Duke’s Hands Rock the Cradle : Title game: Blue Devils roll over Michigan in second half for second championship in a row, 71-51.

This is the way it worked in the days leading up to Monday evening’s NCAA championship game between Michigan and No. 1-ranked Duke:

Michigan’s freshmen, the remarkable Fab Five, talked and Duke listened. The Wolverines casually predicted not one, but four consecutive NCAA championships. They said they lacked the respect of a nation. They said they were as good, if not better, than the Blue Devils. There was even talk of a book deal.

Duke, the defending national champion, heard each word. And seethed.

Monday evening at the Metrodome, the Blue Devils finally spoke. They did so with their actions, a 71-51 victory against the little-too-mouthy, but immensely talented Wolverines.

Record-keepers, of which Duke is beginning to need many, will note that this is only the second time in 19 years that a team has won consecutive national championships. UCLA last accomplished the feat in 1973, when John Wooden still paced the Bruin sidelines for a living.

And the statisticians will also mention that Duke held Michigan to the second-lowest point total in a final game since 1949 and that the Blue Devils have now won 17 of their last 18 tournament games. Numbers, to be sure, but telling ones.

The Duke victory also gave new meaning to the term, Fab Five, which is usually reserved for Michigan’s young starters. This time it meant five fabulous trips in a row to the Final Four. And from those visits, two memorable NCAA titles.

“It wasn’t the prettiest game, but we were resilient out there,” point guard Bobby Hurley said. “We got the job done.”

The Blue Devils, who started and finished the season atop the polls, couldn’t have won Monday night without Hurley, who was named the Final Four’s outstanding player.

Hurley scored only nine points against the Wolverines, but he had seven assists, played with four fouls for nearly the last nine minutes of the game and calmed the Blue Devils when they needed it most. And against Indiana two nights earlier, he scored 26 points.

Hurley was accustomed to the pressure. In each of his three seasons at Duke, he has played in a national championship game and won two. In the end, it was the edge that separated him from the less-experienced Wolverines.

And where would the Blue Devils have been had Grant Hill not saved Duke from itself late in the first half and later, during key stretches in the second half, when Michigan (25-9) still threatened? Hill finished with 18 points--10 of them in the final 5:41--10 rebounds, three steals, five assists and two blocks.

As for All-America center Christian Laettner, he endured a first half to forget and a second half to cherish. Laettner, playing in his last game as a Blue Devil, had five points at halftime, but 14 in the last 20 minutes. It wasn’t his best game by any measure, but it was enough to help earn Duke another trip to the postgame victory stand.

“Christian had his worst half of the year,” said Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski. “His play in the second was the difference in the game.”

Once Roy Kramer, the chairman of the NCAA men’s basketball committee, presented them with the championship plaque, the Blue Devils (34-2) celebrated like a team familiar with such ceremonies. Instead of thrusting a single index finger into the air, Laettner instructed his teammates to wave two fingers, one for each title.

Players hugged. Krzyzewski beamed. Duke fans chanted, “Deja Vu,” and “Three-peat.”

Nets were snipped. After Laettner cut the remaining strands from one of the rims, he turned toward the cameras and kissed the cords. And then he wore the net around his neck, as if it were some type of basketball costume jewelry.

Hurley stood nearby. He wore a T-shirt that read, “You Can Talk The Game, But Can You Play The Game?” On the back of the shirt was the answer.

“Duke. We Can Play.”

Hurley had heard the Michigan players earlier in the week. He couldn’t help but hear. With each day came a new Wolverine proclamation. Thing was, the freshmen had backed up their claims before.

But this was Duke, not Cincinnati, the team the Wolverines had beaten in the Final Four semifinal. This time Michigan didn’t enjoy the same sort of matchup advantages as it had against the smaller Bearcats. Nor could it compete with Duke’s postseason savvy.

The stretch that buried Michigan came with 6:46 to play. Hurley had just entered the game. Laettner was playing better. Wolverine point guard Jalen Rose was slowed by four fouls, and center Chris Webber and forward Juwan Howard each had three. The score was, 48-45, Duke.

Then Laettner scored on an awkward reverse layup to give Duke a 50-45 lead. It was followed by a Wolverine turnover, which was followed by a Grant Hill baseline drive and another bucket. By the time the Blue Devil run was complete, Michigan trailed by 20 points.

The Fab Five had been reduced to the Shab Five.

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, several of the Wolverine players, especially Webber, could be seen crying on the bench. Once in the locker room, Michigan Coach Steve Fisher told them, “Cry, that’s part of it. Feel awful, but be proud of what you’ve done and be determined you’re going to learn from this game. And set your sights next year as high as they were this year.”

Michigan had its chances to beat Duke, thanks mostly to Laettner’s miserable first half.

Actually, the only way Laettner could have played worse in the opening period was if his sneakers had been tied together. And at times, it looked as if they were.

This was supposed to be Laettner’s chance to atone for what he considered an ordinary, if not disappointing performance against Indiana in the semifinals. Against the Hoosiers, Laettner converted only two of eight field goals and finished with eight points, 13.5 below his season average.

Monday would be different. Laettner said so. His teammates agreed.

“This is his last game,” freshman center Cherokee Parks said. “I think he really wants to do well.”

Instead, Laettner was awful during the first 20 minutes. If anything, it was a minor miracle that Duke trailed only 31-30 at the half. The way Laettner played, the Blue Devil deficit could have been in double digits.

Laettner missed his first three shots. He didn’t score a field goal until 11:55 remained in the period. He dribbled balls off his feet. He fumbled passes. And when he wasn’t dropping them, he was tossing them away or into the waiting hands of Michigan defenders, who usually turned the mistakes into highlight film slams.

By the time the first half was over for Laettner, he had scored only five points and committed seven turnovers, hardly All-American numbers.

Laettner wasn’t the only Duke player with troubles. Swingman Brian Davis, who injured his left ankle against Indiana, was reduced from the Blue Devils’ best defender to game-day liability. He played, but hobbled. By doing so, though, he gave Grant and Thomas Hill and later Hurley valuable rest.

Michigan had no such problems. Howard, who spent Sunday in bed because of the flu, recovered in time to score seven points in the first half. Webber had eight and five rebounds in 12 minutes.

But the Wolverines, no matter how hard they tried, couldn’t keep the slim lead.

“I am upset because we could have won as easily as we lost,” said Webber, who finished with 14 points and 11 rebounds. “But we had a great season. There will never be a freshman class that will do that again.”

Nor will there soon be a team like this season’s Blue Devils. A second consecutive championship plaque proves it.

They Repeated

Schools that have repeated as NCAA Division I basketball champions: Oklahoma St.: 1945-46 Kentucky: 1948-49 San Francisco: 1955-56 Cincinnati: 1961-62 UCLA: 1964-65; 1967-73 Duke: 1991-92 TURNAROUND: Duke’s Christian Laettner had a terrible first half, but he was solid in second. C6

DRAB FIVE: Michigan’s freshmen were frustrated by their 29% shooting in the second half. C6

NOTES: C6