Silver Anniversary: Duke Wins 1991 National Title

On April 1, 1991, Duke won it's first men's basketball national championship after knocking off Kansas, 72-65. Today, GoDuke.com celebrates the Silver Anniversary of that game by taking a closer look at the contest itself and the season that led up to it.

DURHAM -- From the beginning the goal was clear: win the national championship.

Head coach Mike Krzyzewski made no bones about it as he began his 11th season at Duke University. He told his 13 players, assembling in the locker room for the first time in September, that it was their goal.

Leading up to the glory-filled 1990-1991 season were many anxious moments, including a 30-point loss to UNLV at the 1990 NCAA championship game, Krzyzewski being wooed by the Boston Celtics, and a tiring summer which had Coach K leading the USA team (with Christian Laettner and Bobby Hurley) to medal-winning performances at the Goodwill Games and the World Championships.

All of those were memories and lessons as the 1990-91 schedule got underway at the Dodge NIT in mid-November.

Duke rushed out to two quick and decisive victories in Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils then headed to the Big Apple and Madison Square Garden, where they faced fellow 1990 Final Four member Arkansas, whom the Blue Devils had defeated to earn a trip to the championship game. This time the Razorbacks turned back Duke and advanced to the title game with a 98-88 win.

The month of December featured a road loss to Georgetown in the ACC/Big East Challenge and a key road victory at 11th-ranked Oklahoma which snapped the Sooners long home court winning streak. Duke triumphed 90-85 and finished the month with a 10-2 record.

The opening day of the ACC slate had the Blue Devils traveling to 18th-ranked Virginia. The Cavaliers crushed Duke 81-64, making it time for a re-commitment to the season by the Blue Devils.

Freshman Grant Hill broke his nose at a late night practice session which caused him to miss the next three ACC games. Duke won all three of those games, thanks in part to the emergence of sophomore Thomas Hill. The 6-4 guard/forward had 22 points in an 89-67 win over Wake Forest and then added 20 more against fifth-ranked North Carolina five days later in Duke's 74-60 victory over the Tar Heels.

The ACC regular season championship came down to the final game against the chief rival – North Carolina. The eighth-ranked Blue Devils hustled out to a 20-point margin in the early parts of the second half. The fourth-ranked Tar Heels came back but could never catch Duke as the Blue Devils posted an 83-77 victory.

A week later, the two squads met again in the ACC Tournament championship game. This time, Carolina triumphed, 96-74, to hand Duke a decisive loss and leave the Blue Devils with a 26-7 record heading into the NCAA Tournament.

It was apparent early that the Blue Devils meant business in their chance to go to Indianapolis. Duke disposed of Northeast Louisiana, Iowa and Connecticut with little resistance leading up to the Midwest Regional title game against Big East member St. John's. Pacing the victory, Hurley earned MVP honors in the region with 20 points in the title game and a remarkable 6.75:1 assist-turnover ratio in the four NCAA games.

Up first in the Final Four was UNLV, a team owning a 34-0 record and had rarely been challenged. The fight was on and Duke kept the pressure on the Runnin' Rebels. Finally, it came down to a little over two minutes to play and the Blue Devils down by a 76-71 count.

Hurley connected on a three-pointer when all seemed lost to make it 76-74 with 2:14 to play. Then Duke put on the defensive pressure and UNLV ran out the shot clock without a shot being taken. Next, Brian Davis took charge with a driving layup and a foul shot to give Duke a 77-76 lead.

After a Larry Johnson free throw tied the score, the ball landed in Laettner's hands on the offensive side and he was fouled with 12.7 seconds to play. He calmly converted the two charity tosses to give Duke a 79-77 lead which never changed.

Two nights later, in the most famed game of the college basketball season, Duke took the court against Kansas, which had defeated North Carolina in the semifinals.

The fatigued Blue Devils never faltered as Hurley and Grant Hill teamed up for a spectacular alley-oop dunk in the opening minutes to set the tone and Laettner proved steady with a record-setting 12-for-12 performance from the free throw line.

It was a crowning glory to the spectacular season as the Blue Devils brought home the title with a 72-65 victory over the Jayhawks. Laettner earned MVP honors and Hurley averaged 12 points and eight assists in the two games. Sophomore Bill McCaffrey added 16 points in the title game to also earn a slot on the All-Final Four team.

The season was complete, the dream a reality. Duke had won the national championship and along the way captured the ACC regular season crown, a record 16-0 home record, its eighth straight NCAA appearance, a fourth straight Final Four berth and fifth in the last six years, and Krzyzewski was named the Kodak/NABC National Coach of the Year.

Honors & Awards:

Grant Hill:

First Team Freshman All-America (Basketball Times)
Third Team Freshman All-America (Basketball Weekly)
ACC All-Freshman
ACC All-Tournament (second team)

Thomas Hill:

Third Team All-ACC
All-Region (Basketball Times)
NCAA Midwest Region All-Tournament Team

Bobby Hurley:

Honorable Mention All-America (AP)
Third Team All-ACC
All-Region (Basketball Times)
NCAA All-Final Four Team
NCAA Midwest Region MVP
NCAA Midwest Region All-Tournament Team

Greg Koubek:

ACC All-Tournament (second team)

Christian Laettner:

First Team All-America (Basketball Times, Wooden)
Second Team All-America (AP, UPI, NABC, USBWA)
NCAA Final Four MVP
NCAA All-Final Four Team
NCAA Midwest Region All-Tournament Team
First Team All-ACC
ACC All-Tournament (first team)
USBWA District Player of the Year
USBWA First Team All-District

Bill McCaffrey:

NCAA All-Final Four Team

Mike Krzyzewski:

National Coach of the Year (NABC)

Silver Anniversary: Duke Wins 1991 National Title

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