Completed Event: Men's Basketball versus #7 UConn on March 29, 2026 , Loss , 72, to, 73
/
Final
Men's Basketball
72
vs #7 UConn
73
ACC Tournament Dominance: A Run Like No Other
3/11/2011 8:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
GREENSBORO, N.C. – Welcome to the Duke Invitational.
The event that started Thursday at the Greensboro Coliseum is officially known as the 58th annual ACC Men's Basketball Tournament.
But after the last dozen years of Blue Devil dominance, it's become Duke's tournament to win or lose. Since 1999, the Devils have won nine of the last 12 ACC championships – a run unprecedented in ACC history.
The last two titles – in 2009 and 2010 – have allowed Duke to vault North Carolina for the most titles in ACC history. The Blue Devils now have 18 league championships , one more than the Tar Heels. N.C. State is third with 10 titles (but hasn't won one since 1987). Nobody else has more than four titles.
“It's huge,” Duke sophomore Mason Plumlee said earlier this week. “It's not easy to win it and when you do, it's a championship. We're going over there with every intention of winning it.”
Blue Devil coach Mike Krzyzewski said that even though his team has locked up a spot in the NCAA Tournament with its 27 regular season victories, he still wants to win the conference tournament.
“We think it's important,” he said. “We've never gone into it saying, 'We've already got a good seed and we can rest.' We haven't gone into it like that. We've always thought it was really important and it is and prepared as such.”
Krzyzewski said he uses the ACC to prepare for the NCAA Tournament, which opens next week.
“We're just anxious to keep getting better,” he said. “Just concentrate this week on getting better and getting a chance to really simulate an NCAA Tournament environment – one and done, the crowd the atmosphere. God bless the ACC and all that they've done over the years to make it such an event. Especially single out what [former tournament director] Fred Barakat did over the years to create the environment which made it seem like a Final Four environment. When we go to Greensboro, I will have a lot of thoughts of him because I thought he was the unsung hero of the ACC over the last couple of decades.”
Duke's recent run of ACC Tournament success has translated into an impressive NCAA run over the same period. During the 12 years in which the Devils have won nine ACC titles and gone 30-3 in ACC Tournament play, the Devils have won two national titles, played in four Final Fours and 10 Sweet 16s. Duke's 34 NCAA wins since 1999 are the most in the nation over that span. The two Sweet 16 misses (2007 and 2008) were the only two years in that span when Duke didn't play well in the ACC Tournament.
In fact, Duke has never failed to reach the NCAA Sweet 16 after winning the ACC championship – not under Vic Bubas (four times), Bill Foster (twice) or Krzyzewski (12 times). That's 18 for 18!
A Run Like No Other
Before Duke's recent 12-year run of ACC Tournament success, the league had known a different level of dominance (in 12-year spans):
N.C. State (1954-65): The Wolfpack won five titles in the first 12 years of the league, compiling an 18-7 record in that span. The first four titles came under legendary coach Everett Case (who also won six titles in the last seven years in the old Southern Conference). The final crown was won by Press Maravich.
Duke (1958-69): The Blue Devils won four titles and compiled a 24-8 record in a 12-year span, the last 10 (and all five titles) won by Coach Vic Bubas, who still owns the best tournament winning percentage of all time. In addition to his four championships in 10 seasons, Bubas also lost in the finals three times.
North Carolina (1967-78): It took Dean Smith six years as UNC's head coach to finally win a title, but when he finally broke through in 1967, it was the start of an impressive run – six championships and a 20-6 tournament record in 12 years.
North Carolina (1978-89): Smith's strong tournament run continued with four titles and a 20-8 ACC Tournament record over the next 12-year run. Along with his previous 12-year run, Smith won 10 titles and 40 tournament games in a 24-year period.
[Note: In the last 24 years, Duke has won 14 titles and 44 tournament games]
Duke (1984-95): Coach K's first impressive run produced three titles and an 18-9 tournament record.
Duke (1999-2010): Nine titles and a 30-3 ACC Tournament record.
The contrast between Duke's current streak and the past periods of ACC Tournament dominance is hard to explain. True, the Blue Devils have been the league's most consistent winner over the last 12 years, but N.C. State in the 1950s, Duke in the 1960s and UNC in the 1980s were excellent too.
Why has Duke dominated in recent years?
“You have to be a little bit lucky,” Krzyzewski said. “I'm sure there were times when one kid hit a shot, where if he misses, you don't advance. [J.J.] Redick did that a couple of times for us. I don't know. We've been a pretty good team. During that time were we ever less than a 3 [seed]?”
Actually, Duke was less than a 3 seed just once in the last 12 years – in 2007, when the Blue Devils were seeded No. 7 … and that was the team's only first-round tournament loss in that span, an overtime loss to N.C. State.
And while there have been some close victories over the years, only one of Duke's 30 wins came down to a last-second shot – the 2001 ACC semifinal victory over Maryland, which was won on Nate James' tip-in. Twice (in the 2006 finals and the 2009 quarterfinals), Boston College missed last-second shots that could have beaten the Devils.
Interesting note – of Duke's three ACC Tournament losses in the last 12 years, all three have been in overtime.
Winning Again?
Duke will open the 2011 ACC Tournament as the No. 2 seed. Three of the nine title teams in the current run were second seeded – 2001, 2002 and 2008.
Just two players on the current Blue Devil roster have played in a losing ACC Tournament game – seniors Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith played in the 2008 semifinal loss to Clemson. Overall, each is 7-1 in tournament play.
Smith credits the coaches for Duke's amazing tournament success.
“I think all the credit goes to our coaches,” the senior guard said. “It's all about preparation in tournament situations. Every team's kids are going to go out there and play as hard as they can. But if you're prepared better than the opponent, you've got a better chance of winning. Our coaching staff just does a great job of staying up all night, waking us up early and having film ready for us to see. We listen.”
Krzyzewski said the quick preparation is good practice for the NCAA Tournament .
“We don't know who we're going to play,” he said. “It kind of simulates that real quick preparation that you're going to have if you're fortunate enough to win the first game in any weekend you're fortunate enough to play in. How quickly can you retain that information? How much information can you give them? There's nothing like just going out on the court – usually it's home and away and you have everybody cheering for you or nobody cheering for you. Now, there's a mixture that kind of simulates that [NCAA] atmosphere. Everyone's excited – the fans, the players, the officials. That's a good thing.”
And, of course, beyond preparation for the NCAA Tournament, winning the ACC Tournament is a good thing in its own right, since it is the official ACC Championship.
“We want to put banners up in Cameron,” Smith said.
ACC Tournament Standings (1999-2010)
1. Duke (nine titles) - 30-3
2. North Carolina (two titles) - 14-10
3. N.C. State - 14-12
4. Maryland (one title) - 11-11
5. Boston College - 5-5
6. Miami - 5-6
7. Georgia Tech - 9-12
8. Florida State - 8-12
9. Wake Forest - 6-12
10. Virginia Tech - 3-6
11. Clemson - 4-12
(tie) Virginia - 4-12
The event that started Thursday at the Greensboro Coliseum is officially known as the 58th annual ACC Men's Basketball Tournament.
But after the last dozen years of Blue Devil dominance, it's become Duke's tournament to win or lose. Since 1999, the Devils have won nine of the last 12 ACC championships – a run unprecedented in ACC history.
The last two titles – in 2009 and 2010 – have allowed Duke to vault North Carolina for the most titles in ACC history. The Blue Devils now have 18 league championships , one more than the Tar Heels. N.C. State is third with 10 titles (but hasn't won one since 1987). Nobody else has more than four titles.
“It's huge,” Duke sophomore Mason Plumlee said earlier this week. “It's not easy to win it and when you do, it's a championship. We're going over there with every intention of winning it.”
Blue Devil coach Mike Krzyzewski said that even though his team has locked up a spot in the NCAA Tournament with its 27 regular season victories, he still wants to win the conference tournament.
“We think it's important,” he said. “We've never gone into it saying, 'We've already got a good seed and we can rest.' We haven't gone into it like that. We've always thought it was really important and it is and prepared as such.”
Krzyzewski said he uses the ACC to prepare for the NCAA Tournament, which opens next week.
“We're just anxious to keep getting better,” he said. “Just concentrate this week on getting better and getting a chance to really simulate an NCAA Tournament environment – one and done, the crowd the atmosphere. God bless the ACC and all that they've done over the years to make it such an event. Especially single out what [former tournament director] Fred Barakat did over the years to create the environment which made it seem like a Final Four environment. When we go to Greensboro, I will have a lot of thoughts of him because I thought he was the unsung hero of the ACC over the last couple of decades.”
Duke's recent run of ACC Tournament success has translated into an impressive NCAA run over the same period. During the 12 years in which the Devils have won nine ACC titles and gone 30-3 in ACC Tournament play, the Devils have won two national titles, played in four Final Fours and 10 Sweet 16s. Duke's 34 NCAA wins since 1999 are the most in the nation over that span. The two Sweet 16 misses (2007 and 2008) were the only two years in that span when Duke didn't play well in the ACC Tournament.
In fact, Duke has never failed to reach the NCAA Sweet 16 after winning the ACC championship – not under Vic Bubas (four times), Bill Foster (twice) or Krzyzewski (12 times). That's 18 for 18!
A Run Like No Other
Before Duke's recent 12-year run of ACC Tournament success, the league had known a different level of dominance (in 12-year spans):
N.C. State (1954-65): The Wolfpack won five titles in the first 12 years of the league, compiling an 18-7 record in that span. The first four titles came under legendary coach Everett Case (who also won six titles in the last seven years in the old Southern Conference). The final crown was won by Press Maravich.
Duke (1958-69): The Blue Devils won four titles and compiled a 24-8 record in a 12-year span, the last 10 (and all five titles) won by Coach Vic Bubas, who still owns the best tournament winning percentage of all time. In addition to his four championships in 10 seasons, Bubas also lost in the finals three times.
North Carolina (1967-78): It took Dean Smith six years as UNC's head coach to finally win a title, but when he finally broke through in 1967, it was the start of an impressive run – six championships and a 20-6 tournament record in 12 years.
North Carolina (1978-89): Smith's strong tournament run continued with four titles and a 20-8 ACC Tournament record over the next 12-year run. Along with his previous 12-year run, Smith won 10 titles and 40 tournament games in a 24-year period.
[Note: In the last 24 years, Duke has won 14 titles and 44 tournament games]
Duke (1984-95): Coach K's first impressive run produced three titles and an 18-9 tournament record.
Duke (1999-2010): Nine titles and a 30-3 ACC Tournament record.
The contrast between Duke's current streak and the past periods of ACC Tournament dominance is hard to explain. True, the Blue Devils have been the league's most consistent winner over the last 12 years, but N.C. State in the 1950s, Duke in the 1960s and UNC in the 1980s were excellent too.
Why has Duke dominated in recent years?
“You have to be a little bit lucky,” Krzyzewski said. “I'm sure there were times when one kid hit a shot, where if he misses, you don't advance. [J.J.] Redick did that a couple of times for us. I don't know. We've been a pretty good team. During that time were we ever less than a 3 [seed]?”
Actually, Duke was less than a 3 seed just once in the last 12 years – in 2007, when the Blue Devils were seeded No. 7 … and that was the team's only first-round tournament loss in that span, an overtime loss to N.C. State.
And while there have been some close victories over the years, only one of Duke's 30 wins came down to a last-second shot – the 2001 ACC semifinal victory over Maryland, which was won on Nate James' tip-in. Twice (in the 2006 finals and the 2009 quarterfinals), Boston College missed last-second shots that could have beaten the Devils.
Interesting note – of Duke's three ACC Tournament losses in the last 12 years, all three have been in overtime.
Winning Again?
Duke will open the 2011 ACC Tournament as the No. 2 seed. Three of the nine title teams in the current run were second seeded – 2001, 2002 and 2008.
Just two players on the current Blue Devil roster have played in a losing ACC Tournament game – seniors Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith played in the 2008 semifinal loss to Clemson. Overall, each is 7-1 in tournament play.
Smith credits the coaches for Duke's amazing tournament success.
“I think all the credit goes to our coaches,” the senior guard said. “It's all about preparation in tournament situations. Every team's kids are going to go out there and play as hard as they can. But if you're prepared better than the opponent, you've got a better chance of winning. Our coaching staff just does a great job of staying up all night, waking us up early and having film ready for us to see. We listen.”
Krzyzewski said the quick preparation is good practice for the NCAA Tournament .
“We don't know who we're going to play,” he said. “It kind of simulates that real quick preparation that you're going to have if you're fortunate enough to win the first game in any weekend you're fortunate enough to play in. How quickly can you retain that information? How much information can you give them? There's nothing like just going out on the court – usually it's home and away and you have everybody cheering for you or nobody cheering for you. Now, there's a mixture that kind of simulates that [NCAA] atmosphere. Everyone's excited – the fans, the players, the officials. That's a good thing.”
And, of course, beyond preparation for the NCAA Tournament, winning the ACC Tournament is a good thing in its own right, since it is the official ACC Championship.
“We want to put banners up in Cameron,” Smith said.
ACC Tournament Standings (1999-2010)
1. Duke (nine titles) - 30-3
2. North Carolina (two titles) - 14-10
3. N.C. State - 14-12
4. Maryland (one title) - 11-11
5. Boston College - 5-5
6. Miami - 5-6
7. Georgia Tech - 9-12
8. Florida State - 8-12
9. Wake Forest - 6-12
10. Virginia Tech - 3-6
11. Clemson - 4-12
(tie) Virginia - 4-12
Players Mentioned
Hall of Fame basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski with a game plan for the country's future
Tuesday, March 31
Maliq Brown - Humble Beast
Tuesday, March 31
Sebastian Wilkins Big Dance Exclusive: Greenville, SC
Tuesday, March 31
Duke Press Conference After Round of 64 (3-19-26)
Tuesday, March 31
