Duke

[knvb]

Colorado State at Duke

GAME: No. 14 Colorado State (19-13) vs. No. 3 Duke (24-6).

REGIONAL: West, first round.

TIME: Thursday, 9:50 p.m. EST.

SITE: The Jon M. Huntsman Center; Salt Lake City.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski isn't concerned that his Blue Devils aren't entering the NCAA tournament as a No. 1 seed this March. In fact, he's looking forward to the challenge.

"We are excited about everything," Krzyzewski said upon learning his Blue Devils would be sent to the West Regional as a No. 3 seed, ending Duke's five-year run as a No. 1.

"We are in a very difficult region, but any region is going to be difficult. The main thing we are trying to focus on now is getting our kids ready for Colorado State."

Duke usually enters the tournament as one of the favorites to win it, but this time might not even be favored to win its regional. The Blue Devils are in what is regarded as the most difficult region, seeded behind No. 1 Arizona and Kansas.

"I think our region has two number ones," Krzyzewski said. "I am not knocking any of the other ones but Kansas is pretty good."

The Blue Devils are coming off their fifth straight ACC tournament title and now begin their quest for their second national championship in three years and fourth overall under Krzyzewski.

Krzyzewski will employ a smaller, quicker lineup against the Rams on Thursday, inserting guard Daniel Ewing in the starting lineup.

Ewing averaged 20.7 points during the ACC tournament, and impressed his coach even more with his demeanor on the floor as Duke rallied from a 15-point second-half deficit to beat North Carolina State in Sunday's title game.

"The kids took ownership of their team," Krzyzewski said. "Leadership doesn't always happen, but when it happens it's a beautiful thing. That's what happened this weekend.

"Now we have to keep it going, but that doesn't mean we're like some amazing team. We're a better basketball team and that makes us play better."

The Rams earned their first trip to the tournament since 1990 the hard way, rallying from a 10-point second-half deficit to stun UNLV 62-61 in Saturday's Mountain West title game.

Brian Greene scored 22 points, including the game-winning jumper with 5.7 seconds to play.

"Considering everything that was up against us, I don't know how we did it," said Greene, a senior forward who is making his first postseason appearance. "We had so many chances to give up and quit and call it a good season, but we just wouldn't stop."

The Rams, who suffered through a seven-game conference losing streak before getting hot last week, knocked off Wyoming, regular-season champion BYU and the Runnin' Rebels to earn their seventh tournament berth.

"This is a dream come true," senior center Matt Nelson said. "None of us have tasted the postseason. It's going to be a great run."

These teams have never met.

PROBABLE STARTERS: Colorado State - F Greene, F Darian Burke, C Nelson, G Andy Birley, G Shelton Johnson. Duke - F Shelden Williams, F Dahntay Jones, G J.J. Redick, G Ewing, G Chris Duhon.

TEAM LEADERS: Colorado State - Nelson, 16.9 ppg; Greene, 6.1 rpg; Michael Morris, 3.6 apg. Duke - Jones, 17.0 ppg; Williams, 5.8 rpg; Duhon, 6.7 apg.

HOW THEY GOT HERE: Colorado State - Automatic bid, Mountain West Conference tournament champion. Duke - Automatic bid, ACC tournament champion.

ALL-TIME TOURNAMENT RECORD: Colorado State - 3-8, 7 years. Duke - 75-23, 26 years.


A little cut and paste action for all the Duke fans...

 

[Jinky]

Duke is Duke.

They're on TV more than Leave It To Bee-Vaaaaa!!!!!

 

[knvb]

Duke vs Colorado st

SALT LAKE CITY -- With leading scorer Dahntay Jones on the bench and a capacity crowd enthusiastically hollering against them, the Duke Blue Devils survived a shaky night out West.

Big Shelden Williams pulled them through.


Shelden Williams comes up big when Duke needs him most.(AP)
The 6-foot-9 freshman scored on an offensive rebound with 1:21 to play, then sank two free throws with 44.2 seconds left and the Blue Devils beat Colorado State 67-57 Thursday night in the first round of the West Regional.

The game was nowhere near that one-sided. Third-seeded Duke scored the last eight points after the Rams, the sixth-place team in the Mountain West Conference during the regular season, went on a 14-7 run to cut the lead to 59-57 on Brian Greene's 16-footer with 2:59 to play.

"It's not the Duke team that we wanted to show tonight," Williams said. "We've still got some things to work on."

The 14th-seeded Rams (19-14), upset winners of their conference tournament, had a chance to tie it but freshman Shelton Johnson, a 52 percent free-throw shooter, missed two from the line with 1:54 remaining.

After Williams' four big points, J.J Reddick, who scored 16, made four consecutive free throws in the final 26 seconds to send Duke (25-6) into a second-round matchup Saturday against 11th-seeded Central Michigan, an upset winner over Creighton.

Matt Nelson, Colorado State's 7-foot sophomore center, scored 21 points on 8-for-18 shooting. Greene was the only other Ram in double figures with 14 points, but he shot just 3-of-15 from the field.

Jones scored 23 points for Duke, three shy of his career high, but fouled out with 5:51 to play.

His fifth foul came on Matt Williams' three-point play that capped an 8-2 Rams run and cut Duke's lead to 54-51.

"It's a terrible feeling," Jones said of that final foul, "but you've got to trust your teammates."

Daniel Ewing came off the bench to sink a 3-pointer and a driving layup to put the Blue Devils up 59-51 with 4:52 to play, but Colorado State had one more challenge left.

Ewing had a novel take on his team's struggles.

"I think it was a good game for us to play close," he said. "If we had blown a team out, we might have come out lackadaisical on Saturday."

The Blue Devils nearly didn't get to play Saturday at all.

"Everybody saw Duke vs. Colorado State. Nobody thought we could do it," Greene said. "Having a chance to win it with 2½ minutes left was just unbelievable."

Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski called it "an incredibly tough defensive game" and would not fault his team's effort.

"If we weren't ready to play and hadn't played hard, we would have gotten our (tails) kicked," he said.

Neither team shot well -- Duke 35 percent and Colorado State 33 percent. But the Blue Devils were 25-for-31 at the foul line, compared to 18-for-22 for the Rams.

"I thought our defensive effort was terrific, and I thought their defensive effort was the best we've ever seen," Rams coach Dale Layer said. "It was hard to score all night."

Duke has lost just one opening-round NCAA Tournament game since 1984. That was seven years ago against Eastern Michigan.

This one nearly ended the same way in front of a capacity crowd that enthusiastically backed the Rams at the University of Utah's Jon Huntsman Center.

"It was a tough environment," Jones said. "It was like a home game for them."

Jones scored the first 11 Duke points in the first half, and the first five in the second. Leading 36-30 at the break, Duke scored the first six points of the second half to go up 42-30 when Williams made one of two free throws.

Colorado State went 7:16 without a field goal in the first half and still trailed only 17-14 after Nelson ended the drought with an inside basket with 9:48 to play.

The Rams caught the Blue Devils at 20-20 with 7:19 to play in the half on a 6-0 spurt, the last four on free throws by Greene.

Duke regained control with an 11-2 run and led the rest of the way, but usually not by much.




AP NEWS
The Associated Press News Service

 

[Dapotayto]

For fcuks sake. A thread dedicated to the Duke Blue Dickheads. I guess you like them because of their winning history. I am guessing then that you also support the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Yankees, Detroit Red Wings, San Fransisco 49ers and Manchester United while reserving the right to switch allegiances depending on who is winning their respective league that year. Chump. fcuking Duke. At least if Kentucky wins it all you won't have to change your colors when you switch your support.

 

[knvb]

Get fcuked you Ajax supporting homo. I've been a Duke fan longer than you've been walking upright. As for the other teams that's all you would be doing is guessing. BTW, If you ever call me a 49er fans again al knak the fcukin cnut outdya. Niners indeed.

The only think I hate more than North Carolina and Kansas fans are Kuntucky fans. Hopeless bunch of losers.

 

[Captain Shamrock]

And Huns.

 

[Dapotayto]

What took you so long to reply? You're calling me a homo? Whose the one with the picture of an obviously gay person going to a homosexual costume party dressed as a blue devil? Neener neener forty-neeners you like Duke and big blue weiners.

 

[knvb]

Clever, did the kids at the playground you stalk come up with that for you? Children can be so cruel.

 

[bertrum]

Gay. Too many graduates in that program.

 

[Dapotayto]

I wonder if I opened up a Duke Sucks thread which would get more action between it and this one? Oh, I know the answer to that already. The only action dookies get is from Dick 'I am in love with Coach K' Vitale.

Vitale: "I can't believe you're slagging Duke, Dapotayto! They're awesome babeeeee! I will lick Duke penis for free! They're awesoooooome babeeeeee!"

Dapotayto:

 

[knvb]

No really...Fcuk off.

 

[Buckfast]

Dapotayto,

Your Dickie V quotes sound similar to KNVB's pillow talk with MF......so, I've heard.

Maybe that's why it hurts him sooo much?

Buckfast

 

[knvb]

Another in a long list...

That's a gooder Buck.

Let's see if we can find the topic again shall we? Buckfast as always, will have to look up to see it.

 

[Yoda]

Simple

Duke sucks,

Go Kuntucky!!!!

 

[knvb]

Fcking muppet.

Once again Yoda you've contributed more than your fair share to the sanctity of good reading. The originality of your posts continually throw me into such a state of awe... nae it's more an orgasmic state that I can hardly hold my load as my computer brings up another one of your brilliantly timed masterpieces. The wait though, playfully painful, is ever so worth it as my eye finally lay sight on your works.

Thank you. Fcuk wit.

 

[Yoda]

Tell someone who gives a shite

I think you have mistaken me for someone who gives a shite what you think.


Just showing my support for Dapotayto's proposed new thread.

 

[Jinky]

The "Thread Killer" has been busy today.

Dook is Dook.

They're on TV more than Leave It To Bee-Vaaaaa!!!!!

 

[knvb]

I'm having deja vu. Weird.

 

[Dapotayto]

The "Thread Killer" has been busy today.

Does this mean me?

I was just joking, Knvb

 

[Jinky]

Nope.