Game Commentary

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - An epic game and an epic tale.

All week long, with both the men's and women's basketball teams in the Final Four, Durham has been dubbed the epicenter of the basketball world. Even earlier, as the men's basketball team rolled over its competition throughout a 32-game winning streak, the nation's attention turned to Duke.

The Blue Devils graced the covers of Sports Illustrated and ESPN the Magazine. And when Nike began filming a major ad campaign for March Madness, it could head nowhere else but to Durham.

Last night the nation learned that somewhere nestled in quiet and forgotten Storrs, Conn., there was another pretty good basketball team.

Even as the Huskies spent 10 consecutive weeks as the nation's No. 1 team, in the minds of most there was no doubt as to where the best team in the country played. Duke blew out some of the nation's best teams and was labeled as one of the best ever.

Meanwhile in Connecticut, UConn fans and players felt neglected. This was evidenced by the postgame "We beat Duke" chant that emerged from the Connecticut student section. Huskies players had hoped all season for the chance to beat Duke, and while coach Jim Calhoun thought it was a bad idea, his players were rooting for the Blue Devils in Saturday's semifinal game with Michigan State.

Now the '98-'99 Blue Devils will simply be remembered as one of the best teams not to win a championship, mentioned in the same breath as the '91 UNLV and '85 Georgetown teams.

But if this Duke team is remembered as a failure, it is only because it fell victim to its own press. For the Blue Devils did not lose this championship, it was won by Connecticut.

"I think they kept constant game pressure on us," coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "It's a different form of pressure. You know, you're a possession down and they come down and score. We didn't get a stop. And then now we have to score to keep it a one-possession game or we get it down to one point or tied and they make a big play. You have to give them an immense amount of credit for making big plays."

UConn hit 52 percent of its shots, a particularly impressive number when you consider how few times it turned to the post. Granted, Duke did not play its best game of the year. Its 41.1-percent shooting from the floor was Duke's lowest all season. Had the Blue Devils played this way against most of the teams they played this year, they would have walked away with the familiar 'W.'

But UConn was not like any other team Duke faced. The Huskies were quick and they were aggressive. In no game this year has a team had as much success driving the middle of the floor against Duke as UConn did last night.

"They came out very aggressive and attacked us-not many teams have done that to us," Shane Battier said. "Their attacking manner-they were determined to get to the middle of the floor, and when they did that, that opened up other stuff."

Connecticut's players stepped up in a way Duke had not seen all season. An array of double-team schemes kept Elton Brand from getting open looks, even though most felt he would be able to exploit Jake Voskuhl in the middle.

Richard Hamilton, the tournament's MOP, scored 27 points while grabbing seven boards. Huskies guard Ricky Moore averages just 6.6 points a game. He had 13 in the first half as he dazzled with an array of impressive drives and shots. In Duke's final two possessions, his defensive pressure was critical in stopping Trajan Langdon's final efforts.

"He played his best game all year," said Will Avery of his former high school teammate. "If he doesn't do the things he did, they're not in the game in the first half."

Before the game Krzyzewski had said he wouldn't mind losing if his team was beat. That's what happened last night in Tropicana Field. A team that for much of the year was an afterthought proved that it could indeed compete with the best.

When all is said and done, this year's national championship game was truly epic and one to remember. And while Duke is obviously reeling from the loss, Battier for one can recognize that fact.

"I think 20 years from now I will be able to say that I was part of one of the greatest championship games ever."