In a season where records fell like the raindrops that soaked Durham all season, winning the Atlantic Coast Conference title outright and fielding the No. 1 seed in this weekend's conference tournament is something out of a fairy tale. And for the Duke women (20-6, 13-3 in the ACC), the view from the top is unbelievable. Then again, that's what Humpty Dumpty thought too.
After all, being atop this conference is not everything it's cracked up to be. Historically, the top seed in the ACC Tournament has been far from a lock for the title. In the 20 previous tournaments, only nine No. 1 seeds have brought home the expected hardware, and only once has it happened in the previous four tournaments.
Compare that to other women's basketball conferences like the Big East, where the top seed has won all but one conference tournament this decade, and No. 1 in the ACC seems less like an honor and more like a big bulls-eye. With the great degree of parity that has existed in the league this year, there are a whole slew of William Tell wanna-bes between Duke and a championship.
"This is the most wide-open tournament I've seen," Duke coach Gail Goestenkors said. "There have never been five teams so evenly matched before. Everyone in the top five knows we can all beat each other, and that gives everyone a lot of confidence. They know they can win, and we know we can win because there is such great parity in this tournament."
A further complication for this Duke team may be its psychological preparation leading into the tourney. Duke's lone slump in the ACC schedule this season followed on the heels of its biggest wins-a trio of top-25 victories-that gave the Blue Devils both first place in the league and what Goestenkors described as "the big heads", resulting in a one-point loss to sixth-seeded Maryland.
Coming off a final four games that almost exactly mimicked the stretch leading into the Blue Devils' earlier mini-slump, Duke's confidence (or over-confidence) will be an issue the Blue Devils will have to face quickly.
"I think we learned our lessons at Maryland," Goestenkors said. "The team has done a great job. There won't be any overconfidence, especially if we play Georgia Tech [in the first round]. They played us a very tight game, and we really respect them."
Confidence won't be the only question Duke will have to answer. Despite possibly being the best team ever fielded by Duke and a solid title contender all year long, there are still those who question whether this Blue Devil team belongs at the top.
"We've never been in this position before," Goestenkors said. "Some will say we won't know how to act, but we put ourselves in this situation by controlling our own destiny down the stretch. People talk about pressure, but we had more pressure going down the stretch of the ACC, where every game was a must-win. We put ourselves in a good situation."
Besides, according to Goestenkors, the Blue Devils have something better than all the king's horses and all the king's men to keep them together-mental toughness.
"Our mental toughness is really outstanding," Goestenkors said. "That is what has separated this team from all the other teams. We've really played great under pressure."
Duke will reap the first rewards of the No. 1 seed Friday afternoon when it takes on the winner of the battle for head conference black sheep-Georgia Tech, a 78-67 winner over Wake Forest Thursday afternoon.
"Georgia Tech was very difficult for us last time," Goestenkors said, "and they really controlled the game. They're very athletic. They match up very well against us, and they'll have a lot of confidence if they play us."
The matchups further down the road could prove real trouble for Duke. A first round win will set up a showdown with either North Carolina, one of the few teams to beat Duke this year, or Virginia, a team the Blue Devils beat twice, including the title-clincher last Sunday. Either way, Duke will have to shut down one of two likely first-team All-ACC selections; DeMya Walker of Virginia and Tracy Reid of North Carolina.
For this Duke team to bring home its first ever ACC Tournament title, it must continue to play high-level basketball and carry over this season's performance.
"We've really put ourselves in a good situation," Goestenkors said, "now we just have to go out there and do it."
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