Associated Press4:20 AM GMT4 Minute Read
Roach and Filipowski led Duke past Virginia to win the ACC tournament
Jeremy Roach and Kyle Filipowski combined for 43 points in Duke’s win.
GREENSBORO, NC — Jon Scheyer stood on stage and wiped his brow while surveying the gushing crowd as his Duke players danced for the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament championship trophy.
At that moment, Kyle Filipowski stepped behind his trainer and put an arm around him.
The teenage Blue Devils — from their freshmen to their 35-year-old rookie head coach — got to enjoy a moment that felt oh-so-familiar for the Blueblood program.
Filipowski had 20 points and 10 rebounds as the tournament’s most valuable player and No. 21 Duke prevailed defensively to beat No. 13 Virginia 59-49 in Saturday night’s ACC Tournament Championship and secured a title in Scheyer’s debut season as a follower by Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski.
“When we came in, everyone was talking about it, ‘We’re too young, Scheyer’s freshman year,'” freshman guard Tyrese Proctor said while standing amid confetti strewn across the court. “We just stuck together all year and didn’t give up.”
Jeremy Roach scored 19 of his best 23 points after half-time for the fourth-seeded Blue Devils (26-8), who rose to the top of the ACC last month and clinched a league-record 22nd championship.
Only now is the former Blue Devils player and assistant coach in charge.
Scheyer spent the final year as a coach-in-waiting on Krzyzewski’s final Final Four run, assembled the nation’s highest-ranked recruiting squad, and then masterfully guided that group through youthful ups and downs to enter the NCAA tournament on a nine-game winning streak.
Yes, he said, the new players coming in this year or returning from last year want to be part of Duke’s tradition. But it was also a leap of faith at a pivotal moment of change for the program.
“They believed in us and in me,” said Scheyer, “and of course I felt that way about each of them.”
And it all had Scheyer absorbing the scene of celebrating fans from his center stage seat and basking in “a surreal feeling.” These include being the first to win an ACC tournament title both as a player and coach in league history, and only the third freshman-year coach to ever win the title.
Duke’s winning streak began after an overtime loss in Virginia, in which a league-acknowledged error in function cost the Blue Devils a chance to win in regulation. This time, Duke looped his way to the horn, leaning on a defensive approach that Scheyer has been pushing all season.
The Blue Devils kept the second-seeded Cavaliers (25-7) on 33% shooting, with Virginia missing both contested and clean looks while conceding nearly as many turnovers (12) as shots made (16).
“Their length and athleticism were real and I think at times that accelerated us,” said Virginia coach Tony Bennett. “And we were a bit out of character or a little rushed at times. I think they sat down and guarded. We sat down and tried to guard hard and there just wasn’t much there.”
The Blue Devils were never behind, leading by as much as 14 points and having the Cavaliers – who played a methodical pace and their own defensively-focused style – work all night to get closer.
Reece Beekman scored 12 points for Virginia, who moved left to five on Isaac McKneely’s 3-pointer with 3:05 to six and on Kihei Clark’s layup with 1:07. Finally, Beekman pulled Virginia around Filipowski by 44 seconds to 53-49 on a ride lay-up.
But the Blue Devils didn’t falter and hit six straight free throws to win that one. Roach hit four of those, showing the composure of a veteran against a team full of freshmen that recalls some of his big postseason moments during last year’s Final Four run.
Scheyer finally started waving his arm to the Duke fans behind the bench to make some noise, and freshman Mark Mitchell prepared to go to the line for the final free throws with 22.1 seconds left.
Moments later, Scheyer began exchanging handshakes and high-fives with his staff while Proctor began dribbling the clock. The horn blared and Proctor threw the ball high with a yell as the players began to tussle for the first title of Duke’s new era.