Any loss to UNC.
/thread
The stakes were too low (Sweet 16 game), and we had barely survived an 8 seed the week before. I think in the subconscious / gut instinct of many fans, we knew something was off about that team at that point, and it wasn't going to end well. That game barely registers at all for me.
Although I think perhaps where we differ is in the definition of "painful." Drubbings are not painful to me. Close losses in high-stakes games are. With an added gut punch if we held a big lead in relation to time remaining on the clock.
Maybe you can help me here. I was trying to remember the '92-'93 team and why that team didn't stick out in my old memory bank. I referenced that season and Duke was 24-8. We won 10 games to open the season before losing at GT 80-79. We then won 2 games before losing to VA at home 70-69. We then killed State
92-56. Then lose a FSU 89-88. At that point in the season we're 13-3 and our losses are by a total of 3 points. Then we win 6 in a row to go to 19-3. Looking pretty good. Then something seems to happen. We lose to Wake at home 98-86 and at VA 58-55. Now Duke is 19-5 but we win 4 in a row and go to 23-5. Then something really goes wrong. We lose at the CHEATS 83-69, lose to GT in the ACCT 69-66, win our first game in the NCAAT against S. Illinois 107-70 but getted knocked out of the Tourney by losing to Cal and Jason Kidd 82-77. The '93 team had Grant Hill, Bobby Hurley, Thomas Hill, Tony Lang, and Cherokee Parks a Sophomore as key players. Hill averaged 18 pts and 7 rebound, Hurley averaged 17 points and 8.2 assists, Thomas Hill averaged 16 points and the Chief averaged 12 points and 7 rebounds.
My question is what went wrong with the season? Were there key injuries, slumps or what? I can't remember. I do remember being really discouraged after we lost to Cal and Jason Kidd. Kidd played a terrific game and man, he could play defense. Although I thought he got away with being overly physical. Darn refs. But I can't remember what happened to cause such a poor finish of that season. Hoping you or other posters can help me out. Needing something to pass the time away.
GoDuke!
Drubbings aren't usually that painful, at some point you just kind of accept it, but that was the most brutalized I've ever felt while watching a Duke game. Close losses are painful, but usually there were some highs to go with the lows. Arizona 2011 was 100% pain for 40 minutes with no redeeming qualities.
Also, the fact that the "something wrong" was trying to insert Kyrie back into the lineup (we had looked pretty darn good before that) added to the pain (can't keep him off the court if he's healthy, but putting him on the court obviously didn't enhance our performance).
All those previously mentioned have certainly caused me pain. One not mentioned that hurt me the most was the ACCT loss to State in 1965. Did not have the maturity at that age, early teens. to deal with
loosing to what I deemed to be an inferior team. Some dude I'd never heard of has the game of his life. No ACC championship no NCAA invitation. Duke had been to the previous two final fours. I knew we were going to
win it all this time. Used my fist to redecorate the door to my bedroom. Have wished bad things for State ever since. Obviously I haven't matured that much.
Not mentioned above was the LSU loss. JJ mugged all night, or so it seemed to me. Made worse because we had ky. fans sitting behind us and a psycho LSU fan across the aisle.
I show both my age and a smidgen of youth with my list.
M Basketball: 2001 @MD claims the title. 1997 @UVA is still talked about due to the refs.
W Basketball: 2000(?) Goestenkors @UVA, which again was stolen by the refs.
Football: @Northwestern 2007. This is MD 2001 for them for what was at stake.
Lacrosse: ND 2010 over UVA 2010.
Baseball: NCSU 2014(?) game 3 in the DBAP. The Campbell game in the 2018 Athens regional was also painful.
Feel free to improve my quick list of painful Duke losses. Doing the list by school was too long to post and ineffective.
It was largely just a bad draw in a one-and-done tournament. Everyone remembers Jason Kidd, but Lamond Murray was a lottery pick as well.
If Coach K had to coach that game all over, I suspect he would've had Grant guarding Kidd instead of Bobby. Bobby was a great defender against most PGs, but in Kidd, we're talking about a future Hall-of-Famer who had a size advantage. Murray ended up getting his points anyway because Kidd was the proverbial "straw that stirred the drink" (14 assists against us). It would've been better to cut the head off of the snake using Grant's superior size and physical abilities, making him a better matchup for Kidd.
Not sure if it was a matter of missing Laettner and not getting the same quality shots, Thomas Hill's shooting dropped off in his senior season.
https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb...as-hill-2.html
His FG%, 3-pt%, and even FT % declined significantly. He was drafted in the 2nd round but never played in a regular season NBA game.
1964 NCAA Championship game loss to UCLA . I was 12,, I didn't know Duke could lose.
1939 ROSE BOWL ,, no, I didn't see it lol.. But have read the heart breaking story many times.
A 9-0 Duke team, was undefeated, and untied.. and yes, UNSCORED UPON .. losing to Southern Cal in the last few minutes with the forward pass. 7-3 .
Iron Dukes coached by Wallace Wade
Last edited by Rogue; 05-19-2020 at 10:59 AM.
Lamont Murray was unstoppable in that game and joined a long tradition of guys who had the best game of their lives (pro or college) against Duke in the NCAA's - joining Pervis Ellison, Derrick Williams and I would say Emeka Okafor.
The Cal game was a really weird one - Duke fell behind by a ton and made a mad late comeback but then fell short. The following year the same Cal team (this was a world where even a talent like Jason Kidd wasn't OAD) got bounced in the first round by 12 seed Wisconsin Green Bay which was enjoyable revenge.