Duke 79 UNLV 77 Anniversary

[wsb3]

As a long time Duke fan my favorite will always be the first national championship..I waited a long time & suffered through seven previous final fours waiting for that elusive NC.

To get to that Monday night game they beat Vegas on this date 24 years ago today.

I watched it alone as I did every game during the tourney. When it concluded on that Saturday night I walked into my garage and screamed for ten minutes in relief. My best dog ever, Pete, a mixed black lab looked at me with great concern. Remarkable that after that win Coach K was able to get them to refocus for "Next Play." It started immediately after the buzzer sounded. I will never forget him with the palms down instructing his team to stop celebrating. They had one more to go.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjJP2epDtbE

[BigWayne]

I was seated at the 3rd seat from the end of the bar on the 2nd floor of some house in Buckhead (Atlanta) that was being run by Duke alumni as a bar. It was closed by the next year, but was a great spot to watch the games in the spring of 91.

[rfaison]

As a long time Duke fan my favorite will always be the first national championship..I waited a long time & suffered through seven previous final fours waiting for that elusive NC.

To get to that Monday night game they beat Vegas on this date 24 years ago today.

I watched it alone as I did every game during the tourney. When it concluded on that Saturday night I walked into my garage and screamed for ten minutes in relief. My best dog ever, Pete, a mixed black lab looked at me with great concern. Remarkable that after that win Coach K was able to get them to refocus for "Next Play." It started immediately after the buzzer sounded. I will never forget him with the palms down instructing his team to stop celebrating. They had one more to go.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjJP2epDtbE

I'm with you. That's my favorite as well (I can still hear Brent Musburger saying - seemingly every other minute - during Final Fours until we finally won "Duke's the team that been to FF the most times without ever winning a NC - grrrr) and I also remember that scene along with Bobby Hurley running down the hallway to the locker room shouting "we have one more, we have one more".

And a story that came out later when Christian and Brian came onto the bus to go Sunday practice wearing some sort of bold/gaudy/??? hats and later K used that as part of his "I don't like your attitude ..." talk with/at them to bring them back to the business at hand.

I was thinking about the UNLV game during Notre Dame-UK game and wondering how his experience on the bench as K's assistant may have been something Mike Brey drew on to prepare his team and himself. Such a similar game in many ways.

[Merlindevildog91]

I was in an apartment in Central Campus with a couple more law school students and some friends/spouses/significant others. We had burgers and beer. When we won, we agreed to wear the same clothing and sit in the same seats for the championship game as we had for the semifinal.

For me, the week preceding the game was most memorable because my classmate Tim and I decided to go to the Chapel and pray for success. I picked up a pew Bible and opened it at random to the story of David and Goliath.

[moonpie23]

i sat down to watch that game with a very pessimistic outlook. The previous title game still lingered. I told my girlfriend that we were going to get smeared again.

with two min to go, i was a full tilt cray cray....

[dukelifer]

i sat down to watch that game with a very pessimistic outlook. The previous title game still lingered. I told my girlfriend that we were going to get smeared again.

with two min to go, i was a full tilt cray cray....

With under 2:30 to go- Duke was down 5 and Hurley hits a huge 3 without hesitation to cut it to 2 - Duke forces a shot clock violation on the next possession. On an assist from G Hill, Davis drives the baseline and gets fouled with about a minute to go. He makes the free throw. Johnson - an excellent free throw shooter- misses both but there was a lane violation by T Hill and Johnson makes the free throw to tie. Duke holds - T Hill drives for a short jumper- misses and Laettner gets the rebound and gets fouled. After a time out- he calmly hits 2 to go up by 1. 12.7 secs left- UNLV looks to get the last shot- Hunt with Hurley on him takes a long 3 that hits back iron- Hurley grabs the bound and Duke wins!

Brian Davis was huge in that game at the end. Had a couple of dunks, the defensive play that forced the shot clock violation and the drive to go up by one.

In case you were wondering- I did not remember all this. Decided to rewatch the last few minutes- enjoy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csETfUrD6ME

[Stray Gator]

With under 2:30 to go- Duke was down 5 and Hurley hits a huge 3 without hesitation to cut it to 2 - Duke forces a shot clock violation on the next possession. On an assist from G Hill, Davis drives the baseline and gets fouled with about a minute to go. He makes the free throw. Johnson - an excellent free throw shooter- misses both but there was a lane violation by T Hill and Johnson makes the free throw to tie. Duke holds - T Hill drives for a short jumper- misses and Laettner gets the rebound and gets fouled. After a time out- he calmly hits 2 to go up by 1. 12.7 secs left- UNLV looks to get the last shot- Hunt with Hurley on him takes a long 3 that hits back iron- Hurley grabs the bound and Duke wins!

Brian Davis was huge in that game at the end. Had a couple of dunks, the defensive play that forced the shot clock violation and the drive to go up by one.

In case you were wondering- I did not remember all this. Decided to rewatch the last few minutes- enjoy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csETfUrD6ME

I was fortunate enough to be at the game, sitting in the corner of the lower level Duke section with my 12-year-old son. Two moments remain indelibly impressed upon my memory.

First, when UNLV went up by 5 under 3 minutes -- a lead which, in the context of that game, seemed insurmountable -- I turned to my son with a sense of resignation and some consoling words about what an unexpectedly valiant effort this Duke team had given to hang with an undefeated team that was being touted as one of the greatest ever; at that very instant, Hurley surprised everyone in the Hoosier Dome by dribbling up to the top of the key where he normally started the offense and simply launching a three-point shot. When it fell through, it sent a shock wave through the building, because just as everyone was beginning to exhale and settle back to watch what seemed a foregone conclusion to the game, that shot brought the crowd back to the edge of their seats. And when a couple of the UNLV players looked up at the game clock, a sense welled up that somehow the anticipated ending had just been rewritten.

Second, when Laettner was fouled with the score tied and 12.7 seconds left -- remember, he had put up a shot that went in, but it was waved off due to the foul being committed before the shot, which evoked an audible sigh from the Duke section -- after the time out, I'll never forget watching him stand at the free throw line looking up at the basket while waiting to be handed the ball. I remember thinking at that instant that the pressure he must be feeling was unimaginable. Yet he calmly drained both free throws -- drawing no iron at all. At that point, even though there remained 12.7 seconds on the clock, I think everyone in the arena knew that UNLV would fail to score. The way the game had played out in that last three minutes, the hand of fate was manifest, and the outcome was inescapable.

This weekend will mark my third trip to Indy to see Duke play in a Final Four. I'm hoping that, like the first two, this one ends with our guys standing onstage, enjoying their own shining moment -- and that all of us who have the good fortune to be Duke fans come away with yet another collection of indelible memories.

[Newton_14]

With under 2:30 to go- Duke was down 5 and Hurley hits a huge 3 without hesitation to cut it to 2 - Duke forces a shot clock violation on the next possession. On an assist from G Hill, Davis drives the baseline and gets fouled with about a minute to go. He makes the free throw. Johnson - an excellent free throw shooter- misses both but there was a lane violation by T Hill and Johnson makes the free throw to tie. Duke holds - T Hill drives for a short jumper- misses and Laettner gets the rebound and gets fouled. After a time out- he calmly hits 2 to go up by 1. 12.7 secs left- UNLV looks to get the last shot- Hunt with Hurley on him takes a long 3 that hits back iron- Hurley grabs the bound and Duke wins!

Brian Davis was huge in that game at the end. Had a couple of dunks, the defensive play that forced the shot clock violation and the drive to go up by one.

In case you were wondering- I did not remember all this. Decided to rewatch the last few minutes- enjoy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csETfUrD6ME

Just one correction. Laettner's free throws put Duke up by 2 not 1. That last possession by UNLV showed how much it hurt them to not have been in a close game all year. They panicked. Larry Johnson had a great look from 3, but turned it down and dribbled inside the line where he had a good look from 2, but also turned that down, leading to Hunt having to jack up the desperation 3 that bricked.

That Hurley 3 was the biggest shot in Duke's history in my opinion and revealed just how great of player he was. Like you said he never hesitated and drained it. If that shot does not go in and UNLV rebounds it's game over in my opinion. They were so hard to beat and Duke had to play at the highest of high levels to pull it off.

Amazing game. The driving 3 point play by Brian Davis was huge too, as was obviously, Laettner's foul shots.

[wilson]

I love this thread, because it's emblematic of how Duke basketball has been one of the touchstones of my life. I was 8 years old, and I'll still never forget exactly where I was in the house where my mother still lives.

[Tom B.]

I was fortunate enough to be at the game, sitting in the corner of the lower level Duke section with my 12-year-old son. Two moments remain indelibly impressed upon my memory.

First, when UNLV went up by 5 under 3 minutes -- a lead which, in the context of that game, seemed insurmountable -- I turned to my son with a sense of resignation and some consoling words about what an unexpectedly valiant effort this Duke team had given to hang with an undefeated team that was being touted as one of the greatest ever; at that very instant, Hurley surprised everyone in the Hoosier Dome by dribbling up to the top of the key where he normally started the offense and simply launching a three-point shot. When it fell through, it sent a shock wave through the building, because just as everyone was beginning to exhale and settle back to watch what seemed a foregone conclusion to the game, that shot brought the crowd back to the edge of their seats. And when a couple of the UNLV players looked up at the game clock, a sense welled up that somehow the anticipated ending had just been rewritten.

Second, when Laettner was fouled with the score tied and 12.7 seconds left -- remember, he had put up a shot that went in, but it was waved off due to the foul being committed before the shot, which evoked an audible sigh from the Duke section -- after the time out, I'll never forget watching him stand at the free throw line looking up at the basket while waiting to be handed the ball. I remember thinking at that instant that the pressure he must be feeling was unimaginable. Yet he calmly drained both free throws -- drawing no iron at all. At that point, even though there remained 12.7 seconds on the clock, I think everyone in the arena knew that UNLV would fail to score. The way the game had played out in that last three minutes, the hand of fate was manifest, and the outcome was inescapable.

This weekend will mark my third trip to Indy to see Duke play in a Final Four. I'm hoping that, like the first two, this one ends with our guys standing onstage, enjoying their own shining moment -- and that all of us who have the good fortune to be Duke fans come away with yet another collection of indelible memories.

I was there, too -- as a student. My freshman year.

One thing I remember was the sensation in the arena leading up to the tipoff, as the teams warmed up. Even before the game started, there was a palpable tension and crackle in the air, like everyone was thinking, "Maybe we might just see something tonight," but nobody was willing to say it out loud. Then the game starts, and we get a layup by Grant Hill off the opening tip. Holy crap, we're ahead! About 5 seconds later, Anderson Hunt drains a three-pointer. Well, so much for that. But on Duke's next possession, Laettner hits a three-pointer. Then we score again, and again, and again, and before you know it, we're up by nine, 15-6. This...cannot...be....happening! UNLV scores once more before the first TV timeout, so now it's 15-8 and there's a break in the action. For probably the first time since the opening tip, everyone in the arena exhales. Game...f--king...on.

Coming out of the TV timeout, Tarkanian hits us with the amoeba defense. Boom, a 10-3 UNLV run, and we're tied at 18. The rest of the way, it was nip and tuck -- I don't think either team led by more than four at any point, until UNLV went up by five late, just before Hurley hit The Three. After that, well...you know.

[SoCalDukeFan]

I went to the golf course the next game. Saw one of the older members who was not aware of the outcome. Told him Duke had won, he did not believe me.

The Hurley 3 is the biggest shot in Duke basketball history. BTW Billy Packer said Duke did not need a 3 at that time.

Laettner's foul shots were huge.

SoCal

[ice-9]

That Hurley 3 was the biggest shot in Duke's history in my opinion and revealed just how great of player he was.

Grant Hill to Christian Laettner?

[Edouble]

Grant Hill to Christian Laettner?

Well, Coach K has said several times that Hurley's 3 was the biggest shot in Duke history.

[wsb3]

I went to the golf course the next game. Saw one of the older members who was not aware of the outcome. Told him Duke had won, he did not believe me.

The Hurley 3 is the biggest shot in Duke basketball history. BTW Billy Packer said Duke did not need a 3 at that time.

Laettner's foul shots were huge.

SoCal

Agree with Coach K & you that it was the biggest shot in Duke history. I remember when UNLV went up by 5, which I think was their biggest lead, I thought well we have given it a great run & it seems that Billy Packer did not get to finish his sentence that, "Duke did not need a 3," before Hurley had launched it & I remember okay, we are right here. This might just be our time. Only thing that would have been better if it that was the National Championship Game.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Was visiting my grandmother (God rest her soul) in Sanford, NC. Remember sitting on her living room floor watching with her, my parents, and my uncle. I remember my disbelief (still my overwhelming takeaway from the end of that game) that Larry Johnson didn't take his shot at the end. I remember two days later (at age 12) thinking that FINALLY Duke had won a national championship and my long nightmare was over.

[DU82]

Grant Hill to Christian Laettner?

Without Hurley's three, I don't think you have Duke-Kentucky the next year.

Probably better to call The Three the most important shot in Duke ball history.

[dukelifer]

Just one correction. Laettner's free throws put Duke up by 2 not 1. That last possession by UNLV showed how much it hurt them to not have been in a close game all year. They panicked. Larry Johnson had a great look from 3, but turned it down and dribbled inside the line where he had a good look from 2, but also turned that down, leading to Hunt having to jack up the desperation 3 that bricked.

That Hurley 3 was the biggest shot in Duke's history in my opinion and revealed just how great of player he was. Like you said he never hesitated and drained it. If that shot does not go in and UNLV rebounds it's game over in my opinion. They were so hard to beat and Duke had to play at the highest of high levels to pull it off.

Amazing game. The driving 3 point play by Brian Davis was huge too, as was obviously, Laettner's foul shots.

Thanks for the assist In that last stretch of the game- Grant - the Freshman- made two boneheaded turnovers. He also made a couple of big plays- a big steal for a layin and got some tough rebounds. But if you watch the two teams- Duke looked like a college team and UNLV looked like pros. They were so long and fast. Duke was clearly holding on for dear life. UNLV lost Davis several times and he delivered. It was a team effort and Duke made big plays and UNLV panicked a bit at the end. Larry Johnson's poor decision was huge for Duke. He not only hesitated but put Hunt in a horrible position to make a play. But in the end the good guys won.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

With under 2:30 to go- Duke was down 5 and Hurley hits a huge 3 without hesitation to cut it to 2 - Duke forces a shot clock violation on the next possession. On an assist from G Hill, Davis drives the baseline and gets fouled with about a minute to go. He makes the free throw. Johnson - an excellent free throw shooter- misses both but there was a lane violation by T Hill and Johnson makes the free throw to tie. Duke holds - T Hill drives for a short jumper- misses and Laettner gets the rebound and gets fouled. After a time out- he calmly hits 2 to go up by 1. 12.7 secs left- UNLV looks to get the last shot- Hunt with Hurley on him takes a long 3 that hits back iron- Hurley grabs the bound and Duke wins!

Brian Davis was huge in that game at the end. Had a couple of dunks, the defensive play that forced the shot clock violation and the drive to go up by one.

In case you were wondering- I did not remember all this. Decided to rewatch the last few minutes- enjoy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csETfUrD6ME

Takeaways - yes, huge shot by Hurley. Also, how much better was gameflow back in the day at the end of games? I believe it was just two timeouts in the last four minutes, no breaks to discuss the upcoming 60 Minutes or the hot new comedy on CBS, etc.

Wow, still gives me chills. Also, love Coach K immediately - IMMEDIATELY telling the guys to settle down. I mean, it didn't work, what with Hurley riding shoulders into the locker room.

Also one of my favorite things that happens in sports... the SILENCE of announcers in a big moment. Really amplifies it for me. "We don't need to say anything, because you can see how awesome this is."

Thanks for helping me relive history!

[79-77]

I'm an adult with 3 sports teams I've really cared about for most of my life.

There will never be another game like that one.

And that's OK, because it was worth it.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

I'm an adult with 3 sports teams I've really cared about for most of my life.

There will never be another game like that one.

And that's OK, because it was worth it.

I might have guessed you were partial to this game for some reason.

And I think you are correct. Even if we advance to play undefeated Kentucky, it won't carry the same meaning. The Duke program is in such a different place now than it was then. If anything, it would provide a fantastic bookend to Duke/Coach K's last 25 years. What has happened in the interim is nothing short of extraordinary.