DATE: Friday, February 28, 1997             TAG: 9702280820

SECTION: SPORTS                  PAGE: C3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY ED MILLER, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: DURHAM, N.C.                      LENGTH:   65 lines

DUKE CLINCHES TIE FOR ACC TITLE IN HIS FINAL HOME GAME, CAPEL LED THE BLUE DEVILS WITH 18 POINTS.

On a sweltering night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke used a sizzling stretch of 3-point shooting to beat Maryland 81-69 and clinch a tie for the ACC regular-season title.

No. 7 Duke (23-6, 12-3 ACC) broke open a tight game by hitting five 3-pointers in a five-minute stretch in the second half.

``Those threes were pretty big,'' Duke coach Mike Kryzyzewski said. ``It was a huge part of us getting that lead.''

On senior night, the Blue Devils came out sky-high - maybe a little too high - and led by just a point at halftime despite forcing 18 Maryland turnovers.

``We were really emotional, and we didn't play with poise,'' guard Jeff Capel said. ``They jumped on us.''

Capel was a key to Duke's second-half turnaround. The 6-foot-3 senior left Cameron in style, scoring a team-high 18 points and handing out three assists.

Capel got Duke going early in the second half by driving and setting up Roshown McLeod for a dunk. He then hit a pair of jumpers, then drove and found freshman Mike Chappell for a layup.

``It was a gradual process,'' Capel said. ``We knew Maryland wasn't going to quit, they were going to keep on fighting.

``We knew we had to gradually wear them down. Just like a boxer, use a lot of body shots to wear them down. Once you get them worn down you deliver the knockout punch.''

That blow came in the form of a Steve Wojciechowski layup with 2:16 left. It gave Duke a 77-64 lead and started a chant of ``Thank You Seniors!'' from the student section.

Capel, Greg Newton and Carmen Wallace were playing their final home game. They began their careers as freshmen on Duke's last Final Four team in 1993-94. They endured the loss of Kryzewski and a losing season their sophomore year, took part in a rebuilding season last year, and can now claim at least a share of an ACC title.

Duke can win the title outright by beating North Carolina Sunday at Chapel Hill.

``ACC champion. That has a nice ring to it,'' Capel said. ``Especially after the things we've been through the last two years.

``As a senior, it was a great way to go out. Not the perfect way. We still have a chance to have a storybook ending.''

Maryland (20-8, 9-6), which got off to a 17-2 start, is trying to prevent an 0-3 ACC ending. The 16th-ranked Terrapins, losers of three of their last four overall, are at Virginia Sunday.

``I don't think we're playing that bad,'' coach Gary Williams said. ``We just have to do a couple of things better.

``You look at 26 turnovers. That is probably the most visible stat of the game.''

Maryland threw the ball all over the place in the first half. But a 9-0 run in the final three minutes cut Duke's lead to one.

In the second half, the Terrapins simply ran out of bodies. Senior Keith Booth (22 points) spent most of the second half in foul trouble, and fouled out with 5:20 left. Despite that, he scored 15 second-half points, almost single-handedly keeping Maryland close. Center Obinna Ekezie played just 25 minutes due to foul trouble.

The deeper Blue Devils rotated 10 players, an important factor on an unseasonably hot day. Temperatures in the region reached the high 70s, and it seemed 10 degrees hotter in Cameron.

``Did they take contributions for air conditioning?'' Krzyzewski said. ``Wow, it was hot in there.''

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