Reminisce-11 memorable moments from No.11

Four years of perfect passes. Four years of all-out defense. Four years of crucial three-pointers, the kind that most players are reluctant to take. Four years of running a team that has dominated college basketball.

Four years of excellence. Four years of winning.

Bobby Hurley's career in a Duke uniform is winding down. And while to fans from opposing schools it may seem that Hurley has been a Blue Devil for the better part of a decade, Duke fans realize that it has only been four years.

Four short years.

On Sunday afternoon, before a non-conference game against UCLA, the first indications that Hurley's brilliant career was finally coming to a close came in the form of a retired number. Next year, high above where the band plays, where the students chant and where the announcers commentate, No. 11 will hang as a reminder of what this seemingly ordinary kid accomplished in his collegiate career.

"All of us who've been around the ACC have maybe looked at these performances as commonplace because he has done it so many times," said Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski after Hurley put on another spectacular 19-point, 15-assist performance in a 78-67 win over the Bruins. "I would like for [everyone] to sit back and just reflect on who's done it better. And I'm not sure if you'll find anyone who's done it any better than Bobby Hurley here in this conference."

Many people would agree with the coach. Hurley has provided fans, teammates, writers and even opponents with more than his share of memories. So on the day after Duke guaranteed that his No. 11 would never grace the back of a Blue Devil uniform again, it seems appropriate to capture Hurley's career in 11 brief images.

1. King Rice. From the day Hurley first laced up for Duke, this seemed likely to be a heated matchup. The much-maligned UNC point guard had a reputation for talking trash, and Hurley often responded negatively to it, especially during his freshman season. The results were some career performances by Rice and some serious maturing by Hurley.

2. UNLV, 1990 national championship game. For many people, the memories of this 30-point blowout are linked to Hurley's sickness and his stat line (two points, no assists and six turnovers). But the real image here should lie with what happened afterwards, the fact that Hurley turned what could have been a devastating experience into a positive.

"That's probably the most emotional I've been all year," Hurley said later. The win certainly revealed another side to the player fans felt they knew so well.

1. Minutes on the floor. Hurley has been a constant for the Blue Devils in more ways than one. While other players are shuffled in and out of the lineup to save energy for crunch time, Hurley rarely sees the bench. He has led the team in minutes played his first three years, and he is on pace to do it again this year. The term "iron man" was coined with Hurley in mind.

2. Virginia in Cameron, 1992. Hurley, who had missed three weeks with a broken bone in his foot, made a surprise return to ignite both the crowd and his team in a game that Grant Hill sat out with a high ankle sprain. Hurley played 26 minutes, dished out nine assists and returned the Blue Devil offense to the running, gunning unit it had been earlier in the year. The game displayed how Hurley's presence had such a profound effect on the flow of the game.

3. 46 assists, six turnovers.Hurley's performance over this stretch -- wins over N.C. State, Florida State and UCLA -- has been one of the most incredible in recent memory. Hurley has made up for the absence of Grant Hill by dishing out passes in a variety of ways to a myriad of recipients, resulting in 15 assists against State, a school-record 16 against FSU, and 15 more against UCLA.

4. Defense. While Hurley's most renowned and publicized stats lie in the assist and scoring columns, he keys the Blue Devils' famous man-to-man pressure. He has drawn countless five-second counts and has shut down some of the better point guards in the business, including Kenny Anderson, Chris Corchiani, Travis Best and Jalen Rose. While his offense is often unbelievable, defense might be where Hurley's gritty work ethic is best displayed.

5. Second-chance three-pointer against Kentucky, East Regional Finals, 1992. While this game will always be defined by Christian Laettner's 31-point performance and his dramatic last-second shot, it was Hurley's three-pointer that knotted Duke and Kentucky at 96 in overtime immediately after co-captain Brian Davis had fouled out.

The shot says more about Hurley than it does about the game. Missing his first attempt from 20 feet, Grant Hill flipped the rebound back out to Hurley who fired again. Swish. It is that composure in the face of adversity, and of failure, that has come to define Hurley's career.

1. First half against Indiana, national semifinals, 1992. While Hurley's excellence over the two games in Minneapolis earned him Most Outstanding Player honors of the Final Four, it is the first 20 minutes that clinched it for him.

Hurley tied a career high with 26 points, 16 in the first half. He hit four three-pointers in the first half alone and carried the struggling Blue Devils on his back until they were able to regroup at halftime.

1. Three-pointer against UNLV, national semifinals, 1991. If there is a play that is symbolic of Hurley's career, it is this one. The point guard himself even admits to thinking about it now and again. With the undefeated Runnin' Rebels holding a 76-71 lead and time running down, the crowd at the Hoosier Dome seemed to sense the predicted UNLV victory.

But Hurley would have none of that. He stepped up and canned a 22-foot three-pointer from the left wing over UNLV's vaunted amoeba defense, giving the Blue Devils the confidence they needed to comeback and pull off the upset of all upsets.

Of course, this is only a sample of the memories that Hurley leaves. And he is not done.

While his number is retired for future use, Hurley hopes to wear it throughout March and into April.

"I'll always love putting on a Duke jersey," Hurley said. "I'll always remember loving to play out here."

And we'll remember loving to watch him.