2001 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
DUKE BLUE DEVILS CHAMPIONSHIP RING
THE STORY OF 2001 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
DUKE BLUE DEVILS CHAMPIONSHIP RING
The 2000–01 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team was a Division I college basketball team that competed in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Under the leadership of All-American duo Shane Battier and Jason "Jay" Williams, coach Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils won their third national championship in program history.
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THE STORY OF 2001 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
DUKE BLUE DEVILS CHAMPIONSHIP RING
In egular season, On January 27, 2001, the second-ranked Blue Devils played at eighth-ranked Maryland Terrapins in what would become the first of four contests between these two ACC rivals that year. With Duke trailing by 10 points with 54 seconds left in regulation, Williams scored eight points, including two three-pointers, in a 13-second span and James hit two free throws to send this game into overtime. In overtime Battier blocked a layup by Juan Dixon at the baseline with 4 seconds left to preserve a 98–96 victory.
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THE STORY OF 2001 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
DUKE BLUE DEVILS CHAMPIONSHIP RING
However, the Blue Devils stumbled in the next game at home against their archrival, fourth-ranked North Carolina by a score of 85–83. A month later, Maryland would avenge their previous home loss to Duke when the No. 16 Terrapins defeated the No. 2 Blue Devils 91–80 on Shane Battier's Senior Night in Cameron Indoor Stadium. After center Carlos Boozer had to leave with a foot injury in that game, coach Krzyzewski decided to change his game strategy, favoring a smaller, quicker lineup by having Duhon start at point guard and moving Williams over to shooting guard.
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THE STORY OF 2001 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
DUKE BLUE DEVILS CHAMPIONSHIP RING
His plan was successful in his next game at North Carolina, when Duke defeated the No. 4 Tar Heels 95–81 to claim a share of the regular season championship. With many pundits having written Duke off after Boozer's injury, the new-look Blue Devils in fact went on to win all 6 of its following games before Boozer rejoined the team in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament.
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THE STORY OF 2001 NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL
DUKE BLUE DEVILS CHAMPIONSHIP RING
Duke finished the regular season with a 26–4 record entering the ACC Tournament as a No. 2 seed. In the tournament semifinals, they met Maryland for the third time this season. In another thrilling contest, after Maryland had rallied from a 14-point, second-half deficit, the Blue Devils defeated the Terrapins 84–82 when Nate James tipped in the game-winner with 1.3 seconds left to advance to the title game against North Carolina. In the third game between Duke and UNC that season, the Blue Devils emerged victorious as ACC Tournament champions by the score of 79–53 and received a No. 1 seed in the East Regional of the NCAA Tournament.
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