The 2011–12 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team represented

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

in the

2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball season The 2011–12 NCAA Division I men's basketball season began on November 7, 2011 with the (2K Sports Classic) and ended with the 2012 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament's championship game on April 2, 2012 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome ...

. Returning as head coach was

Hall of Famer A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...

Mike Krzyzewski Michael William Krzyzewski ( ; born February 13, 1947), nicknamed "Coach K", is an American former college basketball coach. He served as the head coach at Duke University from 1980 to 2022, during which he led the Blue Devils to five natio ...

. The team played its home games at

Cameron Indoor Stadium Cameron Indoor Stadium is an indoor arena located on the campus of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. The 9,314-seat facility is the primary indoor athletic venue for the Duke Blue Devils and serves as the home court for Duke men's ...

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

as members of the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

. They ended the season with 27–7 overall record, 13–3 in ACC play, finishing in 2nd place. In the 2012 ACC men's basketball tournament they reached the semifinals, when they were defeated by eventual champs Florida State. They earned a #2 seed in the

2012 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament The 2012 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament was a single-elimination tournament involving 68 schools playing to determine the national champion of men's NCAA Division I college basketball. The 74th edition of the tournament began on Marc ...

, but lost to #15 seed Lehigh in the round of 64.

Previous season

Following the 2009–2010 basketball team, the

2010–11 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team The 2010–11 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team represented Duke University in the 2010–11 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Returning as head coach was Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski. The team played its home games at Cameron Indoor ...

began the season ranked #1 in the nation and held that title for the first nine weeks of the season going 15–0, until being defeated for the first time on January 12 again

Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...

. The only non-conference loss during the regular season came again St. John's weeks later. Duke split the two regular season match ups with in state arch rival

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

who would eventually clinch the ACC regular season championship against Duke in the last game of the season, a 67–81 Duke loss. However, Duke would beat North Carolina in the ACC tournament, which allowed Duke to take the conference tournament title and go 2–1 against the Tar Heels on the season. Duke would end up a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament, defeating

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia *Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region *Hampton, Victoria Canada *Hampton, New Brunswick *Hamp ...

and

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

in the first two rounds of the tournament, and eventually lost to the

Arizona Wildcats The Arizona Wildcats are the sport, athletic teams that represent the University of Arizona, located in Tucson, Arizona, Tucson. The Wildcats compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I (NCAA Divis ...

in the Sweet Sixteen, ending Duke's bid for a second straight championship, ending the season with an overall 32–5 record.

Class of 2011 signees

Roster

Season summary

After a series of victories in exhibition games overseas in China and Dubai, Duke returned to Durham and kicked off the season with home victories over two foes. The team then traveled to New York City's

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

to face Michigan State in the Champions Classic. Duke's five-point victory was

's 903rd win of his career, placing him atop the list of the winningest coaches in Division I history. Coach K surpassed his former coach and mentor,

Bob Knight Robert Montgomery Knight (born October 25, 1940) is an American former basketball coach. Nicknamed "the General", Knight won 902 NCAA Division I men's college basketball games, a record at the time of his retirement, and currently fourth all-ti ...

, as Knight watched courtside while doing the color commentary for

ESPN ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...

. Duke's squad next participated in the Maui Invitational, and defeated two ranked opponents in #15

and Big 12 favorite and 14th ranked

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

in the semifinals and championship, respectively. Tyler Thornton hit two key three-pointers with less than a minute and half to secure the 7-point victory in the championship game. Ryan Kelly was named MVP of the tournament for his performance, including 17 points against Kansas. As part of the ACC-Big Ten Challenge, Duke traveled to

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, and t ...

in its first true road test of the season to face Big Ten favorite and #2 ranked

Ohio State The Ohio State University, commonly called Ohio State or OSU, is a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. A member of the University System of Ohio, it has been ranked by major institutional rankings among the best public ...

. OSU roared out to an 11–0 lead and never relinquished, ending up routing Duke by 22 points. Duke returned home and earned another win before heading to Madison Square Garden again to defeat the

Washington Huskies The Washington Huskies are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Washington, located in Seattle. The school competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level as a member of the Pac- ...

. The team then rattled off a few more victories before facing another challenging road battle in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

against the

Temple Owls The Temple Owls are the athletic teams that represent Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The current athletic director is Arthur Johnson. The owl has been the symbol and mascot for Temple University since its founding in the 18 ...

. The game was a back-and-forth affair, but

Khalif Wyatt Khalif Wyatt (born June 10, 1991) is an American professional basketball player who last played for SCM U Craiova in the Liga Națională. He was the Atlantic 10 Conference Player of the Year as a college basketball senior in the 2012–13 sea ...

of Temple made two key 3s in leading his team to the five-point victory. The ACC season began with Duke earning four victories, including against #16

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. However, their ACC winning streak was snapped by

when

Michael Snaer Michael Snaer (born June 21, 1990) is an American former professional basketball player who last played for Karpoš Sokoli in Macedonia. As a college player, he led Florida State University to their first ACC tournament championship in 2012, ea ...

hit a buzzer beating three-pointer to stun the Duke home crowd. After victories over

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, St. John's, and

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a Public university, public Land-grant college, land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also ...

, Duke again lost at home to

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

in overtime by 4 after going 0–6 from the free throw stripe in the extra session. Duke was in a second-place tie in the league standings with FSU. That set up a showdown with league-leading and fifth ranked

. Carolina came in as a heavy favorite in the rivalry game, but the Blue Devils stuck with the Tar Heels for most of the game behind a barrage of three-pointers.

Tyler Zeller Tyler Paul Zeller (born January 17, 1990) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball at the University of North Carolina, where as a freshman he played on their 2009 national championship team and as a seni ...

of Carolina dominated the first half with his shooting and rebounding, but the Tar Heels only secured a 3-point lead going into the intermission. Carolina then extended their lead to 10 with about 3 minutes remaining, which set up a furious comeback rally by the gritty Devils. Duke hit 14 threes in the game and

Austin Rivers Austin James Rivers (born August 1, 1992) is an American professional basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Rivers led Winter Park High School to back-to-back Florida 6A state championships ...

led the effort with 29 points. Tyler Thornton began the comeback with a 3 with about two minutes remaining. Ryan Kelly also chipped in with a baseline jumper late, and the Tar Heels couldn't seal the victory as they missed key free throws in the closing moments. The Blue Devils trailed by three when Zeller accidentally tipped in an errant three-point attempt by Duke, which put Duke within 1. Zeller made a free throw on the other end and Duke had 13.9 seconds left to draw up a play. After a screen on Rivers' defender, Zeller made the defensive switch and Rivers sank a long-range three over the outstretched arms of the 7-footer as time expired. The Rivers' shot is yet another performance to be added to the rivalry's lore and the buzzer beating play has been viewed by nearly 2 million people on YouTube. Following the emotional high from the comeback victory against Duke's chief rival, the squad did not let up, reeling off 6 straight victories against ACC opponents. This streak included the largest second-half comeback victory in Coach K's tenure when the

NC State Wolfpack The NC State Wolfpack is the nickname of the athletic teams representing North Carolina State University. The Wolfpack competes at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I (Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for college footb ...

held a 16-point lead going into intermission. They extended the lead to 20 with 11 and a half minutes remaining in the game, but Duke rallied back and ended up with a 5-point victory. The team also had a road test at Florida State and came away with an impressive revenge victory to bring them back to the top of the ACC standings. That set up another season-ending showdown with North Carolina with the regular season ACC championship and #1 seed in the ACC tournament on the line. In front a home crowd and senior night, the Devils came out trailing and the Tar Heels made a statement in a game in which they never trailed. Duke got to within 11 in the second half, but it ended as an 18-point thumping at the hands of Duke's rival. Duke earned the #2 seed in the ACC tournament. As the Blue Devils prepared for the ACC tournament in nearby Greensboro, Duke's third leading scorer and rebounder as well as the highest percentage shooter from 3-point land, Ryan Kelly, suffered what was reported as a sprained foot. With Kelly out of the lineup, Duke went small as they narrowly defeated the pesky Virginia Tech Hokies in the second round after receiving a bye. That set up the rubber match with Florida State with a trip to the championship game on the line. Florida State build a double digit lead on Duke in the second half, but Duke fought back, bringing the status of the game into question. Rivers layup with 42 seconds remaining brought the Devils to within 1. However, the Seminoles responded with points of their own and Rivers badly missed a long three-pointer with 6 seconds remaining. The Devils corralled the rebound after a loose ball scramble ended up in the hands of Curry, but he could only manage a desperation heave that rimmed out as time expired, securing the 3-point victory for Florida State. The Seminoles went on to defeat North Carolina for the ACC championship the next day. Duke earned a #2 seed in the South Regional in the

with the overall #1 seed and tournament favorite Kentucky at the top of the region, exactly 20 years after the famous buzzer beating shot by Christian Laettner against Kentucky in the Elite 8. Kelly continued to be listed as day to day and Duke was matched up with Lehigh from the Patriot League in the round of 64. The Devils were favored by 12.5 points in the matchup, but Lehigh looked to be the better team that night. NBA prospect C.J. McCollum lit up the Devils for 30 points in leading the Mountain Hawks to a 5-point upset victory, while the Devils struggled mightily from 3-point land going 6 for 26. It was the second 15 seed that defeated a 2 seed that day as Missouri also fell victim to the upset bug after it had only happened four times previously in history. Kelly did not make an appearance in the matchup and shortly thereafter had surgery and was sidelined for 6–8 weeks. The loss resulted in a disappointing finish for the Duke squad after a successful season, which included the comeback victory against North Carolina (who earned a #1 seed in the tournament) and wins versus #1 seed and Big Ten Champion Michigan State and #2 seed and Big 12 regular season champion Kansas in the championship of the Maui Invitational.

Schedule

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Rankings

*AP does not release post-NCAA tournament rankings.
Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll at the same time the AP did.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2011-12 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are ran ...

Duke Blue Devils men's basketball seasons