Duke feeds off hate as the wins keep coming
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- You hate Duke. Just admit it. You hate the way they play. You hate the uniforms they wear. You hate that coach that's so good that you only need his last initial to identify him. You hate all of it.
Admit it, dammit. You hate them.
Guess what? They know you do. And they're used to it.
More importantly: They relish it. They feed of it.
Duke took the court here Friday night against Arkansas Pine-Bluff as the No. 1 seed in the East Regional knowing that any fans in the building not from Duke would be rooting against them. They expect it at this time of the year.
"To be honest, I noticed it a lot more freshman year," Duke guard Jon Scheyer said. "At this point in my career, I'm used to it especially during the NCAA tournament. We have our Duke fans who root for us and then the three other team's fans in the building rooting against us."
Duke did Friday what it has done a lot in this tournament over the years, earning the hated reputation. They blew out Arkansas Pine-Bluff 73-44 in a first-round mismatch that should have been even worse.
This Duke team, though, is different from many of the others in the past. It doesn't have a lottery pick and it might not have a first-round pick in the NBA Draft. You look out on the court and wonder how this is a No. 1 seed.
There is also no J.J. Redick or Christian Laettner to hate.
"We play hard, we work hard, we play together and it's a locker room full of winners," Duke point guard Nolan Smith said. "No lottery picks. But we play defense. We have that desire to win every game we play. It's a different group. We have guys who can play at the next level. This is college and we have so many good college players in this locker room."
Two things key this team: Defense and shooting. They did both it against Pine Bluff.
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| Duke vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff |
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Recap: Blue Devils 73, Golden Lions 44 Blogging Moment: Duke sacrifices Ark.-Pine Bluff |
| Community |
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Thread: Duke: It's just like 1999 |
| Regional coverage |
Duke held Pine Bluff to 32.1-percent shooting. On the offensive end, the Blue Devils were 6 for 13 from behind the 3-point line.
Kyle Singler led Duke with 22 points and Scheyer had 13, both making three from behind the 3-point line.
The victory was the 30th this season for Duke, but that wasn't any big deal for coach Mike Krzyzewski. He was asked afterward about it being special.
Been there, done that.
"It's nice to have, but no, I don't [think it's special]," Krzyzewski said.
It's no big deal when you've been to 10 Final Fours and won three national championships. It's not a big deal when you have more victories than any active coach in the country.
But, remember, Duke hasn't been to the Final Four since 2004. It hurts the sport when they're not around because they are such a polarizing team.
That's why some have speculated that the tournament committee gave Duke an easy path to the Final Four this year. Some have also said that Duke didn't deserve the No. 1 seed.
"Of course we've heard it," Scheyer said. "What are you going to say to that? We don't pay any attention that stuff. You hear things because it's on all the time. You just laugh at it. We're proud of what we've done to earn the No. 1 seed."
Said Smith: "In this tournament, there is no such thing as a soft bracket. That's just something people want to say about Duke."
They say a lot of things about Duke. Most of it isn't good. Unless you bleed blue and white, they are a team that everyone loves to hate.
Players go there fully aware of the pitfalls of playing at Duke. They know the nastiness that will come their way. It's venom that no other team feels.
"I had an idea what it was like it watching Duke playing in high school," Scheyer said. "But then you get there and experience it and know what it's like."
Since they haven't been to a Final Four in years, maybe people are softening their views. How can you dislike a team that isn't a dynasty anymore? And let's face facts: If you don't get to the Final Four in six years, you can't be considered a dynasty anymore.
So maybe it's time to stop firing so much hate in Duke's direction.
Can you do that? Didn't think so.
