MBB: Duke 74, Morally Repugnant Bastards 73 Post-Game Thread

[JBDuke]

Hahahahahahahahahahaha

[pfrduke]

That was (all sorts of wankerizer) amazing. Just wonderful.

[szstark]

OMG!

[OldPhiKap]

Thanks, Roy!

[Mabdul Doobakus]

How? Most surprising win since...???

[JBDuke]

We had no business winning this game. But the young kids pulled it out. What a huge, gutty performance.

[Black Mambo]

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!!!!!

[Tripping William]

What a steal!

[vrob90]

And I was ready to settle for a moral victory. Hahahahahahahaha So sweet. OWNED!

[downeastdad]

Don't get any better than that!

[OldPhiKap]

Wow, that place empties out quickly.

[jipops]

I was already shocked we were even in this thing. I don't know what to call it now

[Faison1]

Hilarious!!!!!

What is Roy thinking?!?!

Why not take a timeout and get it down low?!?!

[fidel]

And thats why we play 40. Way to go BI!!!!

[gocanes0506]

Roy Williams continues to be the most overrated coach in college basketball! I love it!

Hey 3rd time is the charm on 2/17 in their place

[pfrduke]

North Carolina's complete refusal to try to get the ball inside the three point line for the last 5 minutes of the half was just inexplicable.

[jipops]

Thanks, Roy!

Yea, no kidding. Some real masterful blunders.

[gurufrisbee]

HOLY COW! We should have been blown out there! What a gutsy performance. What a team! Love these guys!

[COYS]

Um. Just wow. I don't usually care about moral victories but I was ready to be impressed by a close loss after Matt went down. Instead I am blown away with the toughness our guys showed. Who needs a moral victory when you can have a real one!

[luburch]

Fitbit said my heart rate was 134 after the buzzer, Duke basketball you're killing me. I'm okay with it though.

[duke blue brewcrew]

WOW!!!!!!!! I never thought Duke had a chance once Matt Jones went down and the Leiutenant got 4 fouls with roughly 10 minutes to go. Absolutely incredible vitory. I'm completely stunned.

[burnspbesq]

North Carolina's complete refusal to try to get the ball inside the three point line for the last 5 minutes of the half was just inexplicable.

Joel Berry is Duke's MOTM. He was awful down the stretch.

[downeastdad]

Hey Brice...27-17, how's that work out for you?

[CameronCrazy'11]

Is it even a rivalry anymore if we always win?

[Bob Green]

We hung around and hung around, and won! Coach K owns Roy Williams.

[arnie]

Quite possibly the worst coaching performance in the history of sports.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Stolen! Felt like Austin Rivers all over again. I love winning games we were supposed to lose.

[Dukehky]

Roy is the most overrated coach in sports history.

[JNort]

First off I know I give him more heck than anyone on this board but get well soon Matt!

Secondly, great win guys! Played with basically 5 guys and a bad 1st half of shooting from Brandon but man oh man did he have a killer stretch in the 2nd half. Grayson was good throughout and Luke was great when called upon. Plumlee silently had a good game and DT played within himself very well. Few standout plays for Derryck but few mistakes also and of course that killer defense on the last possession.

3rd thanks Roy for not going to Brice at all in the final 8 minutes of the game or for challenging Marshall trying to make him foul. You will always be my real vote for man of the match/ player of the game

[COYS]

Stolen! Felt like Austin Rivers all over again. I love winning games we were supposed to lose.

At least Brice Johnson didn't score two for us. We earned this one all on our own. 😀

[Faison1]

My question is, "Where was Paige all night?"

I started noticing midway through the first half his name was never called. Is something the matter with him?

I actually like him AND Bryce Johnson.

[lmb]

Amazing!!!!
One of the best ever! Taking it to the mentally weak Tarheels!
I'm shaking so much I can't type

[91devil]

Sorry, Wheat, but this loss is on Roy Williams.

[Bob Green]

First off I know I give him more heck than anyone on this board but get well soon Matt!

Yeah, Matt Jones' health is the big question mark coming out of the game. He could be out a couple of weeks with a badly sprained ankle.

[BlueandWhite]

That was (all sorts of wankerizer) amazing. Just wonderful.

A GREAT win for the Duke Blue Devils -- gutty, team effort, hustle -- Allen calmly sinking the winning FTs and two outstanding team defensive efforts with a GREAT block by Kennard followed by a GREAT block by Thornton.

Easily one of the best Duke wins ever, hands down! GO DUKE!!!

[duke79]

I'm still in a state of shock !!!

[Newton_14]

Oh HELL YEAH!!!! This is by far, the greatest, most gratifying win over unCheat in MY LIFETIME!!! Full Disclosure: My sister (RIP) passed last week and she was a huge Duke fan! She steered the ship from above tonight! And, I got ragged ALL FREAKIN DAY at work today on how badly we were going to get killed. Well, yeah, about that.....

My joy is indescribeable right now! I could shower up and go in to work right now! Cannot wait to get there tomorrow morning!!! OH HOW IT WILL BE ON!!!!

[fisheyes]

How prescient was that pic on the home page this AM!!!
WOW!!!
WHAT A GAME!

[devilnfla]

Roy is crying at the podium

[CDu]

I have no freaking idea where this team came from, but my God are they amazing now. We just held the 5th best offense in the country to just 29 points in the second half!

Unbelievable, gutsy performance by those kids. I won't do a breakdown because it can't do them justice. This game was won with heart, grit, and effort. I am so unbelievably proud to be a Dukie tonight.

[millerecu]

Wow....Roy complaining about foul calls.

[arnie]

Our "bench" out scored their bench 15-14. Roy's now calling for foul on Thornton. What a loser!

[OldPhiKap]

Sorry, Wheat, but this loss is on Roy Williams.

But you shouldn't have to teach passion . . . .

Roy is really sniffling in the PC. Threw Dean Smith under the bus for not calling a TO. Doing my happy dance.

[OZZIE4DUKE]

YESSSSSSSSSSSS! GTHc! GTH!

[Wheat/"/"/"]

Great, gritty performance by Duke. Congrats.

Ingram showed why he's a future lottery pick with a clutch performance.

UNC continues to be a team that just can't seem to finish the winning plays. They are so frustrating to watch. Every time they started to get separation, there was a TO or a poor shot and a credit to Duke, they would come back and score against some solid defense.

UNC settled for jumpers instead of keeping their focus and pounding it inside late in the game and Duke flat took it from them.

Still a lot of ball to be played and the opportunity to get better. On to the next one...

Side note: hate to see Jones hurt. Hope he is OK.

[snewman92]

. . .the character and intelligence and heart we just showed; the picture of Matt jumping around on one leg; yes, Roy and the HOles made some stupid plays. But we WON this in the most unlikeliest ways.

[kcduke75]

Roy in postgame now. Anyone dare to ask if he gets credit for keeping his TOs?

[Andre Buckner Fan]

A GREAT win for the Duke Blue Devils -- gutty, team effort, hustle -- Allen calmly sinking the winning FTs and two outstanding team defensive efforts with a GREAT block by Kennard followed by a GREAT block by Thornton.

Easily one of the best Duke wins ever, hands down! GO DUKE!!!

Best win? Well, easily one of the most unexpected and inexplicable wins... How did we win that game? I'll take it though!

[TruBlu]

It never gets old when unc's collective heart is broken.

[Bluegrassdevil1]

In all seriousness: Considering the injury to Jefferson, the in-game injury to Jones, Plumlee with four fouls, five guys playing the meat of the game. This has to be one of the rivalries biggest wins!

WOW.

WOW.

WOW.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Can we nominate Roy for MOTM?

[SoCalDukeFan]

I don't usually vote because I think you win as a team and lose as a team.

But tonight my vote goes to Roy Williams.

Or maybe K and staff.

GREAT WIN!!!!

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Great, gritty performance by Duke. Congrats.

Ingram showed why he's a future lottery pick with a clutch performance.

UNC continues to be a team that just can't seem to finish the winning plays. They are so frustrating to watch. Every time they started to get separation, there was a TO or a poor shot and a credit to Duke, they would come back and score against so solid defense.

UNC settled for jumpers instead of keeping their focus and pounding it inside late in the game and Duke flat took it from them.

Still a lot of ball to be played and the opportunity to get better. On to the next one...

Side note: hate to see Jones hurt. Hope he is OK.

Props for posting. Also, geez we stole this one.

UNC should have gone at MP3 from the 14 minute onward.

[NYBri]

Out rebounded 46-34...5 guys!

And thank you, Roy!

Wow!!!!!!

[Stray Gator]

When chatting during the game with a group of Duke friends, I said early on that if we could just manage to keep it close until the last minute or two, UNC players and coaches would start to feel the pressure and we might have a chance to pull out a win. That premise became increasingly shaky as we lost Matt to injury, then Marshall picked up his fourth foul, then during one stretch in the second half we were down to playing one sophomore and four freshmen. Yet UNC's deep and experienced squad could not pull away, and then failed to score in their last four possessions in last 2:08. I was stunned that Roy didn't call a time out on their last possession, but I'm glad he didn't. Seems like we've won a lot of the close ones from UNC lately. Huge congrats to our players and coaches for continuing to fight through unbelievable adversity to a well-deserved victory!

[BlueHeaven]

It was my new t-shirt. Wow.

[OldPhiKap]

Great, gritty performance by Duke. Congrats.

Ingram showed why he's a future lottery pick with a clutch performance.

UNC continues to be a team that just can't seem to finish the winning plays. They are so frustrating to watch. Every time they started to get separation, there was a TO or a poor shot and a credit to Duke, they would come back and score against some solid defense.

UNC settled for jumpers instead of keeping their focus and pounding it inside late in the game and Duke flat took it from them.

Still a lot of ball to be played and the opportunity to get better. On to the next one...

Side note: hate to see Jones hurt. Hope he is OK.

Cudos for a nice post.

[grossbus]

Wow! Great effort. Great win. So proud.

[Faison1]

I really expected very little tonight.

Instead, I think every single one of those guys STEPPED UP!!

Words don't describe. Kennard, Thornton, Ingram, Allen, Plumlee...even Jeter...every single one of them!!!!

[Ichabod Drain]

That is the definitions of guts.

[Newton_14]

My question is, "Where was Paige all night?"

I started noticing midway through the first half his name was never called. Is something the matter with him?

I actually like him AND Bryce Johnson.
Paige was scared. Berry tried to get him the ball on one of their final possessions with the game on the line and the Senior did not want the ball. He waived Berry off and forced Berry to jack up a contested shot. I think that is the sequence that led to Grayson's winning free throws but not sure. Too high off the winning drug right now!

[aimo]

This may be the best one yet. I'm surprised my neighbors haven't called the cops, yet, for all my screaming.

GO TO HELL CAROLINA!!!!!!!!!

[Emerrick]

Thought Jay and Seth were going to come to blows post game.

Great win! Lololololololololololololololol

[Wheat/"/"/"]

But you shouldn't have to teach passion . . . .

Roy is really sniffling in the PC. Threw Dean Smith under the bus for not calling a TO. Doing my happy dance.

UNC played hard, just not smart in this one.

As far a not calling a time out...hindsight is 20/20. Great coaches disagree on that decision. Some will call one, some want to play on before the defense gets set.

Roy made some good moves all game, I'm fine with how the game was coached.

[SoCalDukeFan]

Great, gritty performance by Duke. Congrats.

Ingram showed why he's a future lottery pick with a clutch performance.

UNC continues to be a team that just can't seem to finish the winning plays. They are so frustrating to watch. Every time they started to get separation, there was a TO or a poor shot and a credit to Duke, they would come back and score against some solid defense.

UNC settled for jumpers instead of keeping their focus and pounding it inside late in the game and Duke flat took it from them.

Still a lot of ball to be played and the opportunity to get better. On to the next one...

Side note: hate to see Jones hurt. Hope he is OK.

Wheat you have always been a class act here Nice post.

SoCal

[mattman91]

Popping some popcorn, about to head over to Inside Carolina

[77devil]

Great, gritty performance by Duke. Congrats.

Ingram showed why he's a future lottery pick with a clutch performance.

UNC continues to be a team that just can't seem to finish the winning plays. They are so frustrating to watch. Every time they started to get separation, there was a TO or a poor shot and a credit to Duke, they would come back and score against some solid defense.

UNC settled for jumpers instead of keeping their focus and pounding it inside late in the game and Duke flat took it from them.

Still a lot of ball to be played and the opportunity to get better. On to the next one...

Side note: hate to see Jones hurt. Hope he is OK.

One thing missing from your pre game and halftime commentary: Coach K owns Roy Williams. Duke had no business winning this game particularly after Matt goes down and MP3 picks up # 4. Instead of pounding the ball into the paint every time, UNC settled largely into a perimeter game and Roy did nothing.

[FerryFor50]

I have no freaking idea where this team came from, but my God are they amazing now. We just held the 5th best offense in the country to just 29 points in the second half!

Unbelievable, gutsy performance by those kids. I won't do a breakdown because it can't do them justice. This game was won with heart, grit, and effort. I am so unbelievably proud to be a Dukie tonight.

To be fair, a lot of that 29 point performance was on Roy and the offensive decisions UNC made.

Duke's best adjustment was stopping the transition points and hitting the boards harder. Other than that, it was all Roy forgetting that Brice had 30 points and 20 boards in the game.

Absolutely no business winning that game. Matt got hurt, UNC was playing great early, rebounds/2nd chance points, MP3 in foul trouble, questionable calls, Ingram stinking early.... and still stayed close all game and pulled it out with some stellar defense the last two possessions.

Fun fact: Grayson Allen scored 23 points to beat UNC. On Michael Jordan's birthday.

[jipops]

Great, gritty performance by Duke. Congrats.

Ingram showed why he's a future lottery pick with a clutch performance.

UNC continues to be a team that just can't seem to finish the winning plays. They are so frustrating to watch. Every time they started to get separation, there was a TO or a poor shot and a credit to Duke, they would come back and score against some solid defense.

UNC settled for jumpers instead of keeping their focus and pounding it inside late in the game and Duke flat took it from them.

Still a lot of ball to be played and the opportunity to get better. On to the next one...

Side note: hate to see Jones hurt. Hope he is OK.

Hats off and major props to you for making this post after such a disappointing loss. Seriously, props.

[NashvilleDevil]

Hdhesjvebebejdjdbdbdjskaananbeyeielmav!!!!!!!!!!

[Selover]

I just moved into a new apartment a couple weeks ago. After these last few games, I'm surprised my downstairs neighbor hasn't paid me a visit!

Side note: That's a conversation I'd be happy to have :cool::cool:

[FerryFor50]

UNC played hard, just not smart in this one.

As far a not calling a time out...hindsight is 20/20. Great coaches disagree on that decision. Some will call one, some want to play on before the defense gets set.

Roy made some good moves all game, I'm fine with how the game was coached.

I disagree. With that much time on the clock, you call a timeout. They had what, 15 seconds left?

[OldPhiKap]

UNC played hard, just not smart in this one.

As far a not calling a time out...hindsight is 20/20. Great coaches disagree on that decision. Some will call one, some want to play on before the defense gets set.

Roy made some good moves all game, I'm fine with how the game was coached.

Fair enough. OPk

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Thought Jay and Seth were going to come to blows post game


Yeah, really. Sensed a little something going on there. Thought it was funny when Roy said he should've called timeout, basically taking Jay's side.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

To be fair, a lot of that 29 point performance was on Roy and the offensive decisions UNC made.

Duke's best adjustment was stopping the transition points and hitting the boards harder. Other than that, it was all Roy forgetting that Brice had 30 points and 20 boards in the game.

Absolutely no business winning that game. Matt got hurt, UNC was playing great early, rebounds/2nd chance points, MP3 in foul trouble, questionable calls, Ingram stinking early... and still stayed close all game and pulled it out with some stellar defense the last two possessions.

Fun fact: Grayson Allen scored 23 points to beat UNC. On Michael Jordan's birthday.

Seriously... how does UNC not force Jeter back in by drawing one more foul on Plumlee?

[CDu]

I don't normally say this, but let's lay off Wheat and enjoy the win. Kudos to Wheat for his post after a tough loss in a game they should have won. That takes guts. Let's leave it there and enjoy the crazy fun of the win.

[camion]

Wow! Just WOW!!

After Matt goes down there is no way we win that game. That was a truly gutsy win. I am so proud of those guys.

[bluedev_92]

Wow. What a gutsy performance by our guys! Just kept fighting - not a moment of resignation. So proud of our team!! Will be restless tonight, buy very happy.
Go Duke :)

[ChrisP]

We actually held them to 27 second half points :D

[vick]

I disagree. With that much time on the clock, you call a timeout. They had what, 15 seconds left?

The timeout vs. no-timeout is well in the range of normal decisions.

Moving away from Johnson in the last ten minutes is just utterly baffling.

[JetpackJesus]

GTHCGTH!

*EDIT* I cannot post all caps from my phone? :confused:

[OldPhiKap]

The timeout vs. no-timeout is well in the range of normal decisions.

Moving away from Johnson in the last ten minutes is just utterly baffling.

This. Baffling.

[CDu]

We actually held them to 27 second half points :D

Even better! It is incredible how much better defensively we have gotten almost overnight. We just held UNC to 27 second half points without arguably our best available defender!

[FerryFor50]

Another thing to point out... How friggin tough was Ingram down the stretch?

Not just the offense - he made some great, tough shots.

But the defense. And the strong rebounds in traffic. And the MONSTER blocks.

He shook off the early jitters and ripped UNC's heart out (with help from Grayson Allen of course).

And the great defense by DT on the last shot. Beautiful.

[Wheat/"/"/"]

One thing missing from your pre game and halftime commentary: Coach K owns Roy Williams. Duke had no business winning this game particularly after Matt goes down and MP3 picks up # 4. Instead of pounding the ball into the paint every time, UNC settled largely into a perimeter game and Roy did nothing.

Roy did nothing because he's on the bench with two bad knees. The players know the game plan and with their experience they should be held accountable to execute it. The UNC team didn't play well enough to win.

The view that somehow Roy lost the game does a disservice to the performance of the Duke players who were on the court and actually made the plays to win the game.

I think coaches get too much credit, or blame, around here. It's players making plays when the whistle blows, imo.

[dukelifer]

Just an amazing effort. This was as gutty a win as I have seen from a Duke team. They never folded. Grayson and BI will get a lot of credit but Kennard hit big shots including the 3 to go up. That was a pressure shot. Team has grown up. Not sure how they will handle it with Jones out but right now- cannot be prouder of this bunch.

[sagegrouse]

The timeout vs. no-timeout is well in the range of normal decisions.

Moving away from Johnson in the last ten minutes is just utterly baffling.

The problem for UNC was that B. Johnson was its entire offense, except for a few put backs by Meeks and Jackson. You can't play an entire game riding one player. Johnson cooled off the last ten minutes, and so did the Tar Heels.

[mattman91]

Popping some popcorn, about to head over to Inside Carolina

Back.

Wow. Just go to IC. Amazing. You don't even have to open a thread. Just check out the thread titles that fill up page 1.

[S_West30]

This team shows more heart and grit than any team I've seen in recent memory. Somehow Luke single-handedly outscored Carolina's bench, and it was much needed.

Five is enough (at least for tonight)

Here's to hoping Matt can recover quickly and enjoy this win with the rest of the guys!

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Another thing to point out... How friggin tough was Ingram down the stretch?

Not just the offense - he made some great, tough shots.

But the defense. And the strong rebounds in traffic. And the MONSTER blocks.

He shook off the early jitters and ripped UNC's heart out (with help from Grayson Allen of course).

And the great defense by DT on the last shot. Beautiful.

Ingram wanted to take the shots and did. Stunning. Wish we could imagine 3 more years with the young man.

[weezie]

Ingram was hyper magical.

A little less of dopey Brice hanging on the basket and they might have had time to shoot. Woo he's a jackbutt.

[dukelifer]

Even better! It is incredible how much better defensively we have gotten almost overnight. We just held UNC to 27 second half points without arguably our best available defender!

A bit like last year

[NashvilleDevil]

Now that I can see well enough to type, what an amazing performance. It will never get old beating Carolina especially in the Dean Dome because the crowd shots at the end of the game are so great.

[wavedukefan70s]

With all the smack talk i have endured in the last week.i shall be as obnoxious as i can at work tomarrow.awesome just awesome.

[pamtar]

L. O. L.

[SoCalDukeFan]

As bad as Roy coached, and it was very bad, K and staff did a great job.

And the players, wow. They will remember this for a long time.

GREAT GREAT WIN

SoCal

[kAzE]

It's still difficult to form coherent sentences after what I just witnessed. The last time I felt like this was the miracle minute. That entire second half felt like a magic show. Unbelievable win.

. . . . but at what cost? Please let the ankle sprain be mild . . .

[nmduke2001]

Holy smokes, what an effort. Grayson and Ingram played all 40 minutes. Thornton had 39. Marshall 35. Luke 32. Those young men are going to sleep well tonight.

[Furniture]

Wow!
I really thought I was going to have a heart attack there….
Fantastic win. I am very proud of those young men! All of them.

The only bad taste in my mouth was participating in the DBR chat. Just after halftime the trash talk got so bad.

K's fault because we are so thin...
Brandon is lazy..
Etc etc...

I really enjoy chat but today was very unreasonable and that is being polite. I read so many times of the talk over at IC. All I can say is that some people should take a look in the mirror.

[DU82]

Coach K said in his press conference that he felt we were lucky to win against Virginia, but that the team EARNED this win.

Line of the night from the local reporter (Jeff Graveley) covering the post-game outside the DESSAC:
You know it's been a bad night if you can here the remote truck's generator over the exiting crowd.

[DukieInBrasil]

I'm still in shock at the win. Someone said in the game chat that if Duke could hang in there til crunch time, that the Heels would fold. Kudos!
This team has won 3 strait against top 20 teams, and have exhibited incredible toughness and savvy in all of them!
That was awesome!!!

[bhop22]

Roy still thinks that timeouts are like rollover minutes...

[Kedsy]

Roy is really sniffling in the PC. Threw Dean Smith under the bus for not calling a TO.


Roy in postgame now. Anyone dare to ask if he gets credit for keeping his TOs?


Roy's now calling for foul on Thornton. What a loser!

I have to say it: I thought Roy was incredibly classy in the press conference.

First of all, he didn't call for a foul on Thornton, he said anyone who did so was misguided, that the onus was on UNC to make an offensive play and they didn't.

He didn't throw Dean under the bus, he said it was the way he was taught and that it was totally on him. He said he told his players that he should have called a timeout but if the same scenario came up again he'd probably do the same thing because he thinks it's the best way to go.

He gave Duke all the credit, said UNC needed to step up but didn't, and took his fair share of the blame. So however much we like to make fun of him, in my opinion he was a class act at the PC, especially considering how much he had to have been hurting.

[lotusland]

Roy did nothing because he's on the bench with two bad knees. The players know the game plan and with their experience they should be held accountable to execute it. The UNC team didn't play well enough to win.

The view that somehow Roy lost the game does a disservice to the performance of the Duke players who were on the court and actually made the plays to win the game.

I think coaches get too much credit, or blame, around here. It's players making plays when the whistle blows, imo.

OK Wheat we all appreciate your gracious post. How about let us celebrate a bit without pages of back and forth about Roy's coaching. I like your perspective but I don't see the point in you rebutting posts tonight.

[wilson]

Back.

Wow. Just go to IC. Amazing. You don't even have to open a thread. Just check out the thread titles that fill up page 1."Death of an Elite Program" is my favorite of the current crop.

[CatDevil]

Oh HELL YEAH!!!! This is by far, the greatest, most gratifying win over unCheat in MY LIFETIME!!! Full Disclosure: My sister (RIP) passed last week and she was a huge Duke fan! She steered the ship from above tonight! And, I got ragged ALL FREAKIN DAY at work today on how badly we were going to get killed. Well, yeah, about that...

My joy is indescribeable right now! I could shower up and go in to work right now! Cannot wait to get there tomorrow morning!!! OH HOW IT WILL BE ON!!!!
Thank you for sharing...this really touched my heart. I hope you have the best day ever at work and always remember your sis helped our boys get it done!

[Wheat/"/"/"]

OK Wheat we all appreciate your gracious post. How about let us celebrate a bit without pages of back and forth about Roy's coaching. I like your perspective but I don't see the point in you rebutting posts tonight.

Fair enough, enjoy a big win. Good night.

[DukeHLM'13]

On top of everything else amazing about this game...

I love how every player runs straight to K at the final buzzer. Just like it's been forever, these guys love their coach and act like such a family! GOAT!!!!

Probably not going to sleep for a while tonight.

[fuse]

Too incoherent with joyous celebration to add anything other than:
Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

Great win, gritty team, let's Go Duke!

[freshmanjs]

Coach K said in his press conference that he felt we were lucky to win against Virginia, but that the team EARNED this win.



Nope, he didn't say that. He said we were lucky to win the game @ UNC in 2012.

[91devil]

Even if this is the pinnacle of our season, and it may be with Matt hurt, I would call this a gratifying season.

[FerryFor50]

I have to say it: I thought Roy was incredibly classy in the press conference.

First of all, he didn't call for a foul on Thornton, he said anyone who did so was misguided, that the onus was on UNC to make an offensive play and they didn't.

He didn't throw Dean under the bus, he said it was the way he was taught and that it was totally on him. He said he told his players that he should have called a timeout but if the same scenario came up again he'd probably do the same thing because he thinks it's the best way to go.

He gave Duke all the credit, said UNC needed to step up but didn't, and took his fair share of the blame. So however much we like to make fun of him, in my opinion he was a class act at the PC, especially considering how much he had to have been hurting.

The foul talk... he mentioned it 3 times. Each time was one of those "well people thought there was a foul there" backhanded complaining without complaining.

But I couldn't really fault him too much for it. K does the same in his pressers.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

L. O. L.

Well said

[OZ]

Since 1964, I have seen a million Duke games... and I have NEVER been prouder of our TEAM and coaches than I am tonight.

[Saratoga2]

As coach K said, we hung in there and had an opportunity to win at the end, even though we were outrebounded, were playing mainly with 5 players, had foul trouble, were getting jobbed by the refs in a string of missed calls and had the fans to contend with.

We got remarkable performances from all of our main players.

Marshall was tremendous and hit points while staying active with 4 fouls on him.
Brandon had a tough shooting first half and was defended well but came on strong down the stretch (both scoring and rebounding)
Grayson drove the ball hard and finished his shots and/or got fouled. His defense and rebounding was solid.
Luke was needed when Matt went down. Luke was very efficient offensively and should be given credit for solid defense and rebounding
Derryck will not be mentioned that much but we certainly kept the turnovers down and his defense was excellent. Haven't seen the stats but his TO's were low

The bad news was Matt seemed to sprain his ankle pretty badly. He may take a game or two to get back and meanwhile we have an extremely short bench. Hope he and Amile will make it back soon as we have some tough games ahead in the schedule.

This team of mainly freshmen and sophomores has beaten three highly thought of teams in succession. Louisville, Virginia and now UNC. Doesn't seem like the same guys who were on a short ACC losing streak just a short while ago. Great win, great coaching, gritty players. Wow!

[Zeb]

Holy smokes, what an effort. Grayson and Ingram played all 40 minutes. Thornton had 39. Marshall 35. Luke 32. Those young men are going to sleep well tonight.

I doubt they will sleep at all. I'm not sure I will be able to.

[FerryFor50]

The bad news was Matt seemed to sprain his ankle pretty badly. He may take a game or two to get back and meanwhile we have an extremely short bench. Hope he and Amile will make it back soon as we have some tough games ahead in the schedule.

That looked like more than a "game or two" ankle sprain.

I'd say he's out for a few weeks, but hopefully I'm wrong.

[hudlow]

"Death of an Elite Program" is my favorite of the current crop.

I liked a comment about needing a new strength coach.

[BlueandWhite]

On top of everything else amazing about this game...

I love how every player runs straight to K at the final buzzer. Just like it's been forever, these guys love their coach and act like such a family! GOAT!!!!

Probably not going to sleep for a while tonight.

Great observation! Can't forget the image of Wojo running to K at the end of the great '98 comeback win at Cameron.

Even when Plums went to the bench with 4, I just had this feeling they could pull it out.

[DukeFanSince1990]

Just came here to double check, did we just win that game? Inconceivable.

[Ultrarunner]

Back.

Wow. Just go to IC. Amazing. You don't even have to open a thread. Just check out the thread titles that fill up page 1.

A whole lot of them are already locked. The rest are various stages of declaring Roy dead to them. More of that than terping, as a mater of fact.

[brevity]

"I gave up carbs for this?" - Kennedy Meeks, after the game

[DU82]

Nope, he didn't say that. He said we were lucky to win the game @ UNC in 2012.

Thanks for the correction. I didn't hear clearly (I had guests and we were celebrating a bit!) and I assumed that he was talking about Saturday's game. In any event, I agree with Coach, we WON this game, we didn't luck into it.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Even if this is the pinnacle of our season, and it may be with Matt hurt, I would call this a gratifying season.

Good thing you feel that way. Same conversation with my father today. Not a bad high point.

[dairedevil]

It is games like this that make Duke v unc the greatest rivalry in sports. Keep the score close, anything can happen, and that is how it seems to be most games. I've got ESPN on and just noticed the graphic that these two teams have played 75 times with both teams ranked, more than any other rivalry. Yhat is pretty amazing.

I went into this game with the feeling that it could, should, would be a loss. I had a conversation earlier this evening with a guy at church who thought Duke would win, because of Coach K and his ability to make adjustments to the game situation. Little did he know what would go on in this game, and how they would have to adjust to losing Matt.

Way to stay in there and fight for the win.. I gotta say, you just don't see Duke teams give up, no matter what happens. I'm proud of them.

GTHC!

[53n206]

UNC played hard, just not smart in this one.

As far a not calling a time out...hindsight is 20/20. Great coaches disagree on that decision. Some will call one, some want to play on before the defense gets set.

Roy made some good moves all game, I'm fine with how the game was coached.

Roy didn't lose the game, Duke won the game. What great warriors!

[wavedukefan70s]

I liked a comment about needing a new strength coach.

You should see it.
Self imposed tournament ban lol

[Billy Dat]

Another night to remember how lucky we are to root for Duke and to be part of this rivalry as nothing is sweeter than wins like tonight. Titles and Final Fours are as sweet, but this kind of miraculous unexpected W is one to savor.

Newton - I am very sorry to hear about your sister and knowing your assured mutual antipathy for the heels, she must be surrounding you with spirit right now.

5 is enough...I guess it was tonight.

Ingram, Allen, Plumlee, Kennard, Thornton - all made HUGE plays on both ends.

We had no business winning that game. None. Yet we did.

This team is special. They may never get the chance to trot out their full arsenal, especially with Matt now being hurt, but they are so freakin tough and determined and never say die.

Heading into this brutal stretch, I was worried about losing 4 straight. We are 3-0.

Is anything possible with these kids?

I am dumbfounded. I think it's time to rewind to when we were down 8, late, and see what the heck happened.

[westwall]

per ESPN:

"With the victory (tonight), Coach K passed Dean Smith for most road wins against top-five teams (15) in NCAA history".

Assuming that is accurate, props to Coach K!

[flyingdutchdevil]

I'll give my two cents when I'm more sober. But...

1) inside Carolina is amazing right now. Please go. You'll smile.

2) brevity - please keep the fake quotes coming.

3) we know Ingram is gone. But I've never wanted a player to stay more than Ingram. His game is too perfect for the NBA

4) Kennard was incredible today. But I thought Thornton did the best job defensively. I'm stoked that we are pretty much guaranteed Thornton and Kennard for another year. Maybe two.

5) I still don't understand how we won that game

[Selover]

I have to say it: I thought Roy was incredibly classy in the press conference.

First of all, he didn't call for a foul on Thornton, he said anyone who did so was misguided, that the onus was on UNC to make an offensive play and they didn't.

He didn't throw Dean under the bus, he said it was the way he was taught and that it was totally on him. He said he told his players that he should have called a timeout but if the same scenario came up again he'd probably do the same thing because he thinks it's the best way to go.

He gave Duke all the credit, said UNC needed to step up but didn't, and took his fair share of the blame. So however much we like to make fun of him, in my opinion he was a class act at the PC, especially considering how much he had to have been hurting.


I couldn't agree more. I only watched it after seeing a couple posts here. I was expecting something completely different than what I saw. Kudos to Roy.

[jipops]

Coach K said in his press conference that he felt we were lucky to win against Virginia, but that the team EARNED this win.

Line of the night from the local reporter (Jeff Graveley) covering the post-game outside the DESSAC:
You know it's been a bad night if you can here the remote truck's generator over the exiting crowd.

You missed the context. He said the 2012 win at unc was lucky, which it was. This one was earned.

[OZ]

The foul talk...

After the Louisville game, I came away thrilled at our gutty performance. I was proud that during crunch time even the old crusties were their feet. Excitedly, I turned on DBR only to find the focus was not on Duke's incredible win, but on whether or not Allen tripped someone... then, that morphed into Allen being the "next hated white Duke player."
Saturday, exhaustedly, I left Cameron hoarse from straining a vocal chord on a last second play that will live forever in Duke folklore. Again, the first thing I did upon reaching home was to go on DBR to celebrate that incredible moment. To my dismay, the focus had turned to whether or not Allen had walked.
Now, after this incredibly satisfying win, talk begins about whether or not Thornton fouled.
I am sorry, but can we not... just this once... enjoy the moment?

[Utley]

It's games like this that make me so proud to be a Dukie. I'm sure I have blue colored glassed on but I don't think there is another program where the team so consistently wins in the face of adversity. The kids have great character that is honed so well by K and his staff. They just keep going forward - no matter what happens.

Easy to bash UNC tonight - but that's a really good team - and tonight we were just a little bit better.

Going to be tough to sleep tonight - in a really good way. Great win by Hawks against Dayton too :)

[Selover]

"I thought about giving up carbs for this?" - Kennedy Meeks, after the game

Fixed it :)

[FerryFor50]

After the Louisville game, I came away thrilled at our gutty performance. I was proud that during crunch time even the old crusties were their feet. Excitedly, I turned on DBR only to find the focus was not on Duke's incredible win, but on whether or not Allen tripped someone... then, that morphed into Allen being the "next hated white Duke player."
Saturday, exhaustedly, I left Cameron hoarse from straining a vocal chord on a last second play that will live forever in Duke folklore. Again, the first thing I did upon reaching home was to go on DBR to celebrate that incredible moment. To my dismay, the focus had turned to whether or not Allen had walked.
Now, after this incredibly satisfying win, talk begins about whether or not Thornton fouled.
I am sorry, but can we not... just this once... enjoy the moment?

I wasn't talking about if Thornton fouled or not. And I don't think he did. It was about what Roy said in his presser.

And I *am* enjoying the moment.

[elvis14]

How in the....
Heart
Get Well
outKoached
4 fouls
BI again
HEART
5 guys
What just happened?
DT, great D
Berry? LOL
Luuuuuuuke!!!!!!
Who won? What?
GA again
Happy
H E A R T

Tomorrow, complete sentences!

[subzero02]

That looked like more than a "game or two" ankle sprain.

I'd say he's out for a few weeks, but hopefully I'm wrong.

I wish I could say you were wrong but I agree... Matt isn't as heavy as Okafor but I immediately thought of his sprain, just slightly worse.

[JetpackJesus]

The problem for UNC was that B. Johnson was its entire offense, except for a few put backs by Meeks and Jackson. You can't play an entire game riding one player. Johnson cooled off the last ten minutes, and so did the Tar Heels.

More specifically, you can't win with 9 points outside the paint (I think that's the number I've been seeing). UNC was essentially the inverse of the usual "live by the three, die by the three" adage.

That stat is a testament to how well Duke played on D, save for the defensive rebounding.

[cspan37421]

As far a not calling a time out...hindsight is 20/20. Great coaches disagree on that decision. Some will call one, some want to play on before the defense gets set.


Many on DBR poke fun at Roy for saving his time-outs. I don't know about this one. I recall the last college basketball game in 1999 when Duke had the ball in a very similar situation. Down 3, no time out was called, and the Alaskan Assassin lost the ball and did not get a shot off at all. I could hardly believe it (about the no timeout).

I think the theory may be that if you are the stronger team (are you? If you're down that late?) you don't call time out, you don't let the defense get set up. You basically say, "Yeah, we're down late, but our offense is better than their defense, so we're going to give them no chance to set up." But guess what? You give your own vaunted offense no time to set up either.

I suppose you could argue it both ways.

Anyway, very gutty win by the (black and) blue devils. Very surprised, I was (and am). Best wishes for speedy recovery to Matt. I got an email from Amile today; he didn't mention his progress ... (it was an Iron Duke email).
Hopefully by the time Roy figures out what he did wrong, we'll have some different looks and challenges for him. Maybe a player or two off the injury list.


Big props to Wheat for grace in defeat ... an example to us all. Hopefully we won't have reason to emulate it ... for the rest of the season (aw heck, why not declare the dawn of an era of unbridled optimism?)

[jipops]

This may ne nit-picky but others who watch unc games may want to keep an eye on this. Joel Berry really has a habit of pushing off with his off arm on drives. None of these were called but even Bilas made mention of it in one instance as a missed offensive foul call. He really extends his arm out after putting his shoulder down. He may be doing this to compensate for lack of a first step and the latest set of "rules" are certainly more prone to give more room to the offensive player. But I was a little surprised he was never once called for this.

[lotusland]

I liked a comment about needing a new strength coach.

There are tons of awesome posts over there but I picked this one as my fave


Roy's coaching tonight was a bigger disgrace than the whole academic scandal. If the NCAA wanted to really **** us over they'd say we have to give Roy tenure and keep watching this crap forever.

[FerryFor50]

Many on DBR poke fun at Roy for saving his time-outs. I don't know about this one. I recall the last college basketball game in 1999 when Duke had the ball in a very similar situation. Down 3, no time out was called, and the Alaskan Assassin lost the ball and did not get a shot off at all. I could hardly believe it (about the no timeout).

I think the theory may be that if you are the stronger team (are you? If you're down that late?) you don't call time out, you don't let the defense get set up. You basically say, "Yeah, we're down late, but our offense is better than their defense, so we're going to give them no chance to set up." But guess what? You give your own vaunted offense no time to set up either.



But the defense was set up. They went into a half court offensive set. It was just weird.

I get that it's a 50/50 call, but they had just had an empty possession that looked bad the previous time. Maybe talk it over and get the ball into your best players' hands instead of Joel Berry?

[BandAlum83]

Roy did nothing because he's on the bench with two bad knees. The players know the game plan and with their experience they should be held accountable to execute it. The UNC team didn't play well enough to win.

The view that somehow Roy lost the game does a disservice to the performance of the Duke players who were on the court and actually made the plays to win the game.

I think coaches get too much credit, or blame, around here. It's players making plays when the whistle blows, imo.

I gotta agree that it's the players that make the plays, but...a timeout here or there to remind these kids that they aren't on the playground, they're playing to win. That the team needed to go at MP3. They needed to keep feeding Bryce...

There's a reason Roy has a lousy record against K and its not because he's lacking for talent on the court.

Just saying...

[dyedwab]

...just amazing heart and guts.

With all the talk of coaching and strategies, I just want to point out that each of our iron 5 made game-changing plays that won us the game

1. Marshall played 10:34 seconds with 4 fouls and didn't foul out

2. Derryck Thornton's defense on Carolina's last possession was decisive.

3. Luke Kennard shook off a tough game against UVA to single-handedly outscore the Tar Heels bench

4. Grayson Allen hit the FTs that won us the game

5. Brandon Ingram took over in the second half after a poor shooting 1st half.

Our team showed great heart, and left it all on the floor tonight. To me, there was no MOTM. They all were.

[mph]

"I gave up carbs for this?" - Kennedy Meeks, after the game

Somebody please spork brevity for me.

[Furniture]

With 9 seconds left on Saturday against Virginia and being one down K did what?
Nuff said....

[lotusland]

I'll try one
"why even bother cheating?" Bubba

[Utley]

Louisville, UVA, UNC - feels like the kind of matchup you could face going from the Elite Eight to the Title game. Remarkable to win them all like this.

Hard to remember how precarious it all felt out in the Georgia Tech game at halftime with no Coach K. Huge props to Coach C for turning the tide.

[wilson]

Anybody got a bead on some nice fresh pics of sad tar heel fans?

[dragoneye776]

What a great new website!

http://didunclose.com/

[blazindw]

It may be 12:30am on the East Coast, but we're out here celebrating!! GTHC!!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qA2_-eQ26tY

[coachbob]

I've seen it often in sports. A team dominates for most of the game on the field/court but not on the scoreboard. It frequently comes back to bite them later. Tonight being a perfect example. At about the 10 min mark I commented to my friend that the carolina fans were going to be going home, shaking their heads, wondering "How did we lose?". And sure enough, we stole it from them! Go Duke! GTHC!

[killerleft]

OK Wheat we all appreciate your gracious post. How about let us celebrate a bit without pages of back and forth about Roy's coaching. I like your perspective but I don't see the point in you rebutting posts tonight.

Win with grace. It isn't that hard. Biggest win of the year and you're worried about reasonable posts from a UNC fan? I've been giggling for about 90 minutes now.

[Doria]

Man, I couldn't even post till now because I was enjoying the post game show. I'll admit that when Matt went out, I was prepared to be grateful for the moral victory. I'm so glad the team wasn't.

I really can't pick one MOTM for this one because we literally needed everyone who played. I had to wonder if, in part, Carolina's depth ironically hurt Johnson's performance, because he looked pretty tired at the end. Not sure if he plays as many (tough) minutes as he did tonight normally. But our guys were unbelievable; I can't say much other than that they wanted it and went out and took it.

Also, thankfully, Roy came through, as hoped, with an assist. (Yeah, I know you can argue the TO call, but IMO--in that specific situation--with Duke back on defense, plenty of time, and Carolina not in synch offensively prior to that sequence, I just don't see why you don't call it.)

Edit, but I really hope Matt's okay (not for my sake, but in general; never want to see a guy hurt).

[Kfanarmy]

...
There's a reason Roy has a lousy record against K and its not because he's lacking for talent on the court.

Just saying...

There are a slew of coaches with worse records against Coach K than Coach Williams has. Coach K has made the same decision at times. If Thornton doesn't play exceptional D on that last play, Carolina likely gets two foul shots or a putback. I also thought Duke's D had a lot to do with minimizing Carolina's interior play in the last 10 minutes. Plumlee blocked or altered at least three shots during that time. I think Duke took this one with grit and determination rather than gross failures on coach Williams or his players' part.

[BandAlum83]

On top of everything else amazing about this game...

I love how every player runs straight to K at the final buzzer. Just like it's been forever, these guys love their coach and act like such a family! GOAT!!!!

Probably not going to sleep for a while tonight.

My wife and I really enjoyed that too. Very special! I love this team!

[Doria]

There are a slew of coaches with worse records against Coach K than Coach Williams has. Coach K has made the same decision at times. If Thornton doesn't play exceptional D on that last play, Carolina likely gets two foul shots or a putback. I also thought Duke's D had a lot to do with minimizing Carolina's interior play in the last 10 minutes. Plumlee blocked or altered at least three shots during that time. I think Duke took this one with grit and determination rather than gross failures on coach Williams or his players' part.

Yeah, I believe Luke had a block in that stretch, as well. Thornton was great on D, and I don't think I need to tell anyone here what a fantastic job Marshall did.

[Native]

So, so, so, so, so, so full of pride for this team.

[duke4ever19]

The foul talk... he mentioned it 3 times. Each time was one of those "well people thought there was a foul there" backhanded complaining without complaining.

But I couldn't really fault him too much for it. K does the same in his pressers.

If you look at a couple different video angles of the last play on the goduke.com website, you will see Roy motion to the refs by grabbing his wrist as if to say, "my guy was fouled."

www.goduke.com/mediaPortal/player.dbml?db_oem_id=4200&DB_OEM_ID=4200

[Mike Corey]

I am just astonished.

This team's improvement, its heart, its fight, its togetherness--set aside the execution, the play, and the belief they clearly have in one another. That was just a sensational, resilient performance. I'm not sure it has an equal.

Coach K is putting together yet another masterwork. I have said it before, I will say it again: Enjoy every single moment with this man at the helm.

Let's give ample credit to Coach Capel and the rest of the staff though, too: This run began at GT with Coach K back home healing, and Coach Capel helping the team take a huge step forward in Atlanta.

We took another one tonight.

So very proud to be a fan of this program, and these guys. So proud to share this with all of you.

Tonight would've been Dad's 69th birthday; I'm sure he's beaming as much as each of us here.

[nmduke2001]

There are tons of awesome posts over there but I picked this one as my fave

I liked this one on the Coach K thread

Hope he retires after they win the championship with Giles and company next year. Wow if this is a down year for duke, k really is the class of college coaches. Now I know how the rest of the ACC felt about Dean. They know there just isn't much chance of success until "the man" is gone. K is THE man even with 3 other hall of fame coaches in the ACC and it is not even close. K eats Roy's lunch and then pats Wanda on the butt.

[Listen to Quants]

UNC played hard, just not smart in this one.

As far a not calling a time out...hindsight is 20/20. Great coaches disagree on that decision. Some will call one, some want to play on before the defense gets set.

Roy made some good moves all game, I'm fine with how the game was coached.

Indeed. Way to easy to coach in hindsight. I'm with Smith and Roy Williams on this this. If you have a guard or two you trust, the offense is better off attaching a transitioning or not fully settled defense. Coaching point that struck me was K going with 4-foul filled Plumlee with 10 minutes left. Partly that was on Jeter but many coaches hold a guy out regardless, as though points at the end of a game count more than points before that. Sometimes things work out and the kid stays out of foul trouble, sometimes he fouls out in (say) 2-3 minutes ... you still got the 2-3 minutes regardless of when you put him in.

[BLPOG]

I feel like I'm a little late to the thread at this point, and I'm sure I'm echoing sentiments expressed by others, but one thought I had during this game was, "I don't know if I've ever been prouder of the team."

That was with four minutes to go.

I'm not sure I know how to put my feelings post-game. I lack the language. Maybe some English majors could lend a hand? They didn't teach us that in engineering.

Incredible win. Let's all hope for a speedy recovery for Matt and Amile. Those guys are an integral part of this team, and deserve to experience it on the court.

[Billy Dat]

I just watch the final 7 from when we were down 8.

-Just prior, Ingram had made an epic block as part of a sequence that helped them build the 8 pt lead but was a little lucky in that we muffled a few transiton opportunities and gave back easy ones the other way
-Ingram makes 3 straight buckets
-Grayson with a beauty of an and-1 3 point play
-Kennard huge 3 from corner which was fairly well defended
-Marshall solid low post D on Johnson where he poked the ball away to make his lose his post-up and led to an eventual shot clock violation
-Kennard's epic block on Meeks and Grayson grabbing the loose ball
-Grayson game winning FTs
-Paige missing front of a 2 shot foul and generally taking bad shots and making bad decisions
-A lot of bad UNC offense
-Some Duke offense at the end was poor, too, we did just enough

[FerryFor50]

Indeed. Way to easy to coach in hindsight. I'm with Smith and Roy Williams on this this. If you have a guard or two you trust, the offense is better off attaching a transitioning or not fully settled defense. Coaching point that struck me was K going with 4-foul filled Plumlee with 10 minutes left. Partly that was on Jeter but many coaches hold a guy out regardless, as though points at the end of a game count more than points before that. Sometimes things work out and the kid stays out of foul trouble, sometimes he fouls out in (say) 2-3 minutes ... you still got the 2-3 minutes regardless of when you put him in.

Re: K putting Plumlee in with 4 fouls.

The game was hanging VERY precariously at that point and Jeter wasn't getting it done. Duke was short handed after Jones got hurt. They were getting destroyed on the boards again.

You have to go with your best guy at that stage, especially a senior. If he fouls out, you're in the same spot you were if you didn't go with him.

K coached like he had nothing to lose and it paid off.

[BandAlum83]

There are tons of awesome posts over there but I picked this one as my fave

Laughing out loud....literally.

[Mike Corey]

Oh HELL YEAH!!!! This is by far, the greatest, most gratifying win over unCheat in MY LIFETIME!!! Full Disclosure: My sister (RIP) passed last week and she was a huge Duke fan! She steered the ship from above tonight! And, I got ragged ALL FREAKIN DAY at work today on how badly we were going to get killed. Well, yeah, about that....

My joy is indescribeable right now! I could shower up and go in to work right now! Cannot wait to get there tomorrow morning!!! OH HOW IT WILL BE ON!!!!

I am so very sorry to read of your sister's passing, and am so glad this win has provided you a measure of joy and such a warm embrace from your sibling from afar. Thoughts and prayers are with you, Newton, and thanks to your sister for helping to steer this win.

[Coballs]

Anybody got a bead on some nice fresh pics of sad tar heel fans?

Oh, I think I can help you with that one hehehe

5961 5962 5963

[BandAlum83]

...just amazing heart and guts.

With all the talk of coaching and strategies, I just want to point out that each of our iron 5 made game-changing plays that won us the game

1. Marshall played 10:34 seconds with 4 data and didn't foul out

2. Derryck Thornton's defense on Carolina's last possession was decisive.

3. Luke Kennard shook off a tough game against UVA to single-handedly outscore the Tar Heels bench

4. Grayson Allen hit the FTs that won us the game

5. Brandon Ingram took over in the second half after a poor shooting 1st half.

Our team showed great heart, and left it all on the floor tonight. To me, there was no MOTM. They all were.

Did you notice when MP3 first came back in, he got two huge REBOUNDS right away? One on each end of the court, strong, two handed.

I got such a safe, warm feeling from those rebounds. What a welcome back.

[Billy Dat]

Oh, I think I can help you with that one hehehe

596159625963

I was rolling when I watched that Heel gal yell at her Heel dude to get out if her face.

[jacone21]

Just an amazing effort. This was as gutty a win as I have seen from a Duke team. They never folded. Grayson and BI will get a lot of credit but Kennard hit big shots including the 3 to go up. That was a pressure shot. Team has grown up. Not sure how they will handle it with Jones out but right now- cannot be prouder of this bunch.

I just watched the last 6 minutes again. On that possession, before Luke hit the shot, with 2:45 to play, down 2, in his first ever game at UNC, with the crowd screaming, dude is chilling over in the corner making sure his hair is on fleek. haha Then he gets the pass, knocks down the go ahead shot in 2 heels' faces. Boom! Gotta love that guy.

[BandAlum83]

There are a slew of coaches with worse records against Coach K than Coach Williams has. Coach K has made the same decision at times. If Thornton doesn't play exceptional D on that last play, Carolina likely gets two foul shots or a putback. I also thought Duke's D had a lot to do with minimizing Carolina's interior play in the last 10 minutes. Plumlee blocked or altered at least three shots during that time. I think Duke took this one with grit and determination rather than gross failures on coach Williams or his players' part.

Of course other coaches have worse records against K, but have they had the talent Roy has had?

The fact is, we are in mid February and this late in the season, UNC should have put a boot to our necks and finished us, but they couldn't. They looked unorganized, confused, not at all together, and generally poorly coached. I haven't seen them all year, but I can understand how they almost lost to BC.

This does not look like a final four contender to me.

[ricks68]

I disagree. With that much time on the clock, you call a timeout. They had what, 15 seconds left?

Actually, why didn't Ol' Roy call at least one timeout 2 minutes before that to set up some scoring plays?:rolleyes: (So glad he coaches the way he does.)

ricks

[Coballs]

I was rolling when I watched that Heel gal yell at her Heel dude to get out if her face.

Well actually he screams in her face first, and then she screams back "Stop it! Stop it!". It's been replayed several times during SportsCenter.

[uh_no]

for what it's worth....duke gave up a 105.7 on defense....which adjusted is....

the third straight game in a row duke has done <90 on defense.

duke has played the best defense in the country 3 games in a row.

let that sink in.

[killerleft]

Aw, we just played a bit o' 'possum, then did a little sumpin' sumpin'.

What fun work should be tomorrow, if any UNC fans show up.:D Absolutely great defense on the last play. And Thornton's block was clean. The camera angle from the floor camera (I think) under the Duke basket showed clearly that he didn't foul Frankenberry.

[Billy Dat]

The N&O's Laura Keeley and Andrew Carter break down what just happened

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/amateur-hour-news-observer/id1038090654?mt=2

[Coballs]

Anybody got a bead on some nice fresh pics of sad tar heel fans?

And here's one more for the collection...

[pamtar]

Roy did nothing because he's on the bench with two bad knees. The players know the game plan and with their experience they should be held accountable to execute it. The UNC team didn't play well enough to win.

The view that somehow Roy lost the game does a disservice to the performance of the Duke players who were on the court and actually made the plays to win the game.

I think coaches get too much credit, or blame, around here. It's players making plays when the whistle blows, imo.

I really appreciate the complements you pay our guys after a tough loss. I'm gonna have to disagree with you though. IMHO, the real disservice is to Johnson, Paige, et al who busted their I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this.I'm a real wanker for saying this. to win a game that was choked away by poor play calling and bad clock management.

First off, what a great bunch of class act guys UNC has on the roster right now. After watching post game I was reminded of how much I really like everyone on the team.

That said, how in the living hell Roy didn't feed BJ the last 10 min is baffling. If he had shifted the offense out of the paint, ran screens, and relied on ORBs I could maybe give him a break. Instead he let guys jack up bad shots possession after possession. In essence, he "let 'em play." Why even be a coach if your just gonna let your guys do whatever?

Finally, not calling TO with 20 SEC left was just plain stupid. Y'all could have gotten 2pts off the inbound the way BJ was playing. I'm not a UNC fan so maybe I have no clue what I'm saying, but Im pretty sure if K ended a game like that I'd be utterly confused.

Again, thanks for the great posts. I'm proud of our guys for fighting. I'd be damn proud of your squad too if I was your shoes. I hate to say it but I think Roy might be on the way out...

[throatybeard]

Oh, I think I can help you with that one hehehe

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I'm not gonna lie. I'm a little afraid of her.

Re: calling or not calling a time out before the last possession, Roy managed to contradict himself in the space of about a minute in the presser. AFAICT, it was sort of a Dean sandwich. (1) I've always coached it the one way because Coach Smith taught me to but (2) I should have called a time out there, although I'm not really telling you why I just switched, but (3) really the right way to do it is not call a timeout and let the D set up, in the name of our Smith.

Perhaps that lack of clarity lends some clarity.

[ricks68]

"I gave up carbs for this?" - Kennedy Meeks, after the game

I thought it was specifically Twinkies that he had given up. No, that was in a former disgustingly blue colored universe.:rolleyes:

ricks

[BLPOG]

I'm not gonna lie. I'm a little afraid of her.

In the spirit of fairness (that the Holes would never themselves endorse), it should be pointed out that her response was after the dude (by visual evidence, anyway) lambasted her. I know this in part because I watched the video clip several times, since a buddy of mine at ESPN sent me the remarkably entertaining footage.

[fgb]

Many on DBR poke fun at Roy for saving his time-outs. I don't know about this one. I recall the last college basketball game in 1999 when Duke had the ball in a very similar situation. Down 3, no time out was called, and the Alaskan Assassin lost the ball and did not get a shot off at all. I could hardly believe it (about the no timeout).

I think the theory may be that if you are the stronger team (are you? If you're down that late?) you don't call time out, you don't let the defense get set up. You basically say, "Yeah, we're down late, but our offense is better than their defense, so we're going to give them no chance to set up." But guess what? You give your own vaunted offense no time to set up either.

I suppose you could argue it both ways.

Anyway, very gutty win by the (black and) blue devils. Very surprised, I was (and am). Best wishes for speedy recovery to Matt. I got an email from Amile today; he didn't mention his progress ... (it was an Iron Duke email).
Hopefully by the time Roy figures out what he did wrong, we'll have some different looks and challenges for him. Maybe a player or two off the injury list.


Big props to Wheat for grace in defeat ... an example to us all. Hopefully we won't have reason to emulate it ... for the rest of the season (aw heck, why not declare the dawn of an era of unbridled optimism?)


roy exposed the flaw in his post game comments, when he said that the idea was not to let the defense get set: that logic only follows when the defense is not set. berry WALKED the ball up the court; our defense was ready. that philosophy calls for the ball to be pushed up court as quickly as possible.

[ricks68]

This may ne nit-picky but others who watch unc games may want to keep an eye on this. Joel Berry really has a habit of pushing off with his off arm on drives. None of these were called but even Bilas made mention of it in one instance as a missed offensive foul call. He really extends his arm out after putting his shoulder down. He may be doing this to compensate for lack of a first step and the latest set of "rules" are certainly more prone to give more room to the offensive player. But I was a little surprised he was never once called for this.

Actually, Brogdon does it even more and does not get called for it. In fact, he often initially elbows his defender to get clear on his drives. Recheck our last game on how often he nailed Grayson.:mad:

ricks

[TNTDevil]

"death of an elite program" is my favorite of the current crop.Damn you OOOOObbbbbaaaammmmaaaaaa!!!!!

[Coballs]

In the spirit of fairness (that the Holes would never themselves endorse), it should be pointed out that her response was after the dude (by visual evidence, anyway) lambasted her. I know this in part because I watched the video clip several times, since a buddy of mine at ESPN sent me the remarkably entertaining footage.

Yeah, the guy turns and starts screaming in her face first. Somebody over at ESPN clearly loved the footage...probably you're friend. They've replayed it more times than they've shown Kennard's late 3.

Is it possible to post video on this board? I have it saved on my phone hehe

[ricks68]

There are tons of awesome posts over there (IC) but I picked this one as my fave


"Roy's coaching tonight was a bigger disgrace than the whole academic scandal. If the NCAA wanted to really **** us over they'd say we have to give Roy tenure and keep watching this crap forever."

Excellent post. Great find.

ricks

[Troublemaker]

Oh, I think I can help you with that one hehehe

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In the spirit of fairness (that the Holes would never themselves endorse), it should be pointed out that her response was after the dude (by visual evidence, anyway) lambasted her. I know this in part because I watched the video clip several times, since a buddy of mine at ESPN sent me the remarkably entertaining footage.


Yeah, the guy turns and starts screaming in her face first. Somebody over at ESPN clearly loved the footage...probably you're friend. They've replayed it more times than they've shown Kennard's late 3.

Is it possible to post video on this board? I have it saved on my phone hehe

Yeah, that relationship is not going to last.

In times of distress (such as witnessing a 1-pt loss to Duke), an alpha male and a beta male react quite differently.

That was a beta male move to yell at her.

I'd like to think, since he's a UNC fan, that he was screaming "He was fouled! Joel was fouled! Duke always get the calls!"

She then had to correct him, "Stop it! STOP it! Stop your whining! This loss is because we were outplayed and outKoached."

[ricks68]

I just watch the final 7 from when we were down 8.

-Just prior, Ingram had made an epic block as part of a sequence that helped them build the 8 pt lead but was a little lucky in that we muffled a few transiton opportunities and gave back easy ones the other way
-Ingram makes 3 straight buckets
-Grayson with a beauty of an and-1 3 point play
-Kennard huge 3 from corner which was fairly well defended
-Marshall solid low post D on Johnson where he poked the ball away to make his lose his post-up and led to an eventual shot clock violation
-Kennard's epic block on Meeks and Grayson grabbing the loose ball
-Grayson game winning FTs
-Paige missing front of a 2 shot foul and generally taking bad shots and making bad decisions
-A lot of bad UNC offense
-Some Duke offense at the end was poor, too, we did just enough

I thought Luke made the block also, even though the commentators said it was Brandon. I replayed it in super slo-mo a few times and it was Brandon. Luke was there just a tad behind Brandon. Outstanding timing by both of our players.

ricks

[El_Diablo]

If you look at a couple different video angles of the last play on the goduke.com website, you will see Roy motion to the refs by grabbing his wrist as if to say, "my guy was fouled."

www.goduke.com/mediaPortal/player.dbml?db_oem_id=4200&DB_OEM_ID=4200

Exactly. I could see in one of the ESPN replays that Roy was motioning to the refs for the foul on the last shot before ripping off his glasses in frustration. So when he then goes into the press conference and starts up with his "Well, some people may say that was a foul" tapdance, it comes across as a little disingenuous. He wasn't that bad overall though, and nowhere near as bad as Bo Ryan. But then again, Roy has given the "gotta give Duke credit for the win" speech 11 times out of our last 14 games, so he should be somewhat used to it by now. :)

This was a great, great win for the good guys! We kept getting knocked down, but each time we fought like hell to get back up, and everyone seemed to come up big down the stretch. Now if only we can get healthy and stay that way for a little while . . . .

[Billy Dat]

I thought Luke made the block also, even though the commentators said it was Brandon. I replayed it in super slo-mo a few times and it was Brandon. Luke was there just a tad behind Brandon. Outstanding timing by both of our players.

ricks

Ok - good sleuthing - I thought it was LK but as long as it happened, I am happy to credit BI.

[Billy Dat]

I just watched the K presser on GoDuke and it ends with this classic exchange:

Art Chansky I presume:
(In reference to Duke's injuries) "Are they gonna call you the Iron Dukes?"

K:
"I hope not Art because then they'll start calling and asking for money!"

[kAzE]

Ok - good sleuthing - I thought it was LK but as long as it happened, I am happy to credit BI.

Luke still had the humongous 3 to put us up by 1, and then the steal on the Paige entry feed that led to a fast break and the winning free throws. That's 2 incredibly huge plays that we HAD to have. that's potentially a swing of 7 points on 2 plays. Everyone played with such amazing effort.

[DukieInKansas]

Even after a number of late nights and just finishing watching the game and this tread, I'm not sure I can go to sleep. Watching ESPN College BBall Live and they showed a great shot of how excited Carolina fans were before the game. Knowing the outcome just makes that shot so much sweeter.

Thank you, team, for the amazing game you just played. Hope Matt heals quickly - or is that heels/

[DukieInKansas]

They just showed the graphic - Duke only led this game for 6% of the time played. It may have only been 6% but it was the correct 6%. :D

[Olympic Fan]

With 9 seconds left on Saturday against Virginia and being one down K did what?
Nuff said...

I was thinking of the Virginia finish as I watched the replay of the Duke-UNC game and saw Roy eschew the timeout.

The two situations are so similar as to give you goosebumps:

Against Virginia, Duke gets the ball with 10 seconds left (after Brogdon's acrobatic shot underneath), down one point. Duke rushes it to midcourt and Allen, standing beside coach K, gets the message and calls timeout (the coach can't call it) with 7.0 seconds left to set up the game-winning play.

Against Duke, UNC gets the ball with 16.8 seconds left (after Allen's missed jumper) down one point. Berry walks the ball up the court -- as Roy is in front of the bench, waving him to push it up. Neither Johnson, nor Paige -- their two senior stars -- is anywhere close to the ball. Berry finally goes one-on-one, tries to take a jumper over Derryck and has his shot tipped.

I've heard K talk about this situation before. His first instinct is to rush the ball up and try and score without a timeout. BUT he monitors the situation and if his team does not seem to have the advantage in transition, then he wants the timeout to set something up.

I can see not calling timeout because you don't want a team to set their defense ... but Duke's defense WAS set and had been strangling UNC in the final minutes.

One other thing. Brice Johnson had 27 points with 11 minutes to play. He got two shots the rest of the way -- a 15-foot jumper that missed and a dunk off a ball that was batted loose and happened to bounce to a UNC player who got him the ball as Duke was scrambling.

What was Roy doing on the sideline as his team was jacking jumpers? Did he ever think to remind his team that they had a player Duke basically couldn't guard?

A few other thoughts:

-- Watching the game, can you believe that Theo Pinson was ranked higher than Justice Winslow by many scouting services ... or that Justin Jackson was ranked higher by almost EVERY scouting service? Both were rabnked higher than Grayson Allen. In fact, Joel Berry was ranked higher than Allen by ESPN and Rivals (Scout and 247 ranked Allen higher).

-- Bilas and company were careful not to mention the looming UNC scandal ... but it did slip in when the sideline reporter talked about Brandon Ingram picking Duke over UNC because of the scandal ... listeners who don't follow this thing must have wondered what in heck was she talking about.

-- I thought K made one mistake last night. With about 14 minutes left, Marshall picked up his third foul and K got Chase up to go in the game. But he didn't get him to the scorer's table fast enough and while he was waiting for a deadball, Marshall picked up his fourth foul. Easy to second-guess, but he should have moved quicker to get Jeter in. That one mistake was a tiny blemish on an incredible coaching job.

-- ESPN showed their top 10 Duke-Carolina moments and they weren't bad. But nine of them were ESPN-era games ... the one that wasn't was Walter Davis' shot in 1974. Okay, that was a great moment ... but if you're going to go back for that one, why not go back to Freddie Lind in 1968? Or Gene Banks in 1981?

[Pomona]

www.diddukewin.com

[Pomona]

I was thinking of the Virginia finish as I watched the replay of the Duke-UNC game and saw Roy eschew the timeout.

The two situations are so similar as to give you goosebumps:

Against Virginia, Duke gets the ball with 10 seconds left (after Brogdon's acrobatic shot underneath), down one point. Duke rushes it to midcourt and Allen, standing beside coach K, gets the message and calls timeout (the coach can't call it) with 7.0 seconds left to set up the game-winning play.

Against Duke, UNC gets the ball with 16.8 seconds left (after Allen's missed jumper) down one point. Berry walks the ball up the court -- as Roy is in front of the bench, waving him to push it up. Neither Johnson, nor Paige -- their two senior stars -- is anywhere close to the ball. Berry finally goes one-on-one, tries to take a jumper over Derryck and has his shot tipped.

I've heard K talk about this situation before. His first instinct is to rush the ball up and try and score without a timeout. BUT he monitors the situation and if his team does not seem to have the advantage in transition, then he wants the timeout to set something up.

I can see not calling timeout because you don't want a team to set their defense ... but Duke's defense WAS set and had been strangling UNC in the final minutes.

One other thing. Brice Johnson had 27 points with 11 minutes to play. He got two shots the rest of the way -- a 15-foot jumper that missed and a dunk off a ball that was batted loose and happened to bounce to a UNC player who got him the ball as Duke was scrambling.

What was Roy doing on the sideline as his team was jacking jumpers? Did he ever think to remind his team that they had a player Duke basically couldn't guard?

A few other thoughts:

-- Watching the game, can you believe that Theo Pinson was ranked higher than Justice Winslow by many scouting services ... or that Justin Jackson was ranked higher by almost EVERY scouting service? Both were rabnked higher than Grayson Allen. In fact, Joel Berry was ranked higher than Allen by ESPN and Rivals (Scout and 247 ranked Allen higher).

-- Bilas and company were careful not to mention the looming UNC scandal ... but it did slip in when the sideline reporter talked about Brandon Ingram picking Duke over UNC because of the scandal ... listeners who don't follow this thing must have wondered what in heck was she talking about.

-- I thought K made one mistake last night. With about 14 minutes left, Marshall picked up his third foul and K got Chase up to go in the game. But he didn't get him to the scorer's table fast enough and while he was waiting for a deadball, Marshall picked up his fourth foul. Easy to second-guess, but he should have moved quicker to get Jeter in. That one mistake was a tiny blemish on an incredible coaching job.

-- ESPN showed their top 10 Duke-Carolina moments and they weren't bad. But nine of them were ESPN-era games ... the one that wasn't was Walter Davis' shot in 1974. Okay, that was a great moment ... but if you're going to go back for that one, why not go back to Freddie Lind in 1968? Or Gene Banks in 1981?

They did show Tinkerbell in 1981.

[jbay201]

Just re-watched the game and our team played with a lot more heart and determination than the cheats!

Couple things that stood out on watching the replay:
1) Team chemistry/improvement: Our guys definitely are more cohesive due to the shorter rotation and Coach K's superior coaching. Our team is clearly improving as the season progresses and so is every single player. Jones is getting his shot back (injury sucks), Thornton is a far better defender and much less turnover prone, Kennard is better able to create for himself and his shot is becoming more consistent, Marshall is able to put the ball on the floor and get to the basket with a respectable shot, Grayson and Ingram are confident in their abilities to take over the game.

2) Defense: Our man to man defense has greatly improved and I'm sure its attributable to Coach K and his emphasis on it in practice. At halftime, as Roy was being interviewed he said it doesn't matter how many points the other team scores since their game is just to outscore every opponent...its clear he doesn't view defense as important as offense. It has been a major flaw of the cheats the entire year especially against good driving teams and it will be the reason they won't go far in tournament this year. You need to account for poor shooting days with great defense to keep games close and give yourself a chance to win.

[BigWayne]

The best, most surreal part was the post game. They have the Sportscenter guys there to run their show from the court after the game, expecting a boisterous Carolina crowd as a backdrop and instead get a view of people folding up chairs in an empty stadium while they all wonder how it turned out this way. First time I ever watched the whole postgame show of anything where there wasn't a trophy being handed out.

[BigWayne]

Top night for Carolina Meltdown. (https://twitter.com/ICMeltdown)


"When a 5 deep depleted Duke team beats our most experienced deepest team in years its time to try something new" #UNC #LikeReverseCoygirl


"I'm speechless and I'm full of venom at the same time. I'm not sure I've ever been quite so embarrassed by a UNC loss"
Mostly, because it's Duke(spelled the way UNC fans do). The worst Duke team in about 5 years playing the best UNC team in about 5 years at the Dean Dome. A Duke team that played 5 players the entire second half. A seriously flawed Duke team with 1 big man and nothing else inside... And we lost. At home. To that Duke team. A not good Duke team. If we can't beat this Duke team, at the Dean Dome, then when will we ever beat them again? We're not a good team" #Truth #UNC

[JetpackJesus]

Just rewatching the final 10 minutes of the game now. Turning point is totally those no-calls by the officials for 3 straight possessions on Allen (Bilas even admitted the last "block" was a foul). Duke went down 68-60 with 6:49 left. Duke came out of the media time out and Ingram and Allen (no disrespect to Luke's 3) said, "F* this BS, we're gonna win."

Still love DT's defense on last play, too. What an amazing game, and what am amazing team. So proud of these guys.

*EDIT* I think the part of Roy's presser that ESPN showed (first I've heard it) was very gracious and well spoken, aside from the two foul gripes.

[NashvilleDevil]

They just showed the graphic - Duke only led this game for 6% of the time played. It may have only been 6% but it was the correct 6%. :D

Brian Fantana - 6% of the time, you lead everytime.

Ron Burgundy - That doesn't make any sense.

[porkpa]

Have we ever had a tougher player with a better "don't give up" attitude. Maybe one or two just as tough, but none tougher.

[devildeac]

Aw, we just played a bit o' 'possum, then did a little sumpin' sumpin'.

What fun work should be tomorrow, if any UNC fans show up.:D Absolutely great defense on the last play. And Thornton's block was clean. The camera angle from the floor camera (I think) under the Duke basket showed clearly that he didn't foul Frankenberry.

I hope you had a little Sumpin' Sumpin' to celebrate. ;)

[luburch]

This is apparently the first time in 81 years Duke has won back-to-back games by one point. Could not have happened at a better time (excluding the Final Four of course :) ).

This team certainly has its flaws and I'm not sure how the season will turn out, but man it sure has been fun watching them grow and figure out how to win games.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Boy, I had the strangest dream last night...

:D

[Billy Dat]

This is apparently the first time in 81 years Duke has won back-to-back games by one point. Could not have happened at a better time (excluding the Final Four of course.

Did they also say Duke was 9-1 in their last 10 1-point decisions. Bring on the Maalox!

I do remember the several mentions of yesterday being Michael Jordan's birthday. I am sorry that game was the cherry on your Sundae, MJ. It is fun for us Duke fans to know that the result made you truly furious, but at least it gave you a chance to say, for perhaps the millionth time, "That never would have happened to a team I played on!"...and you'd be right.

[OldPhiKap]

I seèm to recall before the game, an announcer said that a Duke team this low in the rankings had not beaten Carolina since 1957 (or something like that).

Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

[TKG]

But you shouldn't have to teach passion . . . .

Roy is really sniffling in the PC. Threw Dean Smith under the bus for not calling a TO. Doing my happy dance.

Could not believe his sought cover by invoking DES. What a jerk!

[OldPhiKap]

Favorite IC post so far:

"I say we self impose an NCAA ban this year right now like Louisville did. This team is garbage anyway. The seniors aren't going to accomplish anything. The FB team should have done that when they had the chance but they played it out and got rewarded with a blowout loss in a meaningless bowl game and a postseason ban the following year. This team's finished. Just get it over with. And get a new frigging coach!"

From a thread about whether they win the rematch. Almost unanimous: no.

[Ggallagher]

I don't think I could ever express how impressed I am about what those guys pulled off last night - I just don't have the words for it.

But I do have to really wonder... So just what is it that Coach K would EVER have to do to be recognized as Coach of the Year????????????????

And of course, I really don't care. I wouldn't trade anyone else's COY for what I've seen his teams do over the years - and I don't have any idea what a team would have to do to surpass last night's effort.

Go Duke.

And I'm going to try REAL hard not to call my UNC-graduate, dyed in the wool baby blue fan brother-in-law today :)

[NYBri]

Boy, I had the strangest dream last night...

:D

Bet Roy said the same thing.

[camion]

I woke up this morning and DUKE STILL WON.

All during the second half I was preparing to compliment the team on a gutsy performance keeping it close after Matt went down, but time expired with UNC 1 point down. I am totally amazed with our guys and their performance last night.

Life is good. :)

[Reisen]

My favorite IC post:

That game was like so many others we've lost to them recently. It was like watching one of those Friday the 13th movies. Same script, same plot, we're like the teenagers who go back to the campground where Jason is, knowing full well he slaughtered a bunch of people in the past and we're like no it won't happen again. Not this time. And then it happens just like it always does. We're yelling come on do something! Here comes Jason. He's got an axe. Come on Roy! Call timeout! Nope. Same as always.

[MChambers]

"Death of an Elite Program" is my favorite of the current crop.

Doesn't this belong in the cheating scandal thread?

[duke blue brewcrew]

My favorite IC post:

That game was like so many others we've lost to them recently. It was like watching one of those Friday the 13th movies. Same script, same plot, we're like the teenagers who go back to the campground where Jason is, knowing full well he slaughtered a bunch of people in the past and we're like no it won't happen again. Not this time. And then it happens just like it always does. We're yelling come on do something! Here comes Jason. He's got an axe. Come on Roy! Call timeout! Nope. Same as always.

It's one of those "Walking on Sunshine" kind of mornings, where all Duke fans have an extra pep in their step, smiling easy, and the morning coffee tastes just a little bit better than normal. Reading that IC quote made those next couple of sips from my coffee go up a couple of notches on the taste meter :)

[duke blue brewcrew]

Favorite IC post so far:

"I say we self impose an NCAA ban this year right now like Louisville did. This team is garbage anyway. The seniors aren't going to accomplish anything. The FB team should have done that when they had the chance but they played it out and got rewarded with a blowout loss in a meaningless bowl game and a postseason ban the following year. This team's finished. Just get it over with. And get a new frigging coach!"

From a thread about whether they win the rematch. Almost unanimous: no.

Somehow I missed this one the first time through. These are the types of things that really start a day off right!

[Henderson]

Reading that IC quote made those next couple of sips from my coffee go up a couple of notches on the taste meter :)

The plurality of opinion over at IC is that Roy got outcoached and should go.

Some folks just take longer to learn stuff. It's not their fault.

[wavedukefan70s]

Oh my its a beautiful day at work lol.

[Indoor66]

Roy did nothing because he's on the bench with two bad knees. The players know the game plan and with their experience they should be held accountable to execute it. The UNC team didn't play well enough to win.

The view that somehow Roy lost the game does a disservice to the performance of the Duke players who were on the court and actually made the plays to win the game.

I think coaches get too much credit, or blame, around here. It's players making plays when the whistle blows, imo.

I completely agree with you. Coaches are over credited and overblamed. That said, the Coach does recruit the players, teaches in practice, devises the game plan and makes adjustments during the game. The Coach does have a huge impact on the actual playing of the game and coaching errors and coaching malpractice does take place. In this instance, the Coach did not give what some might call appropriate assistance to his players to put them in the best position to win. He should have called a time out and he acknowledged that fact.

[mkirsh]

What a fun game to watch. I haven't watched UNC a lot this year, but I was really impressed with their defense for most of the game - they cut off drives pretty well, and closed out on shooters chasing them off the 3 point line (historically a UNC weakness). It seemed like UNC was getting a fair amount of easy buckets - putbacks, dunks, putback-dunks, fast break run outs, lucky bounces, etc - but every Duke basket was very hard fought and contested. And most of it came through ISO offense, so just a testament to how tough and talented Ingram and Allen are.

I also like the move to put Marshall back with 10 minutes left. Reminds me of the Wake game where Manning saved Thomas too long and missed the chance to impact the game. Gutsy move by K and great play by Plumlee to make it work.

It's not a perfect corollary, but this team reminds me a lot of the 2000 team - mass exodus of talent the year before and having to rely on a crop of talented but inexperienced freshman. That team also had two stars carry them, but they were upperclassmen Battier and C-Well as opposed to a freshman and soph this year. That team overperformed all year and won the ACC before running out of gas in the sweet 16 vs Florida, but a tough and fun team to watch. This team is proving to be as enjoyable, and hopefully can get healthy and have a deeper run.

[wilson]

Anybody got a bead on some nice fresh pics of sad tar heel fans?


Oh, I think I can help you with that one hehehe

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And here's one more for the collection...Here's another good one, courtesy of the Daily tarhole.
5968

[bluenorth]

An amazing win by a team that just won't quit. I felt that we controlled the pace of the game for most of the second half, after that racehorse first 20 minutes. Great coaching to get the guys to slow it down.

So what's the theme of this season going to be? Last year it was Eight is Enough. Maybe this time around it's another old TV series, Party of Five.

[Chillduck]

I don't fault Roy Williams for not taking a time out at the end of the game. I fault Roy Williams for having 3 timeouts left at the end of a game. When you aren't getting the ball inside for the final 10 minutes, call a timeout and remind your team that Plumlee has 4 fouls, Brice Johnson has been unstoppable, and the outside shots aren't falling. Take a timeout and regroup. You would never see Coach K not take a timeout in such a close game to discuss strategy. Roy just seems to let his players wing it, which leads to results like yesterday! By the way, my Player of the Game is Grayson Allen, Brandon Ingram, Marshall Plumlee, Luke Kennard, and Derryck Thornton. They all deserve it in the game where 5 players were enough!

[Henderson]

So what's the theme of this season going to be? Last year it was Eight is Enough. Maybe this time around it's another old TV series, Party of Five.

If either Amile or Matt can play on Saturday, the eggrolls are on me.

[Channing]

There was so much to love about this game. DT has clearly turned a corner, especially on D, and it has elevated the entire teams defense. Ingram, Kennard, Allen - all amazing and clutch. MP3 able to play hard with four fouls was huge.

BUT, during the period in the second half where I was ready accept a moral victory, I told myself the most impressive part of that game was MP3s recently found ability to put the ball on the deck from the 3 or line. Clearly he has been taking lessons from Mason!

[The Gordog]

An amazing win by a team that just won't quit. I felt that we controlled the pace of the game for most of the second half, after that racehorse first 20 minutes. Great coaching to get the guys to slow it down.

So what's the theme of this season going to be? Last year it was Eight is Enough. Maybe this time around it's another old TV series, Party of Five.

Party of Five. I like it. But when Amile and Matt get back it will be the Magnificent Seven.

[wilson]

There was so much to love about this game. DT has clearly turned a corner, especially on D, and it has elevated the entire teams defense. Ingram, Kennard, Allen - all amazing and clutch. MP3 able to play hard with four fouls was huge.

BUT, during the period in the second half where I was ready accept a moral victory, I told myself the most impressive part of that game was MP3s recently found ability to put the ball on the deck from the 3 or line. Clearly he has been taking lessons from Mason!Strongly agreed here. While Brandon and Grayson had the standout performances last night, I think that was Derryck's best overall game in a Duke uniform so far.

[millerecu]

1st.....how much time is too much time to hang on the rim after a dunk? At least 2-3 times last night Johnson hung on the rim with no one under/around with no tech call. Seems like Jabari used to get called for that every other game a couple years back. Maybe freshman haven't earned the right to hang on the rim?

I keep hearing about UNC being National Championship Contenders. Admittedly I do not watch many of their game and the overall team talent pool is down this year but how many teams that cannot shoot beyond 12' have won a NC?

[OZ]

I'm fine with how the game was coached.


So am I; and I hope both teams keep their coach for years to come.

[whereinthehellami]

Great game and win by Duke, everyone stepped up from the coaches to players.

The UNC program seems tired... of carrying around the immense weight of the bad karma caused by their massive cheating and irresponsibility.

[dukelifer]

There was so much to love about this game. DT has clearly turned a corner, especially on D, and it has elevated the entire teams defense. Ingram, Kennard, Allen - all amazing and clutch. MP3 able to play hard with four fouls was huge.

BUT, during the period in the second half where I was ready accept a moral victory, I told myself the most impressive part of that game was MP3s recently found ability to put the ball on the deck from the 3 or line. Clearly he has been taking lessons from Mason!

Marshall is a grown man and showed all of his growth as a player last night. He played an intense part of the game with 4 fouls and made no mistakes. He has had a great senior season and has been a big reason for Duke's recent string of wins. The five year guy who has given everything he has to the program. Those Plumlee boys have meant a lot to Duke. Would be nice to honor all three some way.

[Saratoga2]

This may ne nit-picky but others who watch unc games may want to keep an eye on this. Joel Berry really has a habit of pushing off with his off arm on drives. None of these were called but even Bilas made mention of it in one instance as a missed offensive foul call. He really extends his arm out after putting his shoulder down. He may be doing this to compensate for lack of a first step and the latest set of "rules" are certainly more prone to give more room to the offensive player. But I was a little surprised he was never once called for this.

It is unlike Bilas to mention fouls favorable to Duke, but he did several times in the second have when blatant UNC fouls were not called. Sometimes I think the refs get caught up in the emotion of the crowd and calls get slanted to the benefit of the home team.

[weezie]

Heard him on Mike and Mike and he was very pro Duke. Said he was just as stunned as we all were last night. "Grit" and determination and heart were all mentioned.

Gee whiz, can we lay off Jay and just bask in this beautiful morning? Hey, how about we debate whether another Duke man, Peter Cook, should help the FBI unlock the cell phone of the CA terror murderer?

[freshmanjs]

Heard him on Mike and Mike and he was very pro Duke. Said he was just as stunned as we all were last night. "Grit" and determination and heart were all mentioned.

Gee whiz, can we lay off Jay and just bask in this beautiful morning? Hey, how about we debate whether another Duke man, Peter Cook, should help the FBI unlock the cell phone of the CA terror murderer?

Peter Cook?

[weezie]

Oh my its a beautiful day at work lol.

I hope you are doing a lot of happy whistling and dance steps and maybe even brought in donuts iced in Duke Blue :cool:

[Troublemaker]

I view the blame/credit game as zero-sum. That is, blaming Roy takes credit away from our players and coaches. I won't have a chance to re-watch the game until the weekend, but was it really just as simple as UNC, poorly coached, decided to go away from Brice Johnson? I bet if I reviewed the tape, I'm going to see lots of nice denial defense by Duke inside, complimented by ball pressure on the perimeter to make entry passes difficult. That's what we do, folks. When Duke's defense is clicking, opponents can't run the plays and actions they want to run and are forced to have their guards make plays 1-on-1. I would rather credit our players for executing so well and our coaches for coaching them up.

As an aside, there is no objective statistical analysis that will show Roy Williams to be anything but a very good coach.

[Clay Feet POF]

I don't normally say this, but let's lay off Wheat and enjoy the win. Kudos to Wheat for his post after a tough loss in a game they should have won. That takes guts. Let's leave it there and enjoy the crazy fun of the win.




Plus Tax!

[Troublemaker]

Peter Cook?

weezie meant Tim Cook, of course. MBA from Duke, CEO at Apple.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

I hope you are doing a lot of happy whistling and dance steps and maybe even brought in donuts iced in Duke Blue :cool:

Definitely overtired at work today (game went past my bedtime, and celebration went WAY past my bedtime) but in pretty danged good spirits!

[uh_no]

An amazing win by a team that just won't quit. I felt that we controlled the pace of the game for most of the second half, after that racehorse first 20 minutes. Great coaching to get the guys to slow it down.

So what's the theme of this season going to be? Last year it was Eight is Enough. Maybe this time around it's another old TV series, Party of Five.

5 Guys baskets and drives.

[brevity]

Gee whiz, can we lay off Jay and just bask in this beautiful morning? Hey, how about we debate whether another Duke man, Peter Cook, should help the FBI unlock the cell phone of the CA terror murderer?


Peter Cook?

Sure, Peter Cook. He played the Impressive Clergyman in The Princess Bride.

5969

"Tewwowism. Tewwowism is what bwings us togetha today. Whetha to unwock a tewephone in the intewest of national secuwity..."

[Troublemaker]

Marshall is a grown man and showed all of his growth as a player last night. He played an intense part of the game with 4 fouls and made no mistakes. He has had a great senior season and has been a big reason for Duke's recent string of wins. The five year guy who has given everything he has to the program. Those Plumlee boys have meant a lot to Duke. Would be nice to honor all three some way.

Yep. Marshall is now a quality ACC starting center. As recently as late December, most of us would've been surprised if that came to be, and we were just praying that Jeter would develop faster. But MP3 stepped up like crazy. So proud of him.

Let that be a lesson, folks. Everyone on the team is constantly developing. Even a 5th year senior like Marshall, who experienced a major burst of improvement from January on.

[Mike Corey]

Good morning, everyone. I love you. And everything else.

http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/acc/duke/ybat6o/picture60995617/ALTERNATES/FREE_640/DUKEUNC9SP021716CEL

[dukebluesincebirth]

Definitely overtired at work today (game went past my bedtime, and celebration went WAY past my bedtime) but in pretty danged good spirits!

You ain't the only one! I went way past my bedtime also, then 9 month old daughter decided she would wake up and celebrate about 3am:) ... her 1st win over unc!

But I left the house this morning with the Duke flag flying on the vehicle and giggled all the way to work!!!! It's well worth the fatigue!!! What a glorious day!!!

Go Devils, and GTHC!!!!!!!

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Yep. Marshall is now a quality ACC starting center. As recently as late December, most of us would've been surprised if that came to be, and we were just praying that Jeter would develop faster. But MP3 stepped up like crazy. So proud of him.

Let that be a lesson, folks. Everyone on the team is constantly developing. Even a 5th year senior like Marshall, who experienced a major burst of improvement from January on.

Can't say enough about Marshall. He's become my favorite Plumlee. He took more grief early in his career on this board than almost anyone I can remember, and just flat out got better each year. I also don't think you can overstate the effect of his summer with the military. I'm certain that his immense confidence boost was a direct result of this experience.

He is not the most talented Plumlee brother, but I sure wouldn't want to bet against him.

[DukieInKansas]

I don't think I could ever express how impressed I am about what those guys pulled off last night - I just don't have the words for it.

But I do have to really wonder... So just what is it that Coach K would EVER have to do to be recognized as Coach of the Year????????????????

And of course, I really don't care. I wouldn't trade anyone else's COY for what I've seen his teams do over the years - and I don't have any idea what a team would have to do to surpass last night's effort.

Go Duke.

And I'm going to try REAL hard not to call my UNC-graduate, dyed in the wool baby blue fan brother-in-law today :)

I would be happy to call him for you to ask how he is holding up after the game. I could do caring about him very well, I'm sure. I promise not to laugh as I ask him. :D

[NYBri]

We had an amazing effort from our team...

Now that Matt is out, going forward I guess our plan c (already in plan b with Amile out) is to ask everyone who is not Plumlee to play 40 minutes each.

One thing we most certainly can't afford now is ANOTHER injury. Not sure if there is plan d, e, f or even q.