One near miss, and seven meetings to remember

As many times as I watched Dean Smith and Mike Krzyzewski coach against each other, the Duke vs. North Carolina game I most wanted to see didn't get played.

Actually, it should have happened, but the Tar Heels were colder than the windy Indiana weather that late March afternoon in 1991.

UNC's 79-73 loss to Kansas in the NCAA semifinals at Indianapolis meant the country could not - and may never - witness the ultimate Duke-UNC game.

It would have been for the NCAA championship.

Duke knocked out top-ranked defending champion Nevada-Las Vegas, 79-77, that day in the Hoosier Dome in the most compelling and dramatic day of basketball that I've ever seen.

In one game, Smith faced his prized pupil, then-Kansas coach Roy Williams. In the other game, Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils stopped Jerry Tarkanian from a chance to win back-to-back titles.

There was the unforgettable end of the UNC-Kansas game, when Smith was ejected by cancer-stricken official Pete Pavia. Before leaving the court, Smith defiantly took time to shake hands with Williams, each of the Kansas assistants and several flabbergasted Jayhawks players.

With Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill, Brian Davis, Thomas Hill and Billy McCaffrey, Duke went on to beat Kansas, 72-65, on Monday night.

But can you imagine what might have been that April 1, 1991 night? UNC vs. Duke for the title, maybe the game of the century.

Over the years, I covered most of the Krzyzewski-Smith games. Here are seven of my favorites.

Duke 77, UNC 75, March 10, 1984

This was the day that validated Krzyzewski as a big-game coach.

Although Krzyzewski had defeated Smith once before (1980-81 season), the '83-84 Tar Heels were a dominant team that entered the game 27-1, ranked first nationally, with a roster that included Sam Perkins, Michael Jordan, Kenny Smith, Matt Doherty and Brad Daugherty, among others.

Duke was ranked 16th and seeded fourth in the ACC tournament after finishing conference play 7-7.

Just a week earlier, the Heels had won in Chapel Hill, 96-83, in two overtimes when Jordan and Perkins combined for 50 points and 16 rebounds.

With sophomores Johnny Dawkins, Jay Bilas and Mark Alarie and freshman Tommy Amaker in key roles, Duke was talented but young.

Predictably enough, the ACC semifinal game in Greensboro turned on defense. Dawkins, Amaker and David Henderson locked up the perimeter while Bilas, Alarie and Dan Meagher bodied up on Perkins, Daugherty and Joe Wolf.

Doherty (20 points) and Jordan (22) did some damage, but Jordan missed 12 of his 23 shots, and Perkins (nine points, four turnovers) got little operating room inside.

The outcome marked a quick change of fate in the series. Heavily favored to win the national title, UNC was eliminated in its second NCAA game - 72-68 by Indiana.

Duke lost to Maryland the following day for the league title, but the Devils and their young coach left with new confidence.

UNC 75, Duke 73, Feb. 5, 1992

Many people remember this game best for Eric Montross' wounded face and blood-stained jersey.

Less remembered was a Duke injury - point guard Bobby Hurley's broken foot in the first half - that could have derailed a second straight NCAA championship for the Blue Devils.

Hurley played almost the entire game in Chapel Hill, finishing with 11 points and six assists. He sat out the next game - a 77-67 win over LSU and Shaquille O'Neal - and didn't return until Feb. 26.

The game began with Duke ranked first and UNC ninth. It ended with Montross (12 points, nine rebounds) battling and bleeding to the end, UNC guard Derrick Phelps sinking two huge free throws, and Christian Laettner missing a couple of shots that he normally would have made with ease.

Discussing the physical nature of the game, UNC leader George Lynch said, "Beating Duke is worth losing a drop of two of blood."

Duke 66, UNC 65 (OT), Feb. 28, 1981

Dean Smith's 50th birthday. Mike Krzyzewski's first win in the series.

And yet, free spirits Kenny Dennard and Gene Banks stole the show.

On their senior night in Durham, the two forwards handed out roses and kissed coeds and grandmothers at random. Banks showed up in a tuxedo. Dennard called out a couple of the heavily favored Tar Heels during pregame ceremonies.

"What a circus, huh?" UNC reserve Jim Braddock said later.

Duke won the game on a jump shot by Banks, who went all 45 minutes and scored 25 points. Although in foul trouble much of the night, Dennard had 16 points.

The Devils, who finished 17-10 and went to the NIT, weren't a great team by any stretch of the word.

Krzyzewski, at age 34 and fresh out of West Point, had his hands full with Dennard and Banks throughout the season.

"But this game will make him love us forever, though," Dennard said during the postgame.

UNC 96, Duke 83 (2OT), March 3, 1984

The speculation that junior Michael Jordan would leave early for the NBA began in earnest after UNC's 90-79 win over No. 10 LSU on Jan. 29.

By the final game of the regular season, there was a distinct feeling among fans in Carmichael Auditorium that their favorite player would join Sam Perkins and Matt Doherty in the exit line.

Jordan said he intended to return but would give the decision more thought after the NCAA tournament.

Dean Smith seemed to know Jordan was leaving, though. After Jordan and Perkins each scored 25 points in a marathon, epic game in Chapel Hill, Smith said of Perkins, "He's a special player. They both are. Everyone will remember this one for a while."

It was the last high point of Jordan's college career.

UNC 91, Duke 85, March 2, 1997

Antawn Jamison scored 33 points, had 11 rebounds and blocked a couple of shots.

Four other Tar Heels - Serge Zwikker, Vince Carter, Shammond Williams and Ed Cota - finished in double digits.

Ademola Okulaja had a big defensive game against Chris Carrawell, and walk-on senior Webb Tyndall got a start.

If anyone other than Dean Smith had any idea that he would not coach another game in Chapel Hill, it was one of the best-kept secrets in hoops history.

In his postgame remarks, Smith followed his normal pattern of praising the seniors and talking about staying healthy going into tournament time.

More than the game, I wound up remembering something Smith said earlier in the season. The '96-97 team lost its opener to Arizona, recovered easily and won nine straight and appeared to be on track. Then came three straight losses to begin the ACC regular season.

"Oh, I'm not as competitive as some people say," he said during the slide. "But a few of these, and I'll settle for winning even if we don't play well."

In reality, that last season was one of his best coaching jobs. And with another loss to Arizona - this one in the Final Four - it was over.

UNC 91, Duke 71, Jan. 18, 1989

The Devils were No. 1, 13-0 and smoking.

That's what I really thought Smith would do that night in Cameron.

Smith had given up cigarettes a few days before the start of preseason '88-89 drills. He smoked Kents when he had 'em. When he didn't, he'd occasionally bum a Winston off me.

When Smith said he'd gone cold turkey - well, he did get hooked on nicotine gum, but that doesn't count - my reaction was "Yeah, right. One night in Cameron will change all that."

Scott Williams scored 22 points, Duke shot 43 percent, and Dean didn't have to break a sweat, much less strike a match.

Duke 65, UNC 61, March 13, 1988

It was the first time Krzyzewski and Smith met in the ACC tournament championship game.

Smith was never a big fan of the league postseason event. Krzyzewski embraced the grind from the start.

Even so, the Heels were a slight favorite in part because Duke had swept the regular season and no one could imagine UNC going 0-3 for the season.

The game was a running wrestling match and much more physical than either of the two earlier games.

Duke shot 36 percent and Carolina 33 percent. The officials called 43 fouls. There were 39 combined turnovers. But the Devils got a big lift from sub John Smith (12 points, three rebounds), and Krzyzewski left Greensboro with his second league crown.