It’s amazing that the 1992 Duke-Kentucky Elite Eight game is still talked about, but it was a phenomenal contest.
Obviously, what people remember is Christian Laettner’s astonishing winning shot. It’s become legend, and rightly so. The whole play was incredible, from Grant Hill’s long, looping pass to Laettner, to his presence of mind to fake left then turn to shoot, and of course, the shot hit nothing but net.
People tend to forget that Kentucky’s Sean Woods hit an incredible shot just before Laettner
topped him, and that Kentucky thought they had that game in the bag.
In this video, Duke legend Grant Hill talks to former Kentucky coach Rick Pitino, who surprisingly says that “that’s not a bad memory,” and that he “treasures that game.”
Don’t tell Kentucky fans.
He points out that Jamal Mashburn fouled out, and Hill says that he was the reason the game was close, because “Mashburn was kicking my butt.”
Hill is a humble guy, but he might have mentioned his brilliant pass. It was high enough that the Kentucky defenders couldn’t reach it, but in a perfect spot for Laettner to catch and deliver. Duke ran almost the same play against Wake Forest (we think), and Hill’s pass that time was not perfect. The second time? Exactly what it needed to be, no more, no less.
It’s kind of strange to hear Pitino praise the game, given his intensely competitive nature, but he’s not wrong. It was a one-off. Kentucky was perhaps the most overachieving team of our lifetimes, and if they had won, the whole world would have saluted them for it. But Duke had a great team, and no one’s will to win was stronger than Laettner’s.
It’s nice to see these two sit down and discuss what was one of the magical games of all NCAA tournament games. It just doesn’t get any better than that.
It’s not a big deal, but watch the referee after the basket goes in. The energy in that arena was insane.
One other thing that underscores just how big of a deal this game was: Hill talks about the St. John’s buzzer beater over Kansas in March. Do you remember it? You will after you click that link, but it was just in March.
Do you remember?
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