Thursday, February 21, 2008

Not Even Sandbags Could Have Saved The Blue Devils


Last night, the Miami Hurricanes basketball team accomplished something against Duke that they couldn't in the last 10 tries that spanned over 45 years.

They beat the Blue Devils.

That's right, the last time that Miami defeated Duke was on December 21, 1962. In the 10 games since that victory, the Hurricanes had lost by single digits just three times('86[7pts], '04[9pts], '05[4pts]), and they had been blown out by 20 or more five times('85[22pts], '87[38pts], '04[24pts], '05[21pts], '06[22pts]).

Series History, Hurricanes vs. Blue Devils
Year, Miami Score, Duke Score

'62-'63: 71 vs. 69
'85-'86: 82 vs. 104
'86-'87: 67 vs. 74
'87-'88: 69 vs. 107
'88-'89: 102 vs. 117
'04-'05: 83 vs. 92
'04-'05: 59 vs. 83
'05-'06: 71 vs. 92
'05-'06: 76 vs. 80
'06-'07: 63 vs. 85
'07-'08: 73 vs. 88
'07-'08: 96 vs. 95

But now the losing streak has been halted, and the 'Canes have handed the Blue Devils a shocking second straight defeat. Miami outshot Duke from the floor, 57.4% to 45.5%, and built a 20 point lead at one point in the second half.

And exactly how long ago was the last win for Miami against Duke in men's basketball?

On the date of that last win, the Bay of Pigs Accord was signed. I guess it's fitting that the Hurricanes beat the Blue Devils the same week that Fidel Castro stepped down then.

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