MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Duke was down by 22 points and coach Mike
Krzyzewski didn't mince words.
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The curtain has closed on Act IV of Duke vs. Maryland, and what a drama it's been. Who would have thought that Maryland would play the perfect game for the first 10 minutes – jumping out to a 39-17 lead – only to see Duke battle back from that 22-point deficit and post a gutty 95-84 victory ...
More postgame commentary
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"You're losing by so much, you can't play any worse," he told
the top-ranked Blue Devils during a timeout. "So what are you
worried about, losing by 40?"
Duke turned things around in a record way, digging itself out of
its biggest hole of the season and into another NCAA championship
game in a dome that's been a lucky home.
The Blue Devils rallied yet again against Maryland, this time
for a 95-84 victory Saturday night and a chance at another national
championship in the Metrodome.
"It's a 40-minute game and they beat us for 12 minutes," said
Duke freshman Chris Duhon, who had 10 points and six assists. "If
you're going to beat us you've got to do it for 40."
Shane Battier, the national player of the year, had 25 points
for Duke (34-4), which will play Arizona for the title Monday night
on the same court where it won its last title in 1992.
"It's going to be a special night," Battier said. "You can't
get two better teams, coaches and traditions in this game."
It will be Duke's seventh title game under Krzyzewski, who moved
into a tie for second place with Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp with
his ninth Final Four victory. UCLA's John Wooden holds the record
with 21.
|  | | Duke's Matt Christensen, Casey Sanders and Mike Dunleavy cheer their teammates en route to victory. |
The fourth meeting of the season between Duke and its Atlantic
Coast Conference rival Terrapins (25-11) gave the Blue Devils their
third win in the series. Each involved a comeback from a
double-digit deficit, but none was anywhere near this one.
"That was in the back of my mind when we were down 20,"
Battier said. "I was hoping that trend would continue."
The Blue Devils trailed 49-38 at halftime and set the Final Four
record for biggest comeback from a halftime deficit. The previous
high was 10 when Kentucky rallied from a 41-31 margin to beat Utah
78-69 in the 1998 title game.
The NCAA couldn't confirm that 22 points was the largest
comeback in Final Four history, but surely it must have been among
the greatest.
"This team has a lot of heart," Krzyzewski said. "It's the
youngest team, so we're prone to getting nervous. But one of the
biggest hearts I've coached is Jason Williams, and he carried us on
his back."
Williams, Duke's other All-American, bounced back from a
dreadful first half to finish with 23 points, including the
3-pointer that capped the comeback and gave the Blue Devils their
first lead of the game, 73-72 with 6:52 to play.
"I just thought we needed a sense of urgency. I thought that
was the main thing for us," Williams said. "Take it in steps. We
weren't going to get it back in one shot. We did a good job doing
that."
Maryland, in its first Final Four appearance, led by 15 points
in the first game between the teams this season, only to see Duke
rally from 10 down in the final minute for an overtime win. The
Terrapins were up by 11 earlier this month in the semifinals of the
ACC tournament and lost.
They used a great start and took advantage of poor shooting by
Duke to go up 39-17 with 6:57 to play in the first half. Duke
needed just four minutes to cut the lead in half.
"Well, nobody's 22 points better than Duke," Maryland coach
Gary Williams said. "I knew they'd make a run. I thought we had
enough to sustain it."
Maryland's Juan Dixon scored 16 of his 19 points in the opening
20 minutes as the Terrapins shot 55 percent (17-for-31). Duke,
which set NCAA records this season for 3-pointers made and
attempted, was just 2-for-12 from beyond the arc.
Even with Williams, who averaged 28.8 points in the first four
games of the tournament, still struggling with his shooting, Duke
chipped away and closed within one point three times.
Then Williams, who missed 11 of his first 14 shots, nailed the 3
to give Duke the lead with just under seven minutes left.
Maryland didn't back down and the lead changed hands four times
until Duke took it for good at 78-77 on two free throws by Carlos
Boozer with 4:43 to play.
The Terrapins had no answer this time and, with Boozer scoring
inside and Williams penetrating the lane, the Blue Devils started
to pull away.
"They got us into foul trouble," Gary Williams said. "When it
gets close like that, you've got to take advantage of your
opportunities, and we didn't do that. Duke was very aggressive in
the second half."
Lonny Baxter, who had been a force inside for Maryland, had 10
points and 10 rebounds and fouled out with 2:48 to play.
With 3:35 to play there was a violent collision between Duhon
and Maryland's Steve Blake when they chased a loose ball near
midcourt.
Duhon fell to the ground and his head banged hard against the
floor. Both players were down for a few moments, then Blake took a
seat on the Maryland bench and Drew Nicholas took his free throws,
making both.
Duhon was helped up by Krzyzewski and the team trainer, and
barely moved his feet on the way to the locker room. Nevertheless,
he was back on the bench a short time later, and returned to the
game in the final minute.
Boozer, who broke a bone in his foot in the second game between
the two – Maryland's only win – had 19 points. Nate James, who won
the ACC tournament game against the Terrapins with a tip-in with
1.3 seconds left, had nine points and nine rebounds.
"The offensive and defensive combination Casey Sanders and
Carlos Boozer gave us was the best game we've had from big men
inside all year," Krzyzewski said.
Duke finished 7-for-27 from 3-point range and was outrebounded
51-35.
Maryland scored the first seven points of the game. Duke was
within 16-10 just over six minutes in.
The Terrapins then went on a 23-7 run that ended with a
3-pointer by Blake with 6:57 left that put them up by 22 points.
Duke missed its first eight 3-point attempts of the game and
Maryland made five of its first six.
The Blue Devils started chipping away with James hitting their
first 3-pointer of the game. As they began to get even on the
boards, the Blue Devils got back within 46-38 on two free throws by
Duhon with 1:13 left.
Boozer missed a chance to cut into the lead even more by missing
two free throws with 30 seconds left. Maryland held for a last shot
and Dixon made it a long one, hitting a 3-pointer from 30 feet with
three seconds left.
"That was a huge shot by Juan to give is the 11-point lead but
we just weren't able to sustain anything in the second half," Gary
Williams said.
The Blue Devils made the same trip to Minneapolis they did in
1992, when they repeated as national champions by beating Michigan,
winning the first two rounds in Greensboro, N.C., and the regional
in Philadelphia.
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ALSO SEE
Men's College Basketball Scoreboard
Maryland Clubhouse
Duke Clubhouse
Frozen moment: When Williams hit, Duke took control
Maryland's first trip to Final Four ends with familiar loss
Williams keys Blue Devils' comeback
Arizona's quickness will meet Duke's resilience in title game
Arizona reaches title game thanks to dominant second half
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Shane Battier talks with ESPN's Brad Daugherty after the Blue Devils' victory over Maryland.
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 Coach Mike Krzyzewski talks with ESPN's Jay Bilas about Duke's come-from-behind victory.
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Despite the loss, coach Gary Williams is proud of Maryland's success this year (Courtesy: NCAA Productions).
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Shane Battier says Duke stuck to its game plan (Courtesy: NCAA Productions).
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Coach Mike Krzyzewski revels his half time advice for his trailing Blue Devils. (NCAA Production)
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