hands in frustration. They get a put-back at the other end, but we don’t care, we’re running the floor, G sees the zone defense nowhere to be found and cackles with delight, zeroing in like a cat to a mouse for the DUNK – OH! But fouled!!! UGHHHHH! Yet he won’t be denied, sinking both free throws despite all those waving flag balloons in the endzone. 46-49.
OHHHHHH, SINGLER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Just taps that ball out of Fells’ hands and out in front of him, one smooth motion, no look back, no scramble, no sweat even, just blazing up the court and then the emphatic DUNK! OOWWWHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Duke is flexing its muscle! 48-49.
Nelson picks up his 3rd foul, over the back, 18:35. Singler wants the ball. Claps his hands for it from Henderson, but gives it back when he doesn’t see anything. Next trip – he drives right inside, spins, handles, gets the mop-haired kid all kinds of confused and gets right up to the backboard and kisses it off the glass. “The handle! The delivery! The smooch!” Awww, beautiful pass from Paulus to Nelson threading through the running defense – but Nelson can’t finish!
Oh, s***. They make us pay on the double team, hitting 2 consecutive threes from either corner, and suddenly the deficit is 53-61 with 5 minutes gone. Can’t believe it. Who are these people? Aren’t they supposed to be 4-10???? Did they just decide to roll all their energy into one against us?? As the wolf howl permeates the gym, the crowd goes nuts, baying for an upset. C’mon, Devils. Shore up. Take them off the dribble. Attack that zone! C’mon, Nelson! This is March now! You gonna let them walk all over you?
Ron – sorry, Ferguson – with the put-back? “He’s not supposed to do that!” Seconds after they show Gonzales having reached his career high with 13 points despite there still being 15 minutes left in the half . . what has this game become? 55-61 already, on track to the 90s? And we can’t keep up! As they kill us with another transition 3 from Gonzales – it is 55-66. The deficit is the largest of the game so far, at ELEVEN. WOW. I am speechless. What’s going on? Do we not want to win number 800 for Coach K? Do we not care about winning the ACC conference outright?
Oh, we care. We care very much. Singler runs the floor and raises his hand to show he’s wide open, and Henderson gets him the ball low in the paint, where all he has to do is eye the basket and put it up. 57-66. Off a deadball, Coach K immediately sends in 3 fresh bodies: Nolan, DeMarcus, and Taylor. It doesn’t help though. McCauley burns our interior defense twice, once with a step-through and layup, and once with an uncontested jumper. Meanwhile, we keep up our brick-fest. 57-70 now, with every tick of the clock threatening to turn this into another Miami road loss. And now Ben McCauley has hit his season high, with 15 points. Ridiculous. Meanwhile, all our players are looking to hit their season lows. 12 minutes left.
Scheyer lets Gonzales fly by him and then calmly steps over a smidgen for the three. 60-70. Nelson attacks the rim and gets the whistle – awww, the ball rims out. 2 free throws – great job, D! – 62-72. King gets fouled on a 3 pointer, as 2 kids jump out at him as if in a back-alley – and he hits all 3 free throws! Nice! 65-72. But they come right back, with McCauley getting Zoubek called for a foul – and the bucket! No more stompin’ this time? K immediately pulls Zoubek and sends in Kyle. 65-75.
Paulus fouls Johnson 30 feet out from the basket, and I throw up my hands. We’re done. We’re beat. Our defense sucks, we are being forced into a halfcourt game, and we just can’t do anything for some reason against a 2-3 zone. No finishes around the rim. No three-point prowess. No steals or run-outs or anything fun. We are making our living at the free throw line, and thank god we’re quite good there, but they are equally lethal, so that cancels itself out. I squeeze my eyes shut. I have to come to terms with it. We are going to lose. We will finish 2nd in the league. We’ll get a #2 seed. And that’s going to be fine. We have overachieved all year anyway. 7:53.
Do we have a window of opportunity? Do we? They are in foul trouble, with 2 guys having 4 fouls each, Fells and Grant. Gonzales and Johnson each with 3. Let’s attack them! No more threes! They’re obviously not falling, and we’re being out-rebounded terribly to boot. And just as I say that – Greg “never say die” Paulus with a ridiculously long 3, just catches and shoots – FOR THREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 70-75!!!
We trap, make the big guy handle the ball and make the decision – and off the hand-off – Thomas with a STEAL! Taps it out and runs off – but “jog” is maybe a better word – and just as he’s going up for what is seemingly an uncontested layup – in flies Costner to throw him to the floor! INTENTIONAL FOUL! YES SIR! Singler grabs him immediately as he gets up to avoid any Ts, and the officials are quickly talking to them, explaining the situation, not wanting any confrontations. On the replay – oh yeah, Costner was going for his hands, his head, actually, rather than any part of the ball – but you know what? The announcers are right. Off that steal, Thomas should’ve been sprinting like hellfire down there to make the dunk, not half jogging. C’mon, Lance – we need all the points we can get, and whatever happened to aggressive Lance from the UNC game? But, to be fair, I think it was his first steal in the open court like that, and he just got too excited.
So now he’s going to shoot two. Thank God it’s two and the ball – otherwise, we get no good out of this. And I’m right. Look, I want to believe – really, I do. Nelson has been soooo solid at the line, making ALL his free throws. But Lance? “You know he’s not a good free throw shooter.” Yeah, I know. His teammates know. We all know. And though Lance tries, and tries hard – thumping his chest, nodding vigorously to the encouraging words of Greg and Kyle and Nelson – he just can’t hit it. First one, short. Second one, short. You just can’t leave a 50% FT shooter all alone down there for the intentional foul, and then expect him to make it in that raucous din. It’s okay, Lance, still 7 minutes left in the game. We get the ball, and what do we do? Drive and kick, baby!!!!! Nelson with the THREEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Aww, perfect!!! 73-75, we’re making a comeback!
Or, um, not so much. They reel off 6 straight, we can’t get our 3s to fall, and now it’s under 5 minutes to play. 73-81, all our hard work has vanished. And I’m really having a problem with Paulus today – what is up with him? A shoot-first PG now more and more – yes, we needed your scoring last year, but how about finding some other people now before launching a long three from about 30 feet out, 5 seconds into the shot clock? Have you looked at your box score today?
Singler with another 3 – and miss. “They’re taking a LOT of 3 point shots,” the announcers say, shaking their heads. No kidding. Nelson agrees, and goes to his specialty – attack the rim! – and gets the foul. Pleading the case for the basket too – no. 4 for 4 from the line today! But no go on this one. The roar of the crowd as the Wolfpack pull it off the front iron is just chilling to the bone. 4:10 left, and we’re still down a miserable 8 points. No one is stepping up. No Nolan going coast to coast. No Scheyer stealing and trapping and firing off 3-bombs from all over the court. Ah, but here is Scheyer – with a STEAL! And the subsequent THREE! by Paulus in transition! 76-81, 3:47 left. Henderson is fouled on the way to the basket and makes 1 of 2, 77-83. 3 minutes left.
DeMarcus Nelson grabs the loose ball and tears up the court, zip-zagging right, left, then going all the way to the basket! And fouled! By Gavin Grant, who’s GONE. Wow, poor Gavin. He only nets 6 points today before fouling out. On Senior Day, no less. But his team is up, aren’t they? He goes to the bench with a dazed look on his face, so disappointed. Their lone senior leader. Meanwhile, our lone senior leader is at the line shooting free throws . . and willing to do whatever it takes . . even defy his normal 60% free throw shooting percentage, to get us the win. First one . . good. Second one . . GOOD! 79-83!
Awwwwww – NO! Singler with such a cheap, cheap foul away from the basket that the announcers call it from “Finley’s Basement.” Oh, nice, Gonzales misses his first. Makes the 2nd. 79-84.
Nelson takes it up the court, and everyone has that look in their eye, glancing at each other – this is it, it’s crunch time. We better win this one, guys, if we have any hope of surviving tournament games. We are so close! We can’t let these ones get away! Think Sweet 16. You’re 2 minutes away from the Elite 8 – or going home. Which one do you want? Do you want it???? That damn zone again. But we are patient. And we run the classic Duke offense – crisp passes around the perimeter, move the ball around, screen, Henderson, Paulus drives, Scheyer spins, someone on defense falls down, and that leaves a wide open DeMarcus Nelson, who has the luxury of pausing and realizing he’s not beyond the arc, then stepping back, before jumping and launching – and it’s the MONEY BALL! Oh, NELSON!!! 82-84, 2:04 and we’ve got a shot! We’re alive! We can come back!!!
Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me! Kid-ding!!! Greg Paulus for THREEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And that’s courtesy of G Henderson with the scissor-kick in the lane to give up that 2, in order to trade for 3, and Greg Paulus rewards him big by being wide open on the perimeter. Classic, classic, classic Duke shot. TIE GAME, 85-85, 1:30 to go! Goddamn! Have we ever led by more than a few seconds? Or ever, in the 2nd half???
“F***.” Damn. Fourth foul on Singler, 1:11 away from the ball. McCauley on the line, but like Gonzales before him, he can only make 1 of 2. Watching that ball bounce out – Kyle yells to his teammates to get in position, get ready, box out for this crucial rebound, and bends down in warrior stance. His hands on his knees, he’s ready to use his muscle and his remaining strength to keep #23 out of the lane for the rebound. His 3s are not falling – due to some mystical ailment – but he’ll help out, he’ll continue to contribute, in any way possible. There is so much fight in him that I want to leap out into the TV and help him rebound. Just one more minute! One minute, between victory – or defeat.
Nelson is our go-to guy. He’s gonna take it. With the bigger McCauley on him – he drives right away, no hesitation, no fake, just drives, and the whistle cuts across the raucous din of the arena like a knife. McCauley looks exasperated – throws up his hands, complaining about Nelson with the hook afterwards. Hey, you fouled first, buddy. Speed trumps size! 85-86, 1:01 remaining, and Nelson . . my God, how solid has he been? His free throws, long a hole in his game, is as air-tight as his defense today. With so much imperfection everywhere else – this perfection, no matter how small it might seem to the casual bystander, is HUGE to me. It speaks volumes about his attitude . . his emotions . . his will. And as he hits the first one – phew! TIES IT, 86-86. Second one, as Singler prepares to fight for the rebound – GOES! AWWWWW! 87-86!!! It’s a ballgame! Our FIRST LEAD of the half!
They go twice to McCauley in the post. The first one is tipped out by Singler, but they don’t learn, and try again, with the second one erratic and too high and sails harmlessly out of bounds. Turnover, Duke ball. 40 ticks left. If we can hold onto this possession . . .
4 corners. Paulus dribbling. This familiar sight when we have the lead is suddenly so alien that I have to come out of my seat and remember to breathe. How can they be so calm??? Singler making small moves to keep them honest. 40 seconds left . . 30 . . 20 . . 19, with 14 on the shot clock, and Coach K calls a timeout. Who will take the last shot?
Out of the timeout – Scheyer now handles the ball off the inbounds – Nelson tries to drive but finds no seams – their defense is suddenly air-tight – and with the clock running down, it’s Scheyer, with a desperation three at the buzzer – NO GOOD! Damn! But they only have 5 seconds left, and their shot – goes nowhere! DUKE WINS! DUKE WINS! OH MY GOD! 87-86??????
And the first thing Scheyer does is go hug Coach K. Then the entire team is on him, surrounding him, congratulating him on his 800th victory, and K is smiling, knowing that it was his kids that pulled it out. Extraordinary. What a game, huh? The Wolfpack played gangbusters, Gonzales stepping up big – but they couldn’t keep their composure in the heat of the fire, and they lost. Now they’re on the court with dazed looks in their eyes, like they can’t believe it – I can’t believe it – how did it happen?? Our 3s weren’t falling all night – and then suddenly we make back to back threes for the tie? DeMarcus Nelson, whose free throws have been suspect all year long – suddenly makes everything they give him, for the lead? WOW. Just . . wow. I still can’t believe that we’ve won. It’s almost illogical. I still feel like, somehow, we’d lost. We played poorly all game long. There was no sustained run to get us back in the ballgame. We NEVER LED after the 7:52 mark in the first half – until now, until deep, deep in the second half when the game is nearly done – and then suddenly, with 1 minute left to go, and the clock stopped, on the free throw line – we get it back. Our senior leader gets it back for us. Our poise. Our fight. Our cohesion.
CONGRATS, COACH K, ON WIN #800!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Post-game thoughts:
Scheyer is so funny: “[We] definitely [made] it as memorable as possible.” Oh, did you ever! You gave him every type of suspense you could!
This game had it all: there was blood within the first 2 minutes, a surprise 2-3 zone that would frustrate us all game long, full court pressure, amazing 100% FT shooting for a long while, a Singler dunk, a King three, a lot of NC State players that apparently weren’t on the scouting report but wound up with career highs, 9 guys who played 8 minutes or more, an intentional foul, a couple comeback bids snuffed out, a litany of insanely gut-wrenching wolf howls piped into the arena, a late barrage of threes, a last critical defensive stop, two nail-biting Nelson free throws, one last possession running down the clock to perfection, and:
One sweet victory on the first day of March that signifies this team’s willingness and poise to fight through a brick wall to get this win. Did I miss anything? 87-86. We wouldn’t have had it any other way.
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