Duke’s run to NCAA title started at ACC tourney
By Bud L. Ellis
By dodging the upset bug that took residence at the 2010 ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament, the Duke Blue Devils did more than win another conference title.
The Blue Devils propelled themselves to the ultimate prize.
Duke’s run to the NCAA national championship began on the second weekend of March inside the Greensboro Coliseum. While only two of the higher seeded teams survived in the first two rounds, the Blue Devils navigated their way through the upsets and close calls to win the ACC for the ninth time in 12 years.
It started on March 12, as Duke downed No. 9 seed Virginia 57-46. In the semifinals the next day, the Blue Devils face 12th-seed Miami, which had upended No. 5 Wake Forest and No. 4 Virginia Tech. The Blue Devils hung on down the stretch, beating the Hurricanes 77-74 to advance to the final.
Waiting in the championship game March 14 was Georgia Tech, the No. 7 seed that stunned No. 2 seed Maryland in the quarterfinals. But playing for the fourth time in four days, the Yellow Jackets ran out of gas down the stretch and Duke survived 65-61, cutting down the nets and earning a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
From there, Duke won six more games in a row, cutting down the nets again April 5 after winning the national title.
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Friday, June 18, 2010 at 1:33 pm by bud
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