There are plenty of terrific stories that emerged from Greensboro two nights ago.
There was the coronation of the unlikeliest of heroes in Missy West.
There was Nikki Teasley's bittersweet saga that had all the trappings of a Hollywood hero's tale except the happy ending.
And there was, of course, the first-ever ACC championship for the title-starved Blue Devils.
But do you know about the story almost no one picked up on?
None of this was ever supposed to happen.
Not after six seniors paid their final respects to the program last season.
Not after scrapping the entire offense that fueled last year's Final Four run.
And certainly not after the team's most irreplaceable player suffered a season-ending ACL injury in the heart of the ACC season.
So how did all of this happen?
Because no one tells Gail Goestenkors what she can or cannot do with this program.
She has proven she can do just about anything she wants with her team.
In less than a decade, she successfully turned a program in shambles into a program that's quickly establishing itself as a national power.
So what's so tough about adjusting to losing a class that included the program's only All-American, its all-time assist leader and its finest shooter?
Nothing really, except the departees-Michele VanGorp, Hilary Howard, Nicole Erickson, Payton Black, Naz Medhanie and Takisha Jones-took with them 56.7 percent of the team's scoring, 44.6 percent of its rebounding and 100 percent of its identity.
No need to worry, Goestenkors would tell the team, we're going to be fine.
Some laughed, some shook their heads, and even the players entertained some doubts.
"Deep down inside, I wanted to believe that we would [be successful]," Lauren Rice would say while reflecting on the season after cutting down the nets in Greensboro, "but my head tried to tell me it was going to be more of a challenge."
More of a challenge? How about an immense challenge.
Goestenkors was left with a post-dominated offense and one major problem.
The closest thing to a true post on Duke's roster is Rice, who is to classic dominant posts what Shaquille O'Neal is to lyrical Victorian poets.
The old system had served as the Duke staple-it was simple, methodical and, most importantly, extremely effective when the Blue Devils executed it well.
The dump inside, the defensive collapse, the ball reversal, the wide-open jumper-effective enough to earn a ticket to the Final Four, and stubborn enough to earn a one-way ticket to the garbage after VanGorp graduated.
Without hesitation, Goestenkors promptly installed a completely revamped five-out motion offense, taking advantage of Duke's overall shooting ability. The posts didn't post up any more; the guards occasionally did.
Everything changed, except one small detail.
The success.
"Last year, we were such the pound-the-ball-inside type team," Rice said. "I'm not a dominant center, and none of the freshmen are either. [Goestenkors] has done a good job of adapting to what she has, making us believe in the system."
The transition had been seamless. Former role player Georgia Schweitzer thrived, and the freshmen and those who never found roles last year quickly found their niche. The Blue Devils were cruising, suffering only two losses halfway through the conference slate.
And then the wheels came out from under Duke's wagon, again.
Most coaches see a season-ending injury to their second-leading scorer and top rebounder as a fatal blow to the team.
Goestenkors saw it as an opportunity for others to step up, a chance to return to "boot camp" and toughen up for the postseason run.
No need to worry, Goestenkors would tell the team, we're going to be fine.
But the immediate returns were no more promising than the results of Peppi Browne's MRIs. A horrific outing against Virginia on the road would be followed by a disastrous home loss to Maryland. The skeptics snickered; the team wondered.
Goestenkors, however, stuck to her word. She restored the team's confidence and guided them onto yet another winning streak.
"She's by far the best coach I've played for," said Rice, a veteran of the high school and AAU basketball circles. "She's smart, she knows how to motivate the team, keep [the players] together and focused."
And by now, the players would probably play while wearing heels if Goestenkors insisted the new look would improve their interior defense.
Why shouldn't they? Goestenkors has already shown them several reasons why her way works.
And Monday night, Goestenkors showed them one more.
UPON FURTHER REVIEW is a weekly column written by a Chronicle sportswriter. It appears every Wednesday.
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