SYRACUSE, N.Y. - For Jason Williams, there was nowhere to hide.
It had been that way all season. As the only true point guard in the rotation, he played nearly 40 minutes a game for one of the top teams in the country. And as the point guard, he knew his team often went as he did.
Friday's Sweet 16 loss to Florida was not unlike the rest of Williams' freshman campaign. He struggled early and the Blue Devils did too. He showed flashes of brilliance, and Duke looked like the No. 1 squad in the country.
Most of all, Williams went through more ups and downs than an over-used elevator.
In the first half, the freshman shot 1-for-8 from the floor and committed four turnovers, and the Blue Devils trailed by seven at the break.
In the second half, Williams scored 10 points in less than five minutes to give Duke its biggest lead of the night, 72-66, with 6:38 to go. But he wouldn't score the rest of the way, missing three three-pointers in the final four minutes.
In the locker room after the game, tears streamed down Williams' face as he tried to reconcile the successes of the year with the pain of a season-ending loss. Despite all the challenges of being a freshman point guard, he was the MVP of the ACC tournament and earned third-team all-conference honors. He led the Blue Devils to the top seed in the NCAA tourney.
Yet all that didn't make accepting the defeat any easier.
"We were not playing as well as we're capable of playing," Williams said. "But you can't have your best games all the time."
After an inauspicious start, the freshman rediscovered his offense nine minutes into the second half with the score tied.
It started with a followup of a missed layup by Chris Carrawell in transition. Two possessions later, Williams fought through a double team in the backcourt, then drove and dished to Matt Christensen for an easy bucket.
A pair of drives sandwiched around a fast break layup gave the freshman 13 points for the game after scoring just three in the first 29 minutes.
But Williams' most spectacular play came with 5:39 to go, when he whipped a behind-the-back pass to Mike Dunleavy for a layup and five-point Duke lead.
"We started hitting shots," Williams said, "but [Florida] always responded. We couldn't seem to make shots in the end."
One of those shots came with less than four minutes to go. The Blue Devils led by four, Florida had just missed three times on one possession and Williams attempted an open three from the top of the key.
"He hits that and it's over," coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "He gave us the spurt, he wanted to hit that shot-he just missed it."
Two possessions later, Williams missed another three and chased down the ball in the corner. He saved it, but the pass went into the hands of the Gators' Brett Nelson, who found Brent Wright on the ensuing five-on-four break for a layup that cut Duke's lead to one.
Williams had one more look from behind the arc with less than 30 seconds left and the Blue Devils trailing by five, but that one wouldn't go in either.
"We just couldn't knock [shots] down," he said. "Stuff would rattle out or hit the side of the rim."
Williams found solace in the knowledge he could have three more chances to lead his team far into the tournament. But he also knew that one teammate won't have that opportunity.
"I feel most bad for Carrawell," Williams said of Duke's lone senior. "I love the kid to death. There was nothing I wanted to do more than win it for him."
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