Losing has been a difficult adjustment for this year's edition of the men's basketball team.
And with 2:35 left in Thursday night's game against Georgia Tech, it appeared as though a season filled with frustration and futility would continue for the Blue Devils.
Tech's Travis Best had hit a difficult baseline jumper, giving the Yellow Jackets a one-point lead and momentum in crunch time of a close ball game. It was a scenario that Duke had faced once too often--playing well for most of the game against a quality opponent, only to falter down the stretch.
But this time the result was different.
The Blue Devils banded together, and instead of self-destructing, played some of their finest basketball this year in the final minutes to notch their first Atlantic Coast Conference victory, 77-70.
It was a much-needed win, to put it mildly, in a season where victories have been unusually scarce for a school that has become accustomed to success on the court.
"This has been a very, very difficult year for everyone," sophomore Jeff Capel said. "For us, the fans--everybody. It feels great to finally win a game and it feels even better to finally win it at home for our fans and to finally share that with them."
Who would have thought back in November, as the Blue Devils were highly-rated in any poll imaginable, that in a February game, as the seconds wound down Capel would throw the ball into air, with a combination of jubilation and relief, for the first win of the ACC season? That fans would rush the court as the final buzzer sounded, as if the crowd were celebrating another championship-bound team, combining with the team to sound a collective sigh of relief that could be heard in the East Campus Gym?
Such was the case, as for the first time this ACC season there was joy in Durham. The once-mighty Blue Devils had not struck out.
"It's a relief just to know that we can do this," senior Eric Meek said. "We've had so many games that have been close. Two double-overtime games, games with last second shots. And that's real tough to deal with when it happens consecutively. I think that you just try to break the cycle."
A cycle? Of losing? Is this the men's basketball team that the residents of the Gothic Wonderland have come to know and love? This season has been a learning process for a young Blue Devil team, one that has resulted in too many tough lessons.
But against the Yellow Jackets, Duke demonstrated that it had been taught enough about losing. The Blue Devils wanted to prove that they knew how to win.
"When a baby grows up, he gets slapped on the hand [for doing things wrong]," freshman Ricky Price said. "Well, we've been slapped nine times. So now, we wanted to slap somebody back."
As the game was winding down, however, it seemed as if the Blue Devils would be the team getting slapped--again. Duke had built a 67-58 lead on two Cherokee Parks' free-throws with 4:55 remaining, when the Yellow Jackets stormed back. Behind a mixture of three-pointers and heroics by Best, Tech went on a furious 10-point run to grab the lead.
Suddenly, images of recent disappointments flooded Cameron. Blowing a 21-point lead against Virginia to fall in double overtime. Playing superbly against a superior Maryland team, only to come apart down the stretch. Having the miracle taken out of a miraculous Capel 30-footer by bowing to North Carolina again in double overtime. Not another heartbreaker.
Not this time for a Blue Devil team which showed that it could persevere and win down the stretch.
"Down the stretch they came back and took the lead, which has been happening in a lot of close games that we haven't pulled out," freshman Trajan Langdon said. "But coming back and keeping our poise and winning a game like this gives us tremendous confidence."
Following the Best jumper, the Blue Devils regrouped and worked the offense, which has malfunctioned in previous pressure situations this season, until finding Langdon on the side. As Langdon received the pass, Tech's Drew Barry stumbled, leaving the freshman open for an 18-footer which he calmly sunk.
Then as the Blue Devils retreated on defense, Best tried to rush down the court, forcing a length-of-the-court pass to a streaking teammate. But Meek jumped in front of the pass, regaining possession for the Blue Devils.
Moments later, Price took the ball on the same wing where Langdon had just scored, gracefully dribbled the ball between his legs and floated in the air, nailing a 15-foot bank shot.
Trailing by three, again the Yellow Jackets rushed down the court, only for Barry to unceremoniously throw the ball over his target's head, giving the Blue Devils back the ball.
Following the turnover, free throws by Capel and senior Kenny Blakeney gave the Duke an insurmountable lead, punctuated by a ferocious Price slam to mark the thankful end to the long quest for an ACC win.
In this game it was the Blue Devils who would pull together to run the offense for a good shot. It was Duke who would hold the fort on defense and make the clutch free throws. And it was the opponent who would make the critical errors in the waning moments of the game.
"We haven't been getting a lot of breaks, but we can't blame our losing on that. But we got some breaks tonight," Langdon said.
On hand to watch the Blue Devils Thursday night were former members of Duke Final Four teams--Billy King, Danny Ferry and Antonio Lang--all presently affiliated in some capacity with NBA teams.
They saw a current Blue Devil team take a crucial step in a desperate search to regain past glory.
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