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BandAlum83
04-06-2019, 03:21 PM
I’ll admit it. I’m sad.

Since the game, I haven’t been out to DBR. Even now, I haven’t read any of the threads or checked in to what people are saying.

I have avoided ESPN, sports talk and the sports pages. I did see a pop up on regular news that Zion won AP player of the year. Great for him. He seems to be such a genuine, real kid who is so joyful. I hope he still is.

I haven’t listened to the DBR podcast or any college b-ball podcasts. My wife asked what time the Auburn- UVA game is tonight. I said I don’t know. She wants to watch. I don’t think I can.

Is anyone else feeling like this?

Ironically, I chuckle at people who put too much stock in following sports teams. I need to put this in perspective.

I just loved this team so much. Actually, the last two teams.

hsheffield
04-06-2019, 03:25 PM
Yes, I’m right there with you. Dealing with the emotions by avoidance.

BandAlum83
04-06-2019, 03:29 PM
Yes, I’m right there with you. Dealing with the emotions by avoidance.

Avoidance can work. The last time uNC won the title (whenever that was) I recall that I didn’t know who won the game until 13 days later. Avoidance and denial can do wonders!

uh_no
04-06-2019, 03:47 PM
not sure why i'm less eaten up than last year. maybe it was the more comfortable leads we had? Maybe the turnovers make it seem like we were responsible for the loss, and thus "deserved" to lose? Maybe the losses w/o zion prepared me for us to lose?

I don't know....but I was ready for it, and life kind of....went on....

It sucks, I can't imagine a guy I wanted to win more than Zion....for how well he's held himself and how he's represented Duke....

And then uconn blew a 9 point lead in the fourth last night.....to lose in the final four....again....

KenTankerous
04-06-2019, 04:11 PM
I am always more downtrodden and eaten up by the loses than I am ever elated and enriched by the wins that I gotta wonder:

WTF are we doin'?

uh_no
04-06-2019, 04:16 PM
I am always more downtrodden and eaten up by the loses than I am ever elated and enriched by the wins that I gotta wonder:

WTF are we doin'?

Can't say I feel the same. The last time we won a natty, i was a bit...late...to work the next day :D


Anyway, I don't think it's just about the wins, it's about feeling a huge range of emotions....ones that one might not normally be able to reach on a daily basis....that's what brings me in anyway.

Plus the incredibly high level of intellectual babble which happens here....if only i applied that level of thinking to like, equities or something.

-jk
04-06-2019, 04:18 PM
I am always more downtrodden and eaten up by the loses than I am ever elated and enriched by the wins that I gotta wonder:

WTF are we doin'?

We've been on an amazing 35 year run! Enjoy it while you can.

(c.f., ucla...)

-jk

Ian
04-06-2019, 04:22 PM
I think the UCF completely innoculated me against a loss. I basically already thought we lost as the ball hung on the rim, and losing in the 2nd rd would have been so awful that any loss in a later round felt already like found money for me. We were lucky to have gotten as far as we did.

wsb3
04-06-2019, 04:32 PM
No loss will ever hurt me personally more than 86 loss to Louisville...followed by the 99 Loss to UCONN.

This one was not even close. I did not expect us to win due to the atrocious outside shooting & free throw concerns..

Of course I really wanted to be wrong.

-jk
04-06-2019, 04:34 PM
No loss will ever hurt me personally more than 86 loss to Louisville...followed by the 99 Loss to UCon.

This one was not even close. I did not expect us to win due to the atrocious outside shooting & free throw concerns..

Of course I really wanted to be wrong.

Those two, in that order, are my bugaboos, too.

I've missed enough that I'm fairly philosophical - the next day...

-jk

Duke76
04-06-2019, 05:06 PM
Those two, in that order, are my bugaboos, too.

I've missed enough that I'm fairly philosophical - the next day...

-jk

yea sitting here texting with some UVA friends telling them I'm rooting for them, which I am...glad I'm not talking to my few UNC buddies. Tuesday can't come soon enough.

UrinalCake
04-06-2019, 05:27 PM
I think the UCF completely innoculated me against a loss. I basically already thought we lost as the ball hung on the rim, and losing in the 2nd rd would have been so awful that any loss in a later round felt already like found money for me. We were lucky to have gotten as far as we did.

I keep telling myself similar thoughts, perhaps as a means of acceptance. We’ve played in so many close games lately - not only UCF and VT but UNC in the ACCT required a last possession miss, even Wake late in the season (without Zion, but still). When you play in enough close games, you’re eventually going to lose one. I knew MSU would be a coin flip type game so it’s hard to feel too shocked at the outcome.

99 was the hardest loss for me (I wasn’t yet a fan in 1986). Literally never crossed my mind that we could lose that game. I also felt really bad for Trajan, more than I do for Zion.

sweetchiba51
04-06-2019, 05:56 PM
I'm pretty bummed out about this one too, although it's not even close to the 99 loss. That one hurt really bad. That team was so dominant. Wed did make up for it 2 years later though....was was nice.

hallcity
04-06-2019, 06:46 PM
I’m not sad but I’m damned envious of the fans of U Va, Auburn, MSU and TT. The TT and Auburn fans, especially, don’t deserve it.

duketaylor
04-06-2019, 07:05 PM
I’ll admit it. I’m sad.

Since the game, I haven’t been out to DBR. Even now, I haven’t read any of the threads or checked in to what people are saying.

I have avoided ESPN, sports talk and the sports pages. I did see a pop up on regular news that Zion won AP player of the year. Great for him. He seems to be such a genuine, real kid who is so joyful. I hope he still is.

I haven’t listened to the DBR podcast or any college b-ball podcasts. My wife asked what time the Auburn- UVA game is tonight. I said I don’t know. She wants to watch. I don’t think I can.

Is anyone else feeling like this?

Ironically, I chuckle at people who put too much stock in following sports teams. I need to put this in perspective.

I just loved this team so much. Actually, the last two teams.

I started feeling a little better about Wednesday, happy unc and UK were out. Happy for my UVA friends and my fishing buddy (MSU grad). I'm loathing today, a bit. But I completely understand your lament. Plus college hoops are over Monday night altogether. Hate that.

Thank goodness I love PGA golf and a little MLB, otherwise I might stroke out.

HereBeforeCoachK
04-06-2019, 07:30 PM
I'm pretty bummed out about this one too, although it's not even close to the 99 loss. That one hurt really bad. That team was so dominant. Wed did make up for it 2 years later though...was was nice.

I think this one and the 86 Natty loss were the two most painful....the 99 loss just ticked me off....as did 2002 and some others.

proelitedota
04-06-2019, 08:31 PM
UVA was not better than us, just luckier. They're in the title game due to the luckiest endings in two games in a row.

We need to be overwhelmingly dominant to not count on luck to go to the FF.

richardjackson199
04-06-2019, 08:50 PM
UVA was not better than us, just luckier. They're in the title game due to the luckiest endings in two games in a row.

We need to be overwhelmingly dominant to not count on luck to go to the FF.

UVA makes their own luck. They are exceptionally difficult to put away. Just ask David Padgett and Danny Manning. When UVA was down 4, Guy hit that 3. Guy also hit all 3 high-pressure free throws despite the attempted icing timeout. UVA executed perfectly as well at the end vs Purdue. Harper missed one free throw. And they paid for it.

Congrats Wahoos. Well deserved.

1991 duke law
04-06-2019, 09:00 PM
My daughter is at UVA so my pain is eased by their success. Go Hoos!!!!!

Native
04-06-2019, 09:02 PM
I don't know — I always get more worked up by the early oustings than I do losing in the Elite Eight. I'd much rather go down to the likes of Michigan State or Kansas than Mercer or Lehigh.

Skydog
04-06-2019, 09:04 PM
UVA makes their own luck. They are exceptionally difficult to put away. Just ask David Padgett and Danny Manning. When UVA was down 4, Guy hit that 3. Guy also hit all 3 high-pressure free throws despite the attempted icing timeout. UVA executed perfectly as well at the end vs Purdue. Harper missed one free throw. And they paid for it.

Congrats Wahoos. Well deserved.
Plus we had our chances at ft line at end of game and didn’t take advantage. Yes there is luck, but skill and mental toughness matter too. VA - and especially Guy - had all three.

MCFinARL
04-06-2019, 09:08 PM
UVA makes their own luck. They are exceptionally difficult to put away. Just ask David Padgett and Danny Manning. When UVA was down 4, Guy hit that 3. Guy also hit all 3 high-pressure free throws despite the attempted icing timeout. UVA executed perfectly as well at the end vs Purdue. Harper missed one free throw. And they paid for it.

Congrats Wahoos. Well deserved.

Yes--UVA did, apparently, benefit from the non-called double dribble but that seemed like a call most people wouldn't even have noticed. And when it counted they hit their foul shots. Duke missed 5 free throws, a little worse than their season average--hit two of those, and they are playing this weekend. Sigh.

LSanders
04-06-2019, 09:08 PM
No loss will ever hurt me personally more than 86 loss to Louisville...followed by the 99 Loss to UCONN.

This one was not even close. I did not expect us to win due to the atrocious outside shooting & free throw concerns..

Of course I really wanted to be wrong.

Right there with you. I was on the quad in '86, so that was a killer.

In '99, ironically, I got the feeling we were UNLV in '91, believing we could not lose. Sadly, UConn played the role of Duke.

With this team, I just have that empty feeling of lost opportunity. It's crazy to think we beat 3 of the 4 FF teams and were clearly better (IMO) than the 4th, but chose that moment to play the worst mental game of the whole season.

So, kinda rooting for UVA, but honestly don't really care.

duke4ever19
04-06-2019, 09:13 PM
Yes--UVA did, apparently, benefit from the non-called double dribble but that seemed like a call most people wouldn't even have noticed. And when it counted they hit their foul shots. Duke missed 5 free throws, a little worse than their season average--hit two of those, and they are playing this weekend. Sigh.

But we aren't being paid to notice.

Watch the replay. There were two refs with unencumbered views of that play. You know why they missed it? Because they had already decided to anticipate a foul on Auburn instead of just reacting to what they saw.

Tjenkins
04-06-2019, 09:21 PM
No loss will ever hurt me personally more than 86 loss to Louisville...followed by the 99 Loss to UCONN.

This one was not even close. I did not expect us to win due to the atrocious outside shooting & free throw concerns..

Of course I really wanted to be wrong.

My sentiments exactly. I'm disappointed about the loss and this year's team was fun to watch, but that '86 team was a special group that I loved for 4 years. I was also 14 and losses hurt more when you're younger. I've never watched any replays or highlights from that loss. The '99 loss still hurts. For that matter, the 1989 loss to Seton Hall stings. Up 18 in the first half and then Robert Brickey gets hurt, the team falls apart, Seton Hall wins by 17 and Ferry's championship dreams fall apart.

But those losses from 1986 through 1990 made me appreciate the championships even more. It's been a great 35 years to be a Duke fan. Back in 1984, If you'd told me Duke would miss only 1 tournament between then and now, I probably wouldn't have believed you.

During the Duke/MSU game I was in place where I couldn't watch the game at all. I followed the score on my phone for a little while and I got a bad feeling when it went from a 30-21 Duke lead to a 34-30 Duke deficit near the end of the first half. I think the close games and the injuries caused this team to run out of gas. Not an excuse, just a reason. I haven't watched any highlights of the game and don't plan to.

Bluedog
04-06-2019, 09:22 PM
But we aren't being paid to notice.

Watch the replay. There were two refs with unencumbered views of that play. You know why they missed it? Because they had already decided to anticipate a foul on Auburn instead of just reacting to what they saw.

To be honest, I thought there was a foul already that they missed before the double dribble. I was surprised the refs didn't call it given that yes, they were anticipating the call. Just a miracle finish by UVa AGAIN, but you have to give them credit for executing. Tough made three and then three clutch FTs. Would you have confidence of ANY of our players making three in a row in that situation?? I sure wouldn't.

duke4ever19
04-06-2019, 09:25 PM
To be honest, I thought there was a foul already that they missed before the double dribble. I was surprised the refs didn't call it given that yes, they were anticipating the call. Just a miracle finish by UVa AGAIN, but you have to give them credit for executing. Tough made three and then three clutch FTs. Would you have confidence of ANY of our players making three in a row in that situation?? I sure wouldn't.

Some will call it that. Others will say they had a little help.

scottdude8
04-06-2019, 09:34 PM
Watching MSU not be able to make a shot right now after shooting the lights out against us makes me more sad for what could’ve/should’ve been. Only thing that could make me feel a bit better is if they lose.

nmduke2001
04-06-2019, 09:36 PM
I'm pretty bummed out about this one too, although it's not even close to the 99 loss. That one hurt really bad. That team was so dominant. Wed did make up for it 2 years later though...was was nice.

I was in Cameron watching the 99 game. It sucked. However, I think this loss was more of an upset. As good as Elton was, Rip Hamilton was at least in the same level. UConn was number one for most of the year after we lost to Cincinnati in Alaska. I don’t think Winston is close to Zion and I don’t think MSU is near as good as 99 UConn. We clearly had the better team this year.

proelitedota
04-06-2019, 09:39 PM
Watching MSU not be able to make a shot right now after shooting the lights out against us makes me more sad for what could’ve/should’ve been. Only thing that could make me feel a bit better is if they lose.

Fake news.

robed deity
04-06-2019, 09:43 PM
I was in Cameron watching the 99 game. It sucked. However, I think this loss was more of an upset. As good as Elton was, Rip Hamilton was at least in the same level. UConn was number one for most of the year after we lost to Cincinnati in Alaska. I don’t think Winston is close to Zion and I don’t think MSU is near as good as 99 UConn. We clearly had the better team this year.

I don't agree, and I'm pretty sure various ranking systems would support me. Duke losing that game in '99 was a far bigger upset. That was a really good UConn team but that Duke team was so dominant. This year's Duke/MSU was basically a coin flip.

nmduke2001
04-06-2019, 09:46 PM
This is a good story about it from UConns perspective.
https://es.pn/2YM2QfQ

freshmanjs
04-06-2019, 09:46 PM
UVA makes their own luck. They are exceptionally difficult to put away. Just ask David Padgett and Danny Manning. When UVA was down 4, Guy hit that 3. Guy also hit all 3 high-pressure free throws despite the attempted icing timeout. UVA executed perfectly as well at the end vs Purdue. Harper missed one free throw. And they paid for it.

Congrats Wahoos. Well deserved.

We must have been watching different games vs. Purdue. UVA gave up a 7-0 run at the end of regulation to get in position where they only had a tiny chance to win. Then they got very lucky on the missed free throw tip out play. Nowhere close to perfect execution.

scottdude8
04-06-2019, 09:49 PM
Fake news.

Maybe exaggeration, but not quite that bad... they shot 40% from 3 against us, well above what we allowed all year.

Bluedog
04-06-2019, 09:56 PM
Maybe exaggeration, but not quite that bad... they shot 40% from 3 against us, well above what we allowed all year.

They shot 32% from 3 against us. Certainly not lights out. What they did "lights out" was turn us over...which obviously we contributed heavily to.

richardjackson199
04-06-2019, 10:01 PM
We must have been watching different games vs. Purdue. UVA gave up a 7-0 run at the end of regulation to get in position where they only had a tiny chance to win. Then they got very lucky on the missed free throw tip out play. Nowhere close to perfect execution.

Smart to tip out that missed free throw. Very smart of Clark to dribble and then pass it back to Diakite realizing he had time. Many players would have taken a dribble and hoisted a half-court prayer there. Clark passed to Diakite for a make-able shot, that he made to force OT. That is what I meant by perfect execution.

The freshman calmly dribbled for 10 feet, and threw a bullet pass to Diakite, who hit a 12-footer from the right elbow. This is what Jim Nantz said:
"It's the best assist I've seen in college basketball," said Jim Nantz of CBS, who will handle play-by-play for the 29th straight year at the Final Four. "I can't think of anything that compares to it, and good for Mamadi to hit the shot. That's not something that's easy to do, and that's not his strength, but it was a tremendous moment."

I'd argue Grant's assist to Laettner was much better, but I thought it was well-executed in winning time.

scottdude8
04-06-2019, 10:14 PM
They shot 32% from 3 against us. Certainly not lights out. What they did "lights out" was turn us over...which obviously we contributed heavily to.

Crap. My bad. I would bet my life TSN posted a stat before the game that they shot 40% from 3 against us. That’s what I get for citing a statistic from Canadian ESPN when I’m half paying attention. Bad Scott, bad!

freshmanjs
04-06-2019, 10:14 PM
Smart to tip out that missed free throw. Very smart of Clark to dribble and then pass it back to Diakite realizing he had time. Many players would have taken a dribble and hoisted a half-court prayer there. Clark passed to Diakite for a make-able shot, that he made to force OT. That is what I meant by perfect execution.

The freshman calmly dribbled for 10 feet, and threw a bullet pass to Diakite, who hit a 12-footer from the right elbow. This is what Jim Nantz said:
"It's the best assist I've seen in college basketball," said Jim Nantz of CBS, who will handle play-by-play for the 29th straight year at the Final Four. "I can't think of anything that compares to it, and good for Mamadi to hit the shot. That's not something that's easy to do, and that's not his strength, but it was a tremendous moment."

I'd argue Grant's assist to Laettner was much better, but I thought it was well-executed in winning time.

Guess we have very different definitions of perfect execution. Making a great play in the last 5 seconds after a really bad stretch doesn't come close to qualifying as perfect to me.

Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15
04-06-2019, 10:18 PM
Can't help but feel we would be excelling tonight

KandG
04-06-2019, 10:22 PM
No loss will ever hurt me personally more than 86 loss to Louisville...followed by the 99 Loss to UCONN.



I was in Dallas at the championship game in 1986. Think I posted about this here in the past, but I visibly screamed "Oh No" after Johnny Dawkins missed an open jumper when we were down 66-65. (Pervis Ellison's infamous follow up of an airball came right after to clinch it for Louisville)

I was depressed for a good week after that game...walking around morose as if someone had died, to the point that people were asking if I was OK. After that, I told myself I would never allow myself to be that sad about a sporting event again.

I was very upset after Duke's loss to Cal and Jason Kidd in 1993, and 1999 and 2004 weren't much fun either (probably because I'm surrounded by obnoxious UConn fans where I live). Over the years, the losses have become a little easier to bear, as it becomes easier to appreciate how lucky we are to root for a program with this kind of track record.

Now I will say that the end of this season was the toughest loss to deal with in a long while, not so much because of the way we lost (we had been playing with fire the whole tournament), but because I was so attached to the team. A big part of me still feels like Zion should be on my television playing in Minneapolis.

I'm watching the Final Four games, but for several days I did not want to watch any basketball. Been a while since I've had that feeling.

Dukehk
04-06-2019, 11:21 PM
It’s frustrating because we would have destroyed that msu team 9 times out of 10 and then gone on to demolish texas tech and virginia yet again.

Just a real season of missed opportunities.

UrinalCake
04-06-2019, 11:24 PM
I was in Cameron watching the 99 game. It sucked. However, I think this loss was more of an upset.

I was in Cameron for that final as well, and man did it suck. That team just obliterated our opponents. We regularly beat ranked teams by 30-40 points. It was like this year's Kentucky game, but every game. The thought of actually losing never entered anyone's minds, we were just so dominant. It was my senior year and after starting out with a rather pedestrian team in 95-96 it just felt like our destiny to win the title that year. Then watching the guys announce they were leaving over the ensuing weeks (which had never before happened at Duke) was like being repeatedly kicked in the groin.

UrinalCake
04-06-2019, 11:29 PM
It’s frustrating because we would have destroyed that msu team 9 times out of 10 and then gone on to demolish texas tech and virginia yet again.

Just a real season of missed opportunities.

I guess I just have a different opinion about our team. I think if we played MSU ten times we win maybe 6. TT and UVA would be 50/50. We had two amazing individual talents but not a balanced team, and at this stage of competition every opponent is scouting you and taking away your strengths. We had some big wins earlier in the season before teams figured out how to defend us, but ever since Zion first got hurt we just never looked dominant.

Dukehk
04-06-2019, 11:30 PM
I was in Cameron for that final as well, and man did it suck. That team just obliterated our opponents. We regularly beat ranked teams by 30-40 points. It was like this year's Kentucky game, but every game. The thought of actually losing never entered anyone's minds, we were just so dominant. It was my senior year and after starting out with a rather pedestrian team in 95-96 it just felt like our destiny to win the title that year. Then watching the guys announce they were leaving over the ensuing weeks (which had never before happened at Duke) was like being repeatedly kicked in the groin.

I will never forget that year! One of my favourite duke teams and to this day probably the most dominant one despite not winning a title. We had everything. Shooting, athleticism, guard play, bench depth. We had like 8 or 9 McDonald’s all Americans with about 2-3 on the bench (I might be exaggerating but Maggette and Dom definitely were?).

The feeling I had after 1999 and now is eerily similar. Just a huge sense of injustice and missed opportunity.

That’s what makes it so sweet when we win a title though. The obstacles you have to overcome and the difficulty of the journey is so underrated.

wsb3
04-07-2019, 08:56 AM
I was in Dallas at the championship game in 1986. Think I posted about this here in the past, but I visibly screamed "Oh No" after Johnny Dawkins missed an open jumper when we were down 66-65. (Pervis Ellison's infamous follow up of an airball came right after to clinch it for Louisville)

I was depressed for a good week after that game...walking around morose as if someone had died, to the point that people were asking if I was OK. After that, I told myself I would never allow myself to be that sad about a sporting event again.

I was very upset after Duke's loss to Cal and Jason Kidd in 1993, and 1999 and 2004 weren't much fun either (probably because I'm surrounded by obnoxious UConn fans where I live). Over the years, the losses have become a little easier to bear, as it becomes easier to appreciate how lucky we are to root for a program with this kind of track record.

Now I will say that the end of this season was the toughest loss to deal with in a long while, not so much because of the way we lost (we had been playing with fire the whole tournament), but because I was so attached to the team. A big part of me still feels like Zion should be on my television playing in Minneapolis.

I'm watching the Final Four games, but for several days I did not want to watch any basketball. Been a while since I've had that feeling.

I loved that 86 team. It is still my favorite Duke team and throw in that at that point we still had not won a Natty.. That one hurt for a long time & I still wince occasionally. I can't remember exactly but I think Alarie missed an open jumper at the key that would have put us up 3 possessions & at that moment I thought if that goes in, and we go back to set our D. we will win..but he missed and I think they scored and got fouled and it was a tie ball game. Big swing..But it has been a long time and I have learned that I may not always be exactly accurate in my recollections.

NSDukeFan
04-07-2019, 09:28 AM
Crap. My bad. I would bet my life TSN posted a stat before the game that they shot 40% from 3 against us. That’s what I get for citing a statistic from Canadian ESPN when I’m half paying attention. Bad Scott, bad!

That’s correct with the exchange rate.

weezie
04-07-2019, 09:30 AM
A tad bit less bummed now that sparty has gagged it.

HereBeforeCoachK
04-07-2019, 11:05 AM
A tad bit less bummed now that sparty has gagged it.

And isn't it amazing how darned close we were to having Auburn-Texas Tech Final???????

BandAlum83
04-07-2019, 11:18 AM
Thanks for all the replies to this thread!

I will say, I am feeling much better today after last night's results!

Mrs Band Alum and I went to dinner at firend's last night. Oddly, we turned on the TV and saw the last 5 minutes of the UVA game, hus in time to see UVA up ten with Auburn going on a 14-0 run. What a finish. I am glad UVA won. And it was yet another lesson in the fickleness and luck involved in a single elimination tournament.


I also managed to see the last 2 minutes on the TT game. Great run to end the game, and kinda nice to see Sparty go down.

Duke is 3-0 against the two finalists. How many times does that happen?

Two teams each with great young-ish coaches taking their teams to their firs championships games ever. Whatever happens tomorrow night, history will be made - maybe for the lowest scoring final ever with two top defensive teams going at it!

It was a great season for us, and we will be back next year!

I finally listened to the season end podcast. Thanks, guys, it did help and you confirmed my unspoken thoughts about the last game.

Go Duke!

Beat Alabama!

jdk
04-07-2019, 01:37 PM
I will never forget that year! One of my favourite duke teams and to this day probably the most dominant one despite not winning a title. We had everything. Shooting, athleticism, guard play, bench depth. We had like 8 or 9 McDonald’s all Americans with about 2-3 on the bench (I might be exaggerating but Maggette and Dom definitely were?).

The feeling I had after 1999 and now is eerily similar. Just a huge sense of injustice and missed opportunity.

That’s what makes it so sweet when we win a title though. The obstacles you have to overcome and the difficulty of the journey is so underrated.

1999 had 9 McDonald's All-Americans. They averaged 93 PPG. 25 point average margin of victory. Ran the table in the ACC. They called the NCAA tournament the Duke Invitational.

This year was the 20th anniversary of that team.

https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/11/sports/ncaa-tournament-duke-invitational-under-way-defeat-blue-devils-you-only-have-be.html

I think the only weakness that team had was no depth at PG. Still don't understand how we lost that game. I've never watched the replay.

Dukehk
04-07-2019, 02:32 PM
1999 had 9 McDonald's All-Americans. They averaged 93 PPG. 25 point average margin of victory. Ran the table in the ACC. They called the NCAA tournament the Duke Invitational.

This year was the 20th anniversary of that team.

https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/11/sports/ncaa-tournament-duke-invitational-under-way-defeat-blue-devils-you-only-have-be.html

I think the only weakness that team had was no depth at PG. Still don't understand how we lost that game. I've never watched the replay.

Rip Hamilton frigging killed us. Still don’t like him to this day!! The roly poly (el amin) was also great. Outplayed Will Avery IMO.

Came down to a last second shot and we had no timeouts. We put the ball in the Alaskan assassins hands and he came up short and fumbled it. Heartbreaking.

That was honestly one of the most dominant teams in college bball history. It was like a collection of one and dones that stayed more than one year (other than maggette). Now that I’ve had a few days to get past the pain and reminisce, the 1999 loss definitely hurt more than this year.

Looking at next seasons roster though, if we somehow get Hurt and also add RJ Hampton, we might be looking at a really deep and talented team.

Maybe not the level of 1999, but it would come close in terms of depth.

Steven43
04-07-2019, 03:00 PM
Rip Hamilton frigging killed us. Still don’t like him to this day!! The roly poly (el amin) was also great. Outplayed Will Avery IMO.

I guess things haven’t necessarily turned out so well for the aforementioned “roly poly” UConn PG after his team’s all-time gigantic victory over Duke in ‘99. The Hartford Courant reports the following:

Facing more than $100,000 in delinquent child support, former UConn basketball star Khalid El-Amin was released from custody Monday after paying $10,000 and pledging to comply with a payment schedule.
El-Amin was taken into custody Sunday and held overnight at the Hartford Correctional Center for failure to pay child support. In December, Hartford Superior Court Judge Linda Pearce Prestley ordered that El-Amin be taken into custody after he missed two court dates. El-Amin was released Monday afternoon after paying $10,000 of the approximately $126,000 in delinquent child support he owes to a Hartford area woman with whom he had a daughter 18 years ago. Prestley told El-Amin that he must also comply with a payment schedule of $780 per month.

El-Amin, 39, lives in the Minneapolis area and is normally out of the reach of the orders of Connecticut civil court judges. But he returned to Connecticut to celebrate the 20th anniversary of UConn’s 1999 NCAA basketball championship and a state marshal tracked him down.

Herbie
04-07-2019, 04:08 PM
I agree with others here that the losses in 1986 and 1999 are by far the worst and most devastating losses. I watched the '86 game on the quad at Duke and was so sure we were going to win...when we lost it really felt like a death in the family and took years to get over (91 and 92 was the medicine I needed). 1999 was the only Final Four I've gone to and was so excited to go since it was really a "sure thing". Walking out of the arena to chants of "aaaaaaaahhhh, seee yaaaaaa" from the UConn fans was something I'll never forget.

Other huge disappointments... up 18 over KY in '98, the Williams FT miss and Boozer "bunny" miss in '02, up 8 with with 2 min to go vs UConn in '04, the JJ mugging by LSU in '06, Grayson's roll out last year.

For me, this year fits in the second grouping somewhere. More than anything I was just so bummed to see the Zion journey ending before the Final Four.

Steven43
04-07-2019, 05:12 PM
I agree with others here that the losses in 1986 and 1999 are by far the worst and most devastating losses. I watched the '86 game on the quad at Duke and was so sure we were going to win...when we lost it really felt like a death in the family and took years to get over (91 and 92 was the medicine I needed). 1999 was the only Final Four I've gone to and was so excited to go since it was really a "sure thing". Walking out of the arena to chants of "aaaaaaaahhhh, seee yaaaaaa" from the UConn fans was something I'll never forget.

Other huge disappointments... up 18 over KY in '98, the Williams FT miss and Boozer "bunny" miss in '02, up 8 with with 2 min to go vs UConn in '04, the JJ mugging by LSU in '06, Grayson's roll out last year.

For me, this year fits in the second grouping somewhere. More than anything I was just so bummed to see the Zion journey ending before the Final Four.
Geez, You just caused me to go into a depression with all of these reminders of heartbreaking awfulness.

lotusland
04-07-2019, 07:17 PM
I think the UCF completely innoculated me against a loss. I basically already thought we lost as the ball hung on the rim, and losing in the 2nd rd would have been so awful that any loss in a later round felt already like found money for me. We were lucky to have gotten as far as we did.

Yep. I hated to see Zion’s one year end because it has been so much fun but nothing about Duke’s tournament performance made me think they were likely to win it. They
Were just a hair better than UCF and VT and a little worse than MSU. A good team but not champs. I wish we could put Tre Jones on last year’s team or Grayson Allen on this year’s team and run it back.

HereBeforeCoachK
04-07-2019, 08:09 PM
Yep. I hated to see Zion’s one year end because it has been so much fun but nothing about Duke’s tournament performance made me think they were likely to win it. They
Were just a hair better than UCF and VT and a little worse than MSU. A good team but not champs. I wish we could put Tre Jones on last year’s team or Grayson Allen on this year’s team and run it back.

Gary Trent on this year's team, where he should've been for his and our sake....

mattyoung18
04-07-2019, 10:21 PM
The 99 game loss was 1000 times worse than this years loss.This years team is loaded with freshman they didnt give you a chance to know them like in 99 or before.99 team was a all time great team that just seemed to be off against a red hot shooting team.Uconn also had a big center down low that seemed to slow down Elton Brand just enough to pull the upset.Their center was close to 6-11 Brand was 6-8.Ricky Moore was a defensive monster on William Avery too they were unfortunately the perfect team to upset us with along with Hamilton hitting almost ever shot.

robed deity
04-07-2019, 10:29 PM
The 99 game loss was 1000 times worse than this years loss.This years team is loaded with freshman they didnt give you a chance to know them like in 99 or before.99 team was a all time great team that just seemed to be off against a red hot shooting team.Uconn also had a big center down low that seemed to slow down Elton Brand just enough to pull the upset.Their center was close to 6-11 Brand was 6-8.Ricky Moore was a defensive monster on William Avery too they were unfortunately the perfect team to upset us with along with Hamilton hitting almost ever shot.

It also didn't help that Ricky Moore decided he was a scorer that night. I don't remember how many points he had, but I remember he had a great first half and kept them in it.

Channing
04-07-2019, 11:05 PM
I was more sad than usual because I am never going to care about a game Zion plays in ever again. He had so much fun and was so special that rooting for him was a joy on and of itself (on top of rooting for Duke).

moonpie23
04-07-2019, 11:17 PM
i'm sad, but this team didn't have what it took to take care of business. All of the flaws we had showed up again and again. I thought we might get to the 4, but even that seemed a stretch.

now that it's been a week, and seeing sparty go down, i feel a lot better. we got to have this team for a whole year, y'all......and it was special... :)

elvis14
04-08-2019, 01:02 AM
I've been sad and bummed all week. I've minimized my time here on DBR. I haven't been on Facebook and Twitter since the game ended (those are daily hits for me). The fact that there are been other tough losses does not make this one hurt less. Those hurt too. Having Zion makes this one hurt quite a bit.

I wasn't planning on watching last night's games but a friend of mine had an unrelated party that I attended and they had the games on on the background. That TT, MSU game was a disgusting display of "basketball" (football? WWE?). Worse than last week's debacle. This whole "let them play" or "don't call anything" BS they pull most years during the tournament is awful. MSU loves it though, gives them a leg up every year. Fans deserve games that have flow. Teams that don't flow should get to watch the other team shoot lots of FT's.

UVa's win against Auburn was awful as well. I mean, to miss a double dribble call? Really? To make that last call in a tournament where they are obviously attempting to call very little was just BS.

So yeah, I'm sad and I'm pissed.....still.

Dukehk
04-08-2019, 02:32 AM
I've been sad and bummed all week. I've minimized my time here on DBR. I haven't been on Facebook and Twitter since the game ended (those are daily hits for me). The fact that there are been other tough losses does not make this one hurt less. Those hurt too. Having Zion makes this one hurt quite a bit.

I wasn't planning on watching last night's games but a friend of mine had an unrelated party that I attended and they had the games on on the background. That TT, MSU game was a disgusting display of "basketball" (football? WWE?). Worse than last week's debacle. This whole "let them play" or "don't call anything" BS they pull most years during the tournament is awful. MSU loves it though, gives them a leg up every year. Fans deserve games that have flow. Teams that don't flow should get to watch the other team shoot lots of FT's.

UVa's win against Auburn was awful as well. I mean, to miss a double dribble call? Really? To make that last call in a tournament where they are obviously attempting to call very little was just BS.

So yeah, I'm sad and I'm pissed....still.

Say what you want about the pro game, but they had the foresight to change rules and allow freedom of movement which in turn led to a much better basketball event (see: GS warriors).

College basketball needs to follow suit for a variety of reasons. Starting of which to eliminate 50 something scorelines. Also to allow college players an easier transition to NBA rules and style.

They probably need to extend that 3 point line while they are at it too. The college game is getting left behind. With those rule changes we would never have lost to msu who were able to consistently assault Zion and RJ on and off the ball.

mattyoung18
04-08-2019, 10:08 AM
It also didn't help that Ricky Moore decided he was a scorer that night. I don't remember how many points he had, but I remember he had a great first half and kept them in it.
I forgot about Moore on offense.When u really think about that game their guards really controlled the game for them.If Trajan hadn't played so great we would have lost by more.Trajan made a 4 point play in that game.

Kfanarmy
04-08-2019, 10:26 AM
I guess I just have a different opinion about our team. I think if we played MSU ten times we win maybe 6. TT and UVA would be 50/50. We had two amazing individual talents but not a balanced team, and at this stage of competition every opponent is scouting you and taking away your strengths. We had some big wins earlier in the season before teams figured out how to defend us, but ever since Zion first got hurt we just never looked dominant.

IDK...if the current Duke players keep TOs down, MSU never wins in my opinion. But that is a big IF. Just careless passing through the second half of the season kept teams in games who shouldn't have been there. Don't think there is a team in this year's tourney who would be competitive in a best of 7, IF Duke just manages the ball handling.

Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15
04-08-2019, 11:36 AM
Well, if Duke ran out of the benefit of the doubt from the basketball gods after rounds two and three, UVA must be in an even worse karmic situation following the bounces that had to go their way in the rounds of four and eight.

robed deity
04-08-2019, 11:40 AM
Well, if Duke ran out of the benefit of the doubt from the basketball gods after rounds two and three, UVA must be in an even worse karmic situation following the bounces that had to go their way in the rounds of four and eight.

Based on the way the teams are playing, I'd give the nod to Tech, for sure. But with all these bounces, it just seems like the basketball gods will find a way for Virginia to win. Like some sort of "evening out" for last year.

Steven43
04-08-2019, 11:54 AM
Well, if Duke ran out of the benefit of the doubt from the basketball gods after rounds two and three, UVA must be in an even worse karmic situation following the bounces that had to go their way in the rounds of four and eight.

You would be correct, except for the fact that you forgot two very important things. The first being that UVA is a squeaky-clean basketball program filled 100% with plucky, hardworking overachieving true student-athletes who follow all the rules on and off the court; would never commit a flagrant foul of any sort; always stay in school four years and graduate; play unselfish fundamental basketball as a true team; and whose coach is the perfect combination of handsome, intelligent, high-character, trustworthy, and a great basketball mind.

The second thing you forgot is that Duke University, its players, and Coach K are the exact opposite of all these things. So, of course UVA has unlimited good karma while Duke has just enough to tease and tantalize its fans — who are complicit by association with the evil Duke Basketball program — while ultimately leaving them deservedly crushed and devastated. How you could have forgotten these basic truths is beyond me.

Lurkingdukedog
04-08-2019, 12:13 PM
I am always more downtrodden and eaten up by the loses than I am ever elated and enriched by the wins that I gotta wonder:

WTF are we doin'?

For me, (and I was avoiding the board for a few days but am now back) it's the moment of really brilliant basketball that excite me. The other part is about watching these kids overcoming the natural "fear" that all of us feel when something is really on the line and you can either step up and do it -- or not -- and how you move on to the next play. The Coach is masterful at teaching this and if these young men learn that from him, all will be well

Lurkingdukedog
04-08-2019, 12:25 PM
This is a good story about it from UConns perspective.
https://es.pn/2YM2QfQ

Thanks for sharing. This was a good read

kako
04-08-2019, 02:43 PM
I understand. I was completely deflated after the loss... and after every season when it ends in a loss. I find I go through the standard grief cycle - denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. At first, I can't believe they lost. I watch and rewatch the recording to find out what went wrong. I usually detail each play coming down the stretch, looking at all 10 players on the court - who did what, who didn't do what, what could coaching could have done, what about the refs, etc. Then I get upset about the missed plays. I wonder if things could just have been a little different, what would have happened. Then the depression kicks in. I wallow in it for a while.

What I tend to do then is focus on other things related to Duke hoops. I posted a few different topics on DBR - like top plays, and a bit about the '88-'89 team. Something to take my mind off of the loss, and something that reminds me that being an alum of the school that has the greatest college basketball program ever is pretty cool. It tends to work. By the Final Four, I'm accepting the loss, and I find a team to root for (or one to root against). I'm rooting for UVA, mainly because of the ACC connection, but I think Bennett is a good guy, and his players seem to play hard for him. So I'll be a Wahoo fan tonight.

This season, while it had so much promise, is done for Duke. One has to accept it. '78 and '86 was also awful for me, as I was young and hadn't experienced it much. '99 was probably the worst year in terms of being stunned, since the team had won 32 games in a row. '02 was also bad. '19 will rank up there with the worst. But the great thing about Duke is that there always can be a "wait until next year!" kind of feeling. Think about Loyola, VCU, George Mason - they each had their one chance, and they may not have it again in our lifetimes. Think about Butler - they had two chances this decade, one oh-so-close against Duke, and they may not again. Think about Indiana, UConn, UCLA - who knows when they will be back realistically fighting for a championship. Then think of Duke - we will be back. K will get players, he will coach the hell out of them, and they will compete. They will be a 1-4 seed every year, and they will have a realistic chance at a FF and a natty. Count on it.

9F

Billy Dat
04-08-2019, 03:22 PM
You would be correct, except for the fact that you forgot two very important things. The first being that UVA is a squeaky-clean basketball program filled 100% with plucky, hardworking overachieving true student-athletes who follow all the rules on and off the court; would never commit a flagrant foul of any sort; always stay in school four years and graduate; play unselfish fundamental basketball as a true team; and whose coach is the perfect combination of handsome, intelligent, high-character, trustworthy, and a great basketball mind.

The second thing you forgot is that Duke University, its players, and Coach K are the exact opposite of all these things. So, of course UVA has unlimited good karma while Duke has just enough to tease and tantalize its fans — who are complicit by association with the evil Duke Basketball program — while ultimately leaving them deservedly crushed and devastated. How you could have forgotten these basic truths is beyond me.

I gotta say, the one thing that has really chafed me since the media reflection of Saturday's games has begun is how little "UVA was gifted a win" has been the story and how much, "They made their own luck" narrative has been proferred. There is a thread on here about "If Duke was in UVA's shoes"....let me tell you, there'd be a 30-for-30 about how the NCAA refs are paid to make sure we advance. Guns up tonight, baby, guns up!

MartyClark
04-08-2019, 03:29 PM
How sad am I? I've been too sad to get on this thread until today.

The past two Duke seasons have ended in a very disappointing way. From my perspective, both teams were really good and could have won it all.

It's taken me a week to get back to normal. Did some spring skiing, went to an Avalanche game, stepped up my workouts - it takes me about 5 days after the final Duke loss to regain my usual bearings. This loss took a little longer to get over.

It's silly but I was a little disappointed to read, on another thread, that Cam Reddish was at an NBA game last night with LeBron's agent. I'd like to think that the Duke players take the loss harder than me. Maybe not.

accfanfrom1970
04-08-2019, 03:30 PM
College basketball needs to follow suit for a variety of reasons. Starting of which to eliminate 50 something scorelines. Also to allow college players an easier transition to NBA rules and style.

I agree. I watched neither semi-final and won’t watch tonight. I have no interest in 50 point games and all the mauling involved. If I wasn’t a die hard Duke fan I probably wouldn’t watch much college basketball at all. They’ve lost me with these wrestling matches.

Tripping William
04-08-2019, 04:10 PM
I'm sad knowing that Zion will be shown in One Shining Moment (which play will it be??), but either in the beginning or the middle, and not at the end . . . . . :(

NSDukeFan
04-08-2019, 05:54 PM
I’m sad, as I am at the end of every non-championship season since 93, but not as sad as 2011. That one really hurt for me as that year included my favorite all time Duke player commitment announcement, when Kyle announced he was back. That team was so good, but just didn’t have enough time to reintegrate Kyrie.
I am a little sadder this year than some other years because of how much I enjoyed watching R.J. and Zion.

DukieInKansas
04-08-2019, 05:58 PM
Tre staying helps. :D

DoWorkDukie
04-08-2019, 06:03 PM
Yep- i've been bummed. The last two teams we've had have been really, really fun to watch