INDIANAPOLIS — Joe Torre was Clueless Joe before he rode the pinstriped horses to four world championships. Great coaches and managers are acknowledged as great coaches and managers most of the time when they have the horses, as long as they can lead those horses to water and make them drink.
And boy, did Seth Curry drink last night.
It was the kind of night his father, Dell Curry, had once upon a time at Virginia Tech, and every now and then over the course of a 16-year NBA career … the kind of night his baby-faced older brother, Stephen Curry, had at Davidson, a hint of the night the Golden State Warriors sharpshooter did have at the Garden when he bombed the Knicks for 54 points.
Remember, Seth Curry has spent most of the season with the trainers, running on an underwater treadmill, in a desperate effort to rehab a barking right shin that rarely lets him practice. But he transferred from Liberty for a stage like this, for a moment like this: A night when he scored 29 points and carried his second-seeded Blue Devils to a 71-61 NCAA Tournament Midwest Region victory and an Elite Eight showdown against Rick Pitino’s No. 1-seeded Louisville Cardinals.
Curry hit a trio of 3-pointers at the start of the second half and Michigan State never recovered.
“I feel like every time I take a shot it’s going to go down,” Curry said. “Nothing felt different tonight.”
Duke didn’t have the kind of advantage over Michigan State it has over some other programs because Spartans coach Tom Izzo was on the opposite sideline. Michigan State didn’t have the kind of advantage over Duke it has over some other programs because Krzyzewski was on the opposite sideline.
The impact the great coach can have in a Maddening March should never be dismissed out of hand, especially when the coach is one of those two. The great coach knows everything there is to know about his team, and he knows everything there is to know about the other team as well. Krzyzewski versus Izzo wasn’t exactly Dick Vitale versus John Wooden, ba-bee!
But when Duke and Michigan State went at it tooth-and-nail, the latest championship dreams of Krzyzewski and Izzo rested mostly in the hands of 19-, 20- and 21-year-olds.
Curry in a hurry, to the rescue.
“He kind of single-handedly beat us,” Izzo said.
It was a battle of wills and resilience and mental toughness every step of the way.
But Krzyzewski had Curry, and Izzo did not.
“Seth was at a different level than anybody on the court offensively,” Coach K said. “An incredible performance.”
You saw the intensity of this heavyweight clash less than five minutes in when Tyler Thornton swooped down with his right arm from behind and bludgeoned Derrick Nix on his way to the basket .
Thornton stole the ball from Denzel Valentine and Curry drilled as 3, and exulted on his way back down the court. Curry then drove the right side of the lane and had a runner rejected by Keith Appling. No problem. The next time, it was Travis Trice on him, and Trice fouled him in the act of shooting a 3. Curry sank the three freebies and left to a standing ovation from the Duke crowd behind their team’s bench with 4:59 left in the half. It was Duke 28, Michigan State 20, and Curry had half his team’s points.
Gary Harris, a 6-foot-4 freshman guard and native Hoosier, was on Curry at the start of the second half. Curry promptly drilled a left wing 3 as Duke regained the lead, then a 3 from the right wing.
“Curry’s a fifth-year senior, and he’s very wise,” Izzo said. “He knows how to get open. I think our freshman got a little lesson tonight.”
Then Appling was on him. Curry used a screen and hit another 3-pointer from the left side. Duke led 41-38. Curry had 23 points.
Harris’ turn again. A facial from Curry on the right side. Duke 47, Michigan State 38. Curry had 25 points.
Harris eventually looked like Darrelle Revis locking down Curry everywhere he went. That’s when the other Blue Devils decided to pick up the slack. Ryan Kelly converted a three-point play. Krzyzewski’s bigs stood up to Izzo’s bigs.
Curry faded down the stretch, but he had done more than enough.