Columnist Tim Graham: Duke hopes to avoid fate of ‘91 Rebels

Tim Graham

Thursday, March 18, 1999 | 10:37 a.m.

Tim Graham's column appears Thursday. His media notebook appears Wednesday. Reach him at 259-4078 or tim@lasvegassun.com

Not even Eugenia Williams could find reason not to select Duke as the favorite to win this year's NCAA men's basketball tournament.

It's that blatantly indisputable.

It's so far beyond obvious even Williams, the only earthling without track marks who didn't think Lennox Lewis dominated Evander Holyfield last weekend, would have to judge the Blue Devils the best.

Or at least we would hope.

Duke is the first prohibitive tourney favorite since 1991. That's when UNLV, returning four starters from its national championship team, was virtually awarded the trophy before the season started.

But we all know what happened.

UNLV won 34 straight games that season by an average of 27.6 points on its road to the Final Four, where it met Duke, the program it had beaten the year before 103-73 -- the largest margin in championship game history.

Duke won the rematch 79-77.

Eugenia Williams, however, was not in attendance. This was a legitimate contest that proved once again there is no such thing as a lock.

This year's Duke team is the first one stacked enough -- rumor has it the equipment manager turned down a Division I scholarship to wash the Blue Devils' jock straps -- to draw comparisons to UNLV's 1991 squad.

The Blue Devils are seeking yet another title this year after annihilating its opposition by an average of 25.4 points.

The similarities with the '91 Rebels were enough for Blue Devil head coach Mike Krzyzewski to sit his players down before the tourney to recount the story of that unfulfilled UNLV team.

But there are key differences between Krzyzewski's boys and Jerry Tarkanian's.

One that immediately stands out is Duke's tougher schedule. The only top-notch regular-season opponents for UNLV in 1991 were Louisville and Arkansas. There are chunks of teams better than those still lodged in Duke's molars.

"This Duke team may be the best college team ever," Tarkanian said.

It has been said, facetiously, the only team that could beat Duke's starting five is Duke's backup five.

Tarkanian doesn't laugh at that line. He witnessed the firepower first-hand when his Fresno State Bulldogs lost to the Blue Devils 93-82 in this year's Great Alaska Shootout.

Ever since, Tarkanian has wondered what it would be like to have just one of Duke's pine riders.

He points to backup center Taymon Domzalski, who averages only 10 minutes and four points a game, as an example of Duke's depth.

"If we had just that Domzalski kid ... we'd have been a great team," Tarkanian said.

Domzalski, by the way, has his own web page. Even if technology had been as popular back then, I don't think it would be possible to download the latest scoop on Stacey Cvijanovich.

Another benefit Duke has that UNLV didn't is the experience of playing in a close game. Duke lost to Cincinnati 77-75 early in the season.

"I wish we would have had a loss earlier in the year," Tarkanian said.

All things considered, Tarkanian doesn't see Duke going home empty-handed like his '91 team did.

"I think Duke's going to waltz through the whole thing," he said.

Unless Eugenia Williams referees one of the Blue Devils' games.