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Duke Basketball Tickets - Are We Seeing A Swoon Or A Permanent Downturn?
By Jay Nault
Duke basketball tickets have long been some of the most difficult basketball tickets to find in the United States. The program has been almost a gold standard by which all other programs are measured, and that includes not only their on-court success but also their sterling reputation as student athletes. No one questions the fact that Duke runs a clean and successful program under the legendary stewardship of Mike Krzyzewski.

However, the 2006-07 season has been a disappointment for the Blue Devils, and that was never more apparent than in their recent loss to arch-rival North Carolina. The Blue Devils played extremely hard and extremely well, but still could not overcome the talent and ability of the Tar Heels. Below we’ll examine whether this season is an indication of things to come or merely a minor blip on their radar by examining a few specific issues.

Youth

Although youth is becoming somewhat of an antiquated problem in college basketball as more and more stars leave early for the NBA, Duke is an extremely young team. The Blue Devils’ rotation features only one junior and no seniors who average more than one minute in playing time per game, and none of their starters are averaging more than 14 points per game. Simply put, the Blue Devils are still learning how to win, and that can only come with time.

Athleticism

Duke may not only lack experience, but several experts have noted the Blue Devils’ overall lack of pure athleticism on the floor at any given time. This was on display in a prevalent way against North Carolina, as Duke was on fire early and stormed to a big lead. However, they simply could not hold on as the Tar Heels sent waves of athletes to the hoop and attacked the floor and Duke’s defense mercilessly. Duke just could not handle that pressure on either end of the floor, and what looked to be a potential upset wound up being an extremely bitter loss, leaving those lucky enough to score Duke basketball tickets for this classic rivalry game disappointed.

Outlook

Luckily, Duke has a couple of factors working in its favor. First, their biggest “star” is their coach, and he’s taken under-talented teams to overachieving levels several times in the past, and there isn’t any doubt that he can do so again. Secondly, Duke does still sit with a record of 18-6, which means that barring a total collapse, they’ll still be able to get into the NCAA Tournament, where anything can happen in a single-elimination format.

Overall, Duke has had a few tough years during Krzyzewski’s time in Durham, and they’ve always bounced back. Basically, Duke basketball tickets are still worth the effort to obtain, as this is a program that won’t stay down for long.

Written by Jay Nault, sponsored by www.stubhub.com . StubHub sells Duke basketball tickets, sports tickets, concert tickets, theater tickets and more to just about any event in the world.

The History Of The Ncaa Basketball Tournament
By James
The NCAA Basketball Tournament is among us. This tournament is a looking glass for human hope, excellence and positive social change. It is, in short, a microcosm of the human existence, with all of its exuberance, tragedy and triumph. The NCAA Basketball Tournament is American sports.
The excitement and tradition of “March Madness” or the NCAA Basketball Tournament as we know it today has been shaped by many significant events in NCAA tournament history: The first NCAA men’s basketball tournament was held in 1939 with the first NCAA tournament championship game held at Northwestern on March 27, 1939. Only eight teams competed in two regions. Oregon defeated Ohio State in the championship game, and the West region held a third-place game.
Although the NCAA basketball tournament now determines the national champion, that was not always the case. Until the 1950’s, the NIT was considered a more prestigious tournament than the NCAA basketball tournament, and teams often chose to enter the NIT and bypass the NCAA tourney. Because of this dichotomy, two of the best centers of the 1940’s never met in an NCAA basketball tournament. George Mikan’s DePaul team traditionally entered the NIT, while Bob Kurland’s of Oklahoma. In 1973, with the championship game held on Monday night for the first time, UCLA behind Bill Walton’s 44 points on 21 of 22 shooting, won its seventh straight championship, defeating Memphis State.
NC State, led by David Thompson, ends UCLA’s title run in 1974, defeating the Bruins in the national semifinals in double overtime.
The following year, the NCAA tournament expanded to 32 teams, and then allowed more than one school from each conference to participate. Prior to this ruling, the restriction prevented several great teams from competing in the tournament, including the 1974 Maryland team. They finished the season nationally ranked #4, yet lost the ACC Conference final game to top-ranked NC State prior to the start of the tournament. After that, the NCAA began to allow more than one team per conference to participate. In 1976, Bobby Knight’s Indiana Hoosier squad completed an undefeated season with a victory over Michigan in the championship game. The Hoosiers are the last team to go undefeated and win the title.
The tournament expanded to 40 teams in 1979, and teams were seeded for the first time. “Magic” Earvin Johnson leads Michigan State over Larry Bird and Indiana State to win the national championship. The game drew the attention of millions throughout the country; its 24.1 TV rating remains the highest ever for a college basketball game and is still considered one of the greatest match-ups in NCAA Tournament history.Expansion followed in 1980 to 48 teams, and then in 1983, to 53 teams. In what many believe is the greatest Cinderella story in college basketball, North Carolina State’s Lorenzo Charles dunks the ball as time expires in the 1983 championship game to lead the Wolfpack to a 54-52 win over heavily favored Akeem Olajuwon and Houston.
Perhaps no one figure in college basketball history more personified the spirit of March Madness than Coach Jim Valvano. His underdog North Carolina State Wolfpack did what many consider a miracle by making an incredible run through the 1983 Tournament. Culminating in the defeat of the highly touted “Phi Slamma Jamma” squad from the University of Houston, Valvano was rocketed into the media limelight and quickly became the symbol of exuberance and enthusiasm. He discovered soon afterward that he had bone cancer, and for a short time became a commentator for college basketball.
Before his death at age 47, he was named the recipient of the Arthur Ashe award for courage at the first ESPN ESPY awards. It was at this time he announced the formation of the V Foundation for cancer research.
In 1985 the tournament expanded to 64 teams. A Villanova Wildcat team shot a 22 for 28 field goal percentage to defeat Patrick Ewing and defending champion Georgetown in the championship game. Villanova remains the lowest seed (#8) to win the championship. In 1991, Duke upset undefeated UNLV in the semifinals and went on to win the national championship. In 1997, Arizona, led by Mike Bibby, Jason Terry and Miles Simon, becomes the first school to defeat three #1 seeds en route to the national championship, winning against Kansas, North Carolina and Kentucky.
The NCAA Tournament’s popularity has grown to rival that of the World Series, the Olympics and the Super Bowl. CBS Sports in 1999 negotiated an 11-year, $6 billion agreement for television, radio, Internet, corporate marketing, licensing, publishing, home video and Hoop City rights for the Division I men’s basketball championship.
Today the NCAA basketball tournament is one of the most watched tournaments of the year. Always exciting you never really know who is going to end up on top!