Then suddenly, in the final minute, what had seemed inevitable nearly slipped away.
"In a game like this, the team that is winning is hoping the game will hurry up and end, and the team that's losing gets loose and starts doing whatever it takes," Duke junior Nolan Smith said. "Finally we said, 'Let's win this game.' "
That's exactly what Duke senior Jon Scheyer did, saving the title on a poor shooting day with a 3-pointer with 18 seconds left that allowed the Blue Devils to hold on for a 65-61 triumph over Georgia Tech at Greensboro Coliseum.
"To me, it was a little bit of a storybook ending for the ACC for him to hit that shot," said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, who earned his 12th ACC Tournament title and a record 18th title for the school. "There's something about Scheyer that just produces wins."
The drama did fit the stuff of a storybook, with the eventual hero struggling to find his way until the final chapter.
When Duke gained possession with less than a minute left, Georgia Tech had trimmed a 10-point deficit down to 60-59 in less than three minutes, but Scheyer — 1-for-8 from 3-point range to that point — received a pass from Smith and drained a 3 from the right side to virtually seal it.
"Kyle [Singler] and I crossed underneath, and I was able to get some distance from my man for about a second. Brian [Zoubek] set a really good screen, and I was open," said Scheyer, who scored 16 points. "Even though I hadn't been shooting the ball well, my coaches and teammates the whole game told me to keep shooting.
"They all had confidence in me, and that's a big reason I had confidence in that shot. It felt good when it left my hand."
Georgia Tech pulled within 63-61 at the other end, but then Singler — named the Everett Case Award winner after hitting 14 of 16 free throws on his way to 20 points — drained a pair with nine seconds left to erase any remaining doubt.
"They didn't lose the game; we won the game," Krzyzewski said. "Kyle's free throws, and Jon hit the biggest shot obviously.
"We're really proud, happy and tired, but a good tired happy."
The Blue Devils (29-5) now will rest and get geared up to start their run at an even bigger tournament title. Hours after adding the ACC's tourney crown to their share of the regular season title, Duke learned it will open the NCAA Tournament on Friday as the No. 1 seed in the South Region. It will face the winner of Tuesday's play-in game between Winthrop and Arkansas-Pine Bluff in Jacksonville, Fla.
But for a couple of hours at least, they savored the conference crown.
"We're ecstatic," Krzyzewski said. "I know a lot of people say the tournament maybe doesn't mean as much, but it certainly meant a lot to the two teams that were playing today.
"That was one of the best games we've played in this year, maybe the last couple of years. They played really well; our kids played really well. Defensively, both teams were outstanding."
Duke's defense ruled the opening minutes, quickly giving the top-seeded Blue Devils a lead they never relinquished. The seventh-seeded Yellow Jackets (22-12), trying to become the first team to win the tournament with four victories in four days, looked like a tired team early, failing to get a shot off for the first three minutes.
While Georgia Tech's first five possessions all produced turnovers, Smith — who finished with 16 points — made his mark with three early baskets to help Duke build an 8-0 lead that eventually grew to 17-5.
"We played tremendous defense early. We really, really battled their offense," Smith said. "I wanted to come out and assert myself early, just really be aggressive. Then after that I tried to get my teammates involved, penetrating and making passes."
Georgia Tech soon got a second wind and made a game of it behind freshman big man Derrick Favors, who finished with game highs in points (22) and rebounds (11).
Duke, however, always did just enough to keep the Yellow Jackets at bay, never letting them get closer than four points until their final push. The Blue Devils simply couldn't hit enough shot to finish Georgia Tech off: With less than four minutes left, Duke had hit just 5 of 19 field goals in the second half but still led 58-48 thanks to hitting 17 of 19 second-half free throws.
At 60-50, Georgia Tech made its move. Iman Shumpert hit a 3, Favors hit a follow shot and Maurice Miller hit a couple of free throws. Finally, Favors got free for a dunk with 47.9 seconds left to cut Duke's lead to a single point.
Smith worked the shot clock down, then he worked the ball to the senior member of Duke's big three, who responded with a senior moment.
"In a situation like that, I know Jon is going to be ready to catch and shoot," Smith said. "Before I passed it, I knew it was going in."
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