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Run to greatness After dominating regular season, Duke is chasing history
Posted: Monday March 08, 1999 03:24 PM
DURHAM, N.C. (CNN/SI) -- After 32 games of dominance, Duke could be a mere six games away from greatness. Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils made a mockery of the nation's most storied conference, posting a 16-0 regular-season ACC record, winning their first tournament crown in seven years and rolling up numbers that make a strong case for a permanent place in history. This year, Duke is outscoring its opponents at a clip of more than 25.5 points a game -- the fifth-best margin among NCAA teams since 1960, and the eighth-best of all-time. The Blue Devils begin the quest for their first title since 1992 against 16th-seeded Florida A&M in the first round of the East Regional. "This is it," said senior guard Trajan Langdon, the Devils' second-leading scorer. "This is my last year to go to the Final Four. I think that there is a great sense of urgency to get that done." Getting a spot on the list of all-time greats means winning it all, and nobody did that more often that John Wooden's UCLA dynasty. The 1972 Bruins, with All-Americans Bill Walton and Henry Bibby, top the scoring margin list with a 30.3 per game average. That team went 30-0 on the way to the school's sixth straight NCAA title and won 29 of its 30 games by at least 13 points. The 1976 Indiana Hoosiers were perfect on the way to a national title as well, going 32-0. Bobby Knight's gang won 21 of its games by double figures, with All-Americans Scott May, Quinn Buckner and Kent Benson helping beat Michigan by 18 in the national title game. Duke can't go undefeated, Cincinnati already took care of that, but if the Devils cut down the nets in St. Petersburg they will have 38 wins, the most ever in college basketball. That record may give them the edge over a trio of teams that won titles and are certainly the equal of this Duke team in terms of talent. Krzyzewski warns, though, Duke isn't in that class -- yet. "I think this team is getting better," Krzyzewski said. "I think this team wants to get better. You know what, I think it needs to get better if we want we feel we're going to have a chance to win the national championship." Winning it all is the final criterion. Just ask Jerry Tarkanian. His 1991 UNLV team was the most fearsome team of the '90s, if not its best. Future NBA players Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony torched the nation by an average of 26.7 points a game. But that's when Duke, in Krzyzewski's fifth trip to the Final Four, exacted revenge for a 30-point defeat the year before. Which begs the question, is this even Duke's best team? "A lot of people are trying to say that this is Duke's best team ever, but by far we're not," junior forward Chris Carrawell said. "Duke's best team is the 1991-92 squads. They have two rings to show for it. Although we got off to the best start in school history, we haven't accomplished anything yet." So consider all of Duke's lofty numbers and all of its emphatic wins a nice foundation -- a resumé waiting to be sent in to history's selection committee. But one line is left blank for now, and only a national championship can fill it.
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