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Duke Blue Devils most to blame for epic Elite Eight meltdown vs. UConn
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- Duke Blue Devils most to blame for epic Elite Eight meltdown vs. UConn
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Duke basketball looked dominant against UConn for an entire half. Fans of the Blue Devils began envisioning plans to get to Indianapolis for the Final Four . Except Braylon Mullins left Duke and its fanbase in disbelief .
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Mullins helped erase a 19-point deficit with this epic basket from the March Madness logo.
The basket occurred following a costly Cayden Boozer turnover that led to the UConn points. Now it's UConn coming out of the East Regional and cutting down the nets in front of the Devils.
Is Boozer the sole blame here? Not exactly, as Duke draws blame in multiple areas.
Lack of completing a full effort caught up to Duke
Amber Searls-Imagn Images
Duke looked dominating from the jump. Especially in a tournament that's seen them show vulnerability.
The Blue Devils barely escaped No. 16 seed Siena to start this run. Then needed to snap out of an early offensive funk against TCU before trouncing the Horned Frogs.
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Even St. John's exposed the Atlantic Coast Conference champs momentarily off fast break points. Yet Duke escaped the clutches of all three opponents to seal its Elite Eight trip.
Now Duke's struggles to play a complete game finally caught up. Except it came in the form of the Devils' epic 19-point collapse.
Duke failed to adjust to UConn's surge
Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Connecticut turned up the pressure on both defense and behind the arc.
Mullins was part of a flurry of three's during the final four minutes of the second half. Silas Demary Jr. ignited the late spark at the seven-minute mark, burying a 23-footer. He returned with another 23-foot basket that sliced the lead to 65-58.
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Alex Karaban leaped into the long range party, hitting a 26-footer with 50 seconds left. Mullins came in to seal the stunning comeback.
But Dan Hurley masterfully got UConn to create more spacing on the floor. Plus installed a plan that took pressure off center Tarris Reed Jr. , who handled most of the early scoring for the Huskies.
And scrapping the original offense plan wasn't the only smart Hurley decision. Hurley turned to cross screen actions for Reed, which disrupted Duke's off-ball switches. Hurley plugged Reed as a "screener" down low, which swung the 3-point game open for Connecticut.
Jon Scheyer gets out-coached in the end by a two-time national title winner. The Duke head coach failed to counter Hurley's adjustments on the fly.
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Blue Devils failed at ball security
Turnovers always will cost a team games. Even if they're either a No. 1 seed or ranked at the top overall.
The East Regional's top team lost the basketball 13 times. Boozer's miscue became the 13th that eventually sealed the Huskies' win.
The Big East representative turned it over just four times. But they forced seven steals compared to the Devils' four.
Duke must spend the next seven months reflecting on what could have been a 19th Final Four appearance.
Related: Did Uconn basketball's Dan Hurley headbutt the ref after Braylon Mullins' game-winner?
Related: Kentucky hires former Cavaliers All-Star as assistant coach under Mark Pope
