The late, great Jimmy Valvano talked about the NCAA tournament in simple terms: Survive and advance.

That is exactly what Duke did.

Belmont, a No. 15 seed that was blown out by Georgetown and UCLA in the first round the last two years, took the Dukies to the wire. The Bruins, under veteran coach Rick Byrd, played their hearts out and in the end Justin Hare just missed a three-pointer at the buzzer and the Blue Devils moved on.

It was a great opportunity for Belmont of the Atlantic Sun. This squad beat Alabama and Cincinnati earlier in the season. It lived by the three, and at the end fell short with a trifecta attempt.

Coach Mike Krzyzewski can breath a sigh of relief. He can also thank Gerald Henderson for a tremendous performance in the second half.

Henderson, held to four points in the first half, scored 17 big points after intermission. My friends, he made big play after big play, including the key drive to the hoop for the game-winning basket in the final minute. He went to the basket like a pro and converted to give Duke the biggest basket of the night.

It was a terrific basketball game!

Also on Thursday night, Michael Beasley, Bill Walker and Kansas State got past USC in the first seeding upset of the tournament. The No. 11 seed Wildcats took charge in the second half. The Trojans were hurt by Taj Gibson's foul problems.

The first round is in full swing, baby! Survive and advance!

Dick Vitale coached the Pistons and the University of Detroit before broadcasting ESPN's first college basketball game in December 1979. Send him a question for possible use on ESPNEWS.