Duke survives again, beating Virginia Tech 75-73 to reach Elite Eight

March 30, 2019 at 7:07AM
Duke forward RJ Barrett drives to the basket past Virginia Tech forward Kerry Blackshear Jr.
Duke forward RJ Barrett drives to the basket past Virginia Tech forward Kerry Blackshear Jr. (Brian Stensaas — Associated Press/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

WASHINGTON – For the second time in six days, Duke's players thought they had given up a last-second, game-changing basket.

But once again, the other team just missed, as top-seeded Duke squeaked past fourth-seeded Virginia Tech 75-73 at Capital One Arena to advance to the East Region final.

On Sunday, Aubrey Dawkins missed a last-second layup that would have given Central Florida a bracket-busting victory over Duke (32-5). This time, Virginia Tech (26-9) had an inbounds play near the basket with 1.1 seconds remaining.

Justin Robinson found a wide-open Ahmed Hill in front of the rim. Hill leaped for the pass but somehow missed the short shot.

"Hill kind of did a loop, and I'm not even going to lie to you," Duke freshman star Zion Williamson said. "When he caught it, I said, 'Ah, we're about to go to overtime.' I mean, I don't know what happened."

Robinson said he made a bad pass on what should have been an alley oop.

"One of our coaches, Jamie, drew up a great play," Hill said. "… This was our first time running it this year. … Justin threw a great pass, and I just came up short."

Before that final shot, Virginia Tech had two other chances at a go-ahead three-pointer on its final possession but missed both — one by Hill and the other by Ty Outlaw. That sequence came after Blue Devils freshman Tre Jones (Apple Valley) missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with 29 seconds left.

JOE CHRISTENSEN

Duke forward Zion Williamson (1) drives to the basket to score on Virginia Tech's guard Ty Outlaw (42) during the second half of an NCAA men's college basketball tournament East Region semifinal in Washington, Friday, March 29, 2019. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
Duke forward Zion Williamson used his left hand to score on Virginia Tech’s Ty Outlaw. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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