GREENSBORO -- With 2:50 left on the clock and N.C. State holding a 69-68 lead over the men's basketball team, freshman J.J. Redick, a 92 percent free throw shooter, stepped to the line for a pair of attempts.
After swishing the first one, Redick nailed the second shot, capping an astonishing Duke comeback and giving the Blue Devils a lead they would not relinquish en route to an 84-77 win and unprecedented fifth straight ACC Tournament title Monday at the Greensboro Coliseum.
"This is one of the better games I've been involved with," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "Whoever says they don't mean anything anymore [is wrong]. This is as intense as '86 when we won it the first time."
For much of the game, however, Duke (24-6) did not seem to be on its way to another championship. After leading 36-31 at the half, the Wolfpack (18-12) used a few three point plays to build a 14-point lead with 11:29 remaining.
A little over a minute later, Redick nailed a shot from behind the arc, and after a Sean Dockery steal, point guard Chris Duhon found Redick, who finished with 30 points, open up top. The second team all-tournament selection then nailed the trey to cut N.C. State's lead to six and force Wolfpack coach
Herb Sendek to burn a 30-second timeout.
"We always knew that a run was going to happen," N.C. State forward Josh Powell said. "The coaching staff told us that a run was coming and just to stay focused."
Duke, however, postponed its comeback for a few minutes, trading baskets with the Wolfpack and slowly chipping away at the lead. Then, with 3:39 remaining, Duhon again found Redick on the left corner and the Roanoke, Va., native delivered to trim the advantage to 69-66.
Duhon then came up with a rebound off a missed Clifford Crawford layup at the other end, before hitting Dahntay Jones for a monster dunk that brought Duke within one. After a turnover by N.C. State, Redick drew a foul and was able to convert for the lead.
"We showed a lot of heart and lots of courage in our comeback," guard Daniel Ewing said. "That's kind of the way things have gone this season. Hopefully we can take this and turn it into success in the NCAA Tournament."
On the ensuing possession, Wolfpack star Julius Hodge was unable to convert, and after Jones came up with the board on one end, he drained a short jumper on the other to give the Blue Devils a 72-69 edge.
Unable to find an open shot, State passed the ball around before Ewing picked Marcus Melvin and started to run the fastbreak. Looking at the clock the sophomore slowed down, and after Duke was able to eat away precious seconds, Redick delivered the crushing blow--another three--with 1:10 left to take a 75-69 lead.
The Wolfpack then started fouling in an attempt to comeback, but with the exception of a lone Redick miss, Duke was perfect.
After the buzzer sounded, the Blue Devils cut down the nets and Ewing was named MVP. He was joined on the All-Tournament team by Hodge, Melvin, Powell and Raymond Felton of North Carolina. Redick and Jones made the second team.
"This is great--better than last year's for me because I was a part of it," Ewing said. "Winning the award is great, but I could not have done it without my teammates. A lot of guys picked it up for us today. I'm proud of myself and my teammates."
In its semifinal matchup, Duke took out archrival North Carolina 75-63. The Blue Devils used a 21-point halftime lead to cruise through the second half and avenge an 82-79 loss at Chapel Hill last Sunday.
The title gives Duke a half-decade long winning streak in the ACC Tournament, and is the school's 14th tournament title overall. The Blue Devils now get a few days rest before flying to Salt Lake City to face Colorado State (19-13) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament Thursday night.
"This moment really was four years in the making," senior center Casey Sanders said. "And we're not done yet."
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