Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 29, 1992 TAG: 9203290180
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL BRILL SPORTSWRITER
DATELINE: PHILADELPHIA LENGTH: Long
Down to its last 2.1 seconds, one point behind after an astonishing basket by Kentucky's Sean Woods in overtime, Duke had one hope Saturday night.
Christian Laettner.
The All-America center, who has made as many clutch shots as anybody in college basketball history, did it again.
This time, he caught Grant Hill's three-quarter-court pass, spun backward with two defenders in his face, and hit an 18-foot jump shot that defeated a magnificent Kentucky team 104-103 in the NCAA East Regional championship game.
Quite simply, this was one of the great games ever played.
Duke (32-2) now advances to its fifth consecutive Final Four and sixth in seven years against West Regional champion Indiana. And, in the past three years, Laettner has been the player who made the winning points in the toughest games.
As a sophomore, his jumper at the buzzer after an out-of-bounds play defeated Connecticut in the East Regional by a point. Last year, it was his two free throws with 12 seconds left that eliminated Nevada-Las Vegas in the semifinals and the Devils went on to their first NCAA title.
But those performances paled to what Laettner did Saturday in front 17,878 astonished fans in the Spectrum.
Laettner made Duke's last eight points for a total of 31, and he is the all-time career scoring leader in the NCAA Tournament with 378 points in 21 games. In this game, he didn't miss a shot of any kind, going 10-of-10 from the field, 10-of-10 from the free-throw line.
Kentucky (29-7) took it to Duke all evening, outplaying the No. 1-ranked Blue Devils throughout. Only Duke's shooting saved it from elimination - and both teams shot sensationally. Duke hit 65.4 percent (34-of-52), while the Wildcats shot 56.9 (37-of-65), including 66.7 percent in the second half and also the overtime.
"I'm sure I won't provide the adjectives that befit this game," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "It's incredible.
"I'm a little bit stunned. You hope that some day you are a part of something like this. I'm a lucky guy."
With wondrous Jamal Mashburn tearing up Duke inside and outside, and a press forcing the Devils into uncharacteristic errors, Kentucky battled back from a 67-55 deficit to lead at 89-87 with 2:30 left in regulation.
After that, neither team flinched, with Thomas Hill regaining the lead for Duke 93-91 with 1:02 left. But Deron Feldhaus made a layup with 37 seconds left to tie it again and, when Bobby Hurley's 12-footer bounced off the rim, the extra period was assured.
Thanks to five points by John Pelphrey, Kentucky was up 98-96 when Laettner took charge despite playing with four fouls.
Laettner made two free throws with 1:53 left to tie it.
Then, having rebounded a Kentucky miss, Laettner made a remarkable bank shot with 32 seconds left to give Duke a 100-98 lead.
Kentucky didn't back away. The Wildcats, who ran a slick, pick-and-cut offense that shredded Duke's touted defense, worked Mashburn free for a driving layup, and he was fouled by Tony Lang. Mashburn, who had 28 points, made the free throw and the 'Cats led 101-100 with 19 seconds left.
Five seconds later, Mashburn collected his fifth foul, against Laettner. There was little, if any, question what would happen. Laettner nailed both for a 102-101 lead.
Kentucky called timeout with 7.8 seconds left. Coach Rick Pitino set it up for guard Sean Woods, who had bedeviled Duke all game with his drives.
This time, Woods rubbed Hurley off on a screen, but Laettner came out to contest him. Woods had to arc the ball high. It was so off target that it bounced off the glass, straight into the net. Duke's incredible run in this March Madness appeared over.
With 2.1 seconds left, Duke got a timeout. All that was left was a prayer. Laettner answered it.
He leaped high, twisted and, when the fall-away jumper swished in, he danced down the court, his arms in the air. It completed the greatest shooting performance by percentage in any NCAA game, surpassing UCLA's Bill Walton's 21-for-22 performance in the title game of 1973.
"I wanted him to make a lucky prayer, a lucky shot," Pitino said.
Mashburn called Laettner "one of the great players I've played against. We made a lucky shot, they made a lucky shot. That's life."
When Duke took its final timeout, its NCAA streak hanging by a thread, the play was set for Grant Hill to make the pass.
"My eyes lit up when no one guarded me. I was shocked." Hill said. "Then I saw that Christian was double-teamed. All I can remember is Sean Woods hitting a giant-killer, and Laettner hitting his shot. Everything else is a blur."
Laettner said it was a different situation than against Connecticut in 1990, when he inbounded the ball, took a pass back from Brian Davis and sank a leaning 17-footer.
"That time, I just got it and shot. This was a designed play," Laettner said. "I was the first option. Grant threw a perfect pass. I was trying to concentrate and catch the ball. I took my time. I didn't see the ball go through the hoop.
"I can't believe there could be a better feeling than the Connecticut game, but it was. After it went through, I just ran the other way because Grant was chasing me." \
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