NCAA SHOCKER:
S. Carolina ousts Duke, no MSG dream matchups
Down went Duke Sunday, cold cocked by the Gamecocks on NCAA Tournament hardwood in South Carolina, the final blows landing an hour before midnight. There was Coach K in shirt and tie, sans suit jacket or a path forward.
This was the denouement of Duke’s season, a campaign that included guard Grayson Allen’s tripping, Krzyzewski’s seven-game absence due to back surgery and an ACC tournament crown in Brooklyn a week earlier. It ended with Luke Kennard fouled out. On went South Carolina, a team that had not won an NCAA tournament game in the last 44 seasons, readying for the Sweet 16 at the Garden Friday night.
If you think Krzyzewski looked chagrined on the Greenville sideline, imagine the grimaces of the Garden’s executives. There is no UConn coming to midtown as Shabazz Napier and company did en route to the 2014 NCAA title.
There are bracket busters in each tournament. Then there is what happened in the East Region of the 2017 NCAA field. A day before Duke’s demise, it was Villanova, the No. 1 seed and defending national champion fresh off a Big East title celebration in the arena on Eighth Ave. Wisconsin picked off the Wildcats in Buffalo. Gone is the Garden dream of Big East champion Villanova squaring with Duke in the Elite 8. Here come No. 3 Baylor, No. 4 Florida, No. 7 South Carolina and No. 8 Wisconsin.
March Madness, indeed. Scalpers shrugged off the Villanova loss, sure that at least Duke would return north to its Wall Street faithful. The gilded program had reached the Sweet 16 five times in seven seasons, but stomachs turned again as South Carolina put the screws to the Blue Devils, bedeviling them with pressure that Duke proved ill-equipped to handle all night. By halftime, Duke had turned the ball over 13 times, two more than its fullgame average. Even then, Duke appeared in control. South Carolina scored 23 points in the opening 20 minutes. No one saw a 65-point second half pummeling coming. Duke pushed South Carolina the distance, but defeat was the end result. There is plenty to pick apart in the postmortem. Duke, a No. 2 seed, was playing in Greenville, S.C., in Gamecock country, rather than Greensboro, N.C. because of North Carolina’s House Bill No. 2, better known as The Bathroom Law, a discriminatory piece of legislation that restricts bathroom access for transgender people. The NCAA isn’t allowing North Carolina to host any contests until the bill is killed. Asked for his thoughts earlier in the week, Krzyzewski bemoaned the bill that he has called “embarrassing.” He offered his view on the political spectrum, sharing his perspective and noting that he hoped the state of North Carolina would catch up with common sense sometime in this century. He maintained that he felt welcomed in South Carolina. That was all before the Gamecocks proved all too aggressive for his team to handle.
South Carolina claimed the win, 88-81. It was an upset, a No. 7 seed unseating a No. 2. Duke has won five national championships under Krzyzewski, but bowing out like this was the final ebb for a team that played unevenly all season, stripped of their practice gear at one point and taking off their uniforms for good in the postgame locker room Sunday.
Duke-Nova was the nirvana hoop heads pointed to when the brackets came out. Now, neither team is rounding back to New York. Duke was unsettled and Villanova reverted to past form one season removed from its halcyon run to a title in Houston. Four teams are coming to the Garden. One is South Carolina; its opponent will be Baylor, an 82-78 winner over USC earlier on Sunday. No. 4 Florida will face No. 8 Wisconsin. One is headed to the Final Four a week from now. The first game will tip at 7:29 p.m. Friday. Madness is coming, even if the name brands aren’t.