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Duke Edges Virginia In OT
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Jan. 5, 2000
By JUSTIN POPE
Associated Press Writer
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Don’t count on No. 8 Duke easily rolling throughthe Atlantic Coast Conference again. And don’t count on another last-placefinish from Virginia.
Duke (10-2, 1-0), which beat the Cavaliers three times last year by anaverage of 43 points, rallied from a 10-point second-half deficit Wednesdaynight for a 109-100 overtime win.
It was the 23rd consecutive ACC win for the Blue Devils and their 10thstraight against the Cavaliers (9-4, 0-1).
Chris Carrawell had 25 points for Duke, which pulled away with anear-flawless performance in overtime, going 6-for-6 from the field and 7-for-8from the free throw line.
But Virginia, who finished 4-12 in the conference last year, gave the BlueDevils all they could handle with their fast-paced offense, becoming the firstteam to score 100 points against Duke and lose since the unforgettable NCAAtournament win over Kentucky in March 1992.
“Virginia is just more talented,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said of theCavaliers’ dramatic improvement. “They’re a better basketball team. They canbeat anybody here, or anywhere.”
Chris Williams led the Cavaliers with 27 points and Donald Hand added 20points and six assists.
Duke led 89-87 with 11 seconds remaining in regulation, but after MikeDunleavy missed the second of two free throws, Hand forced overtime with anacrobatic driving layup with 5.1 seconds remaining.
In overtime, however, the magic that led the Cavaliers back from anine-point first-half deficit and helped them take back the momentum afterseveral big Duke runs evaporated. Jason Williams of Duke hit an open 3-pointerjust 10 seconds into the extra period, igniting an 8-2 run.
“They weren’t running an offense, they were just playing one-on-one, andfor some reason we couldn’t get a stop,” Virginia’s Adam Hall said.
“He knew that he struggled,” Krzyzewski said of Jason Williams. “He knewthat Hand got the better of him, and he goes out and makes that play.”
Virginia led 74-64 after Roger Mason’s 3-pointer with 7:40 remaining. ButDuke rallied, moving ahead 85-82 on a dunk by Shane Battier with 2:15 left inregulation.
Another 3-pointer by Mason with 50 seconds left gave the Cavaliers aone-point lead and sent the University Hall crowd into a frenzy before Dukewent ahead on Dunleavy’s free throws.
“I thought our guys subconsciously thought the game was over,” Virginiacoach Pete Gillen said, referring to the Cavaliers’ 10-point lead. “Duke beinga poised team and a great team, they kept playing.”
Trailing by nine points early in the first half, Virginia fought back withseveral big runs to forge a 43-43 halftime tie, narrowly missing a lead whenKeith Friel’s halfcourt shot rimmed out at the buzzer.
Virginia took a 50-47 lead on Hand’s second 3-pointer of the half with 17:30left, then went ahead by five on Mason’s layup with 16:52 to go.
Dunleavy, also a freshman, finished with 21 points off the bench in hisfirst conference game.
“If every game’s like that, it’s going to be a long year,” he said.
“I’m disappointed we didn’t win, but I can’t ask our kids to try anyharder,” Gillen said. “They played with tremendous courage and a lot ofheart.”