Duke 91 Vermont 90
I went 1800 miles, spent 30 hours in a car, slept very little, and saw the greatest basketball game of my life.
When the Duke game was announced I began to formulate a plan for a friend and I to attend the game. His father lived in the area so I knew we would have a place to stay. After looking into tickets I realized that this would be a difficult task as Duke tickets are hard to come by. My friend and I persevered and bought tickets (for well above face value). The plan was simple: Visit Cameron indoor stadium, one of the greatest college basketball venues in the country and hope that the games stays within 20 points. So we began our journey at 4:30 in the morning on Saturday November 23, 2013. The drive was long but smooth. No traffic. No problems. We arrived somewhat exhausted and turned in for the night. Waking up the next morning we found that we had brought the cold weather of Vermont with us. It was a beautiful Vermont day in North Carolina. We piled into the car again and headed for Durham. Upon arrival a very nice parking attendant gave us a secret code to park much closer to Cameron than we originally planned. Things were going our way. Braving the cold we walked to the stadium, took pictures, and soaked in the beautiful campus. Cameron indoor stadium is an unassuming landmark, nearly indistinguishable from the other buildings in the area. We stood in awe as we waited for the doors to open. Once inside the atmosphere was overwhelming. The most striking thing is the size. Cameron is not a large venue. It is a beautiful, intimate place to watch a basketball game. The Cameron Crazies begin to razz the UVM players and tip-off is fast approaching. We soak in the last few moments before game time and wish for Vermont to stay in the game. The ball is up and the game gets underway. The Cats offense seems to be flowing and moving at a pace not seen all season. It begins back and forth and Vermont doesn't back down. Suddenly, Duke begins to rain threes from all over the court. We begin to feel the inevitable is coming. A Duke run that will bury the Cats and we will be resigned to taking in the experience and enjoying the chance to watch Duke play. The gap begins to widen but Kurt Steidl makes a three and our offense continues to click. The hot shooting from Duke continues and suddenly it is a 14 point lead. We keep believing, urging Vermont to battle back. The Cats cut it to ten but Duke has the last possession before the half. I pray that Duke misses and we can go into halftime down only ten. Then it happens. The shot is missed and Voelkel gets fouled on the rebound? He hits both free throws? Amazing. The halftime score is 51-43 and suddenly the feeling changes, Vermont is in the game. The plan changes. Can we challenge Duke? In their house? Vermont comes out of the locker room and the second half begins. Jabari Parker begins to assert himself and again that feeling of dread rises up. Vermont keeps answering every basket and has the look of a confident team. Layup after layup and Duke is unable to stop the Cats from scoring. Duke's threes stop falling and then Becker does the unthinkable. He switches to a zone defense. A zone defense? Becker have you lost your mind. We NEVER play zone. Then suddenly it works. Duke is confused, erratic, and their offense begins to stall. Voelkel and Carissimo are getting to the basket at will and picking apart the Duke defense with precision passing. Back and forth we go and suddenly we are within one. How did this happen? Disbelief is the only emotion I felt and with every passing minute a crazy idea begins to pop into my head.Could we win this game? Is it possible? Then Hector Harold arrives. A monster put back dunk seems to ignite a fire in him. He suddenly plays like a man possessed. We have been waiting all season for him to arrive and suddenly in a flash he becomes a hero. Harold releases a three and Vermont takes the LEAD, 74-73. Coach K takes a time out and my cell phone blows up. Friends watching back home are sharing the same combination of excitement and disbelief. Back and forth and forth and back, Vermont and Duke like boxers in the ring, neither one able to deliver the knockout blow. Then the Cats miss some free throws and Duke goes up by 4 with less than a minute to go. A let down. Well it was a great effort and we gave them a scare. Rusin rises and time stands still. Swish. A whistle. A four point play? It can't be. Vermont refuses to be put away. Rusin makes the free throw and we are all tied at 90 with 17 seconds to go. Duke drives up the court and to the hoop. Rugg blocks the shot, and the ball goes out of bounds off Duke. A whistle. A foul. No way. It was a clean block. Despair. Rodney Hood shoots, he misses. New life, another chance at the win. Makes the second. There are 5 seconds to go. Vermont has no timeouts. Carissimo gets the ball. He runs up the court. Passes to Rusin. The buzzer sounds. The shot goes in. Too late. Game over. 91-90. Duke prevails. One more second. If there was just one more second Vermont wins. We sit back soak it all in and realize what Vermont had done. They had taken the number six team in the country down to the wire in their gym. A victory in and of itself. And I was there. I was there.
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