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EVENTS
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
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Closer Look Duhon takes the initiative just in time for Duke
Updated: Sunday March 25, 2001 8:48 AM
By Tim Crothers, Sports Illustrated PHILADELPHIA -- Before Saturday night, Duke freshman guard Chris Duhon had appeared on the dais at two press conferences during the NCAA tournament. Once with his notoriously glib senior teammate Shane Battier and another time with the entire Duke starting five. Duhon had barely uttered a peep during either occasion. Frankly, he hadn't done much lately to talk about. That all changed after Duke's 79-69 victory against USC in the East Regional final when Duhon fielded the first three questions from reporters after knocking down two decisive 3-point shots in the waning minutes and finishing with 13 points. "They were backing off me and saying, 'I dare you to shoot,'" said Duhon, wearing a cut-down net around his neck. "I was reluctant at first but once I hit that first one, I felt a lot of confidence flowing through my body. After that, I stopped thinking too much and just played on instinct." USC coaches acknowledged after the game that they had spotted Duhon's tentative play on recent game films and told their players that if anybody was to be left free to shoot it should be Duhon. Despite starting the last five games after center Carlos Boozer went down with a foot injury, Duhon was averaging fewer than five points in those games and had attempted only 20 shots, including 2-for-9 from behind the arc. Duhon, the winner of the 3-point shooting contest at the 2000 McDonald's All-America game and a 36 percent shooter from 3-point range this season, admits he was deferring too much to his more experienced teammates. "Chris is the best shooter on our team," Jason Williams says. "In the huddle tonight we were all yelling at him, telling him to shoot it when he's open." Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski was particularly pleased with Duhon's exploits because he had stewed recently over the trend of his team to rely too heavily on Battier and Williams, a two-headed offensive monster that had accounted for 58 of Duke's 76 points in the Sweet 16 victory against UCLA. "Chris hit huge, huge shots in the second half," Krzyzewski said. "We were at a crucial point in the game where you wonder, 'Who is going to take the big shot?' Chris knocked them down." When the final buzzer sealed Duke's latest trip to the Final Four on Saturday night, Duhon was the first teammate that Battier sought out to hug. "Savor this," Battier told Duhon. "A lot of people would pay a lot of money to trade places with you tonight." Duhon replied, "I'm just glad to help."
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