Hill's sparkling performance leads Duke to title game

CHARLOTTE -- Grant Hill was back where he belonged Saturday night.

Back in command.

Back in the National Championship game.

Duke's senior All-American needed help from his teammates to advance to the Final Four in Charlotte. The Blue Devils' supporting cast carried the team over Purdue when Hill, saddled with four fouls, was on the bench during crunch time of the Southeast Regional's title game.

But in the national semifinal against Florida -- just as in countless games during this magical season -- Duke needed Hill ever so desperately. And there he was, leading the Blue Devils' biggest comeback of the season, vaulting his team into tonight's title game against Arkansas.

For a few minutes Saturday, Duke's dream run looked like it was about to end. Florida came out of the locker room with a 39-32 lead and began to pour it on. Baskets from guard Craig Brown and the Gators' overweight wonder, Dametri Hill, pushed the Gator advantage to 11 and forced head coach Mike Krzyzewski to burn a timeout just 1:17 into the second half. A Duke turnover then led to Andrew DeClercq's 16-foot, top-of-the-key jumper and a 13-point Blue Devil deficit.

But the Reston, Va., native who came to Duke with little more than a five-foot floater, showed just how far he'd come -- and what he was made of.

Hill answered DeClercq with a gutty 22-foot baseline trey to cut the lead to 10, then led Duke on a 22-13 run over the next eight minutes of the game -- scoring seven points himself. Duke trailed Florida 58-57.

For a half, at least.

When President Bill Clinton walked out after Arkansas' semifinal win over Arizona, he missed one of the best performances of the season from college basketball's most valuable player -- and his name wasn't Glenn Robinson.

Lucky for Bill, Hillary and Chelsea, the first family is granted a reprieve this evening -- something of a presidential pardon from Duke's own commander-in-chief.

"I've seen such a transformation in Grant from last year to this year as far as being vocal, taking strong hold of the team -- just saying, `You guys listen to me, because this is my team,"' sophomore Chris Collins said. "He's a senior, he's a captain, he's been a great leader. This is his third national championship game. When you look at that, you'd be stupid not to listen to what he has to say.

"To me, Grant Hill is the best player in college basketball."

Florida had no match for Duke's Hill. This evening, Arkansas will discover -- quite quickly, perhaps -- that it cannot match him either. For all their talent, the Hogs will have to try to check the one player on either squad who has the singlar ability to win the game.

"He's the best player I've coached," Krzyzewski said. "Christian Laettner told me that when he was a senior, when he was named national Player of the Year -- he said, `You know, Coach, Grant's the best player on this team. Bobby [Hurley] has said it. I don't think I'm hurting anyone's feelings. There's no question -- Grant Hill is the best."

All season long, writers have written it and analysts have said it: Duke can't win the big one if Hill is forced to take over. Saturday night, the senior co-captain proved them all wrong. The Blue Devils needed Hill -- and just enough from everybody else -- to thwart Florida's upset bid.

"But what was just enough' against Florida might not bejust enough' against Arkansas," Krzyzewski said.

Then again, Hill might raise his game a notch or two. Impossible, you say? He did it against Florida, and there's no telling what he has saved up for his final collegiate basketball game.

The Hogs would do well to prepare for 40 minutes of Hill.