WON & DUN

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - Duke's starting five made itself a perfect 10 last night, again finding a way to win in an unusual fashion.

Despite having both of their All-Americans essentially shut down for much of the night, the top-ranked Blue Devils capitalized on 18 second-half points from forward Mike Dunleavy to win their third-ever national championship. Dunleavy pushed Duke comfortably ahead with three consecutive three-pointers early in the second half, and after several mini-runs by Arizona, the Blue Devils eventually held on for an 82-72 victory last night in the NCAA finals.

Still, as atypical as it was for All-Americans Jason Williams and Shane Battier to combine for 3-for-16 from three-point range, the Blue Devils battled to victory exactly the same way they have in 33 previous games this season. They scrapped, they fought, they dove to the floor, they even made behind-the-back passes to save balls as they were flying out of bounds.

"It seemed like the loose ball ended up in their hands instead of in our hands," Arizona coach Lute Olson said.

Olson witnessed first-hand what opposing coaches have seen when facing the Blue Devils all season. It was simply Duke playing Duke basketball, the type of hard-nosed, rugged play that propelled this starting lineup to a perfect 10-0 to end the season.

"They've given me their hearts, their minds, and not only that, they've given it to each other," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "I think you can see it, the courage they show game after game. But they're just a beautiful group of guys. They're like old-fashioned guys. They really want to be on a team, and they share things."

Last night, the Blue Devils received a double-double from Carlos Boozer, a career-high five three-pointers by Dunleavy and 40 exhausting minutes from Battier, the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player. But together they found a way, and the national championship trophy will be carried back to Durham for the third time in 11 seasons.

"I'm speechless," said fifth-year senior Nate James, who relinquished his starting spot to freshman Chris Duhon. "All year long we've been playing as a fist. Through adversity, through whatever, we stuck together and [were] a total team. Today is a great day, and I'm glad to bring it back to Durham-a national championship."

"I was trying to take it in," Battier said of the game's final moments. "I said a quick prayer, just thanking the Lord for the opportunity. After all our hard work, to be at that point, looking up at the clock, 10 seconds to go-words can't do justice to what I felt at that moment."

Early in the game, with Arizona clinging to a slim lead midway through the half, Krzyzewski took the first significant gamble when he reinserted Williams into the lineup despite the point guard's foul problems. Williams had picked up his second foul less than five minutes into the game on a careless hand-check, but his return five minutes later was promptly followed by two layups by fellow sophomore Carlos Boozer.

Duke never trailed the rest of the game, taking a two-point lead into halftime after Williams' lightning-quick drive to the basket produced a goal-tending call against Arizona forward Richard Jefferson with six seconds left.

"I love being on the court, especially in games and in situations where it's critical," said Williams, who in the second half came close to getting whistled for his fifth foul on a couple of bumps with Arizona players. "When you play with great players, it just makes it that much easier to play the game."

The title-clincher in the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome repeated Duke's march through the NCAA tournament in 1992, with both championship runs going from Greensboro to Philadelphia to Minneapolis. In contrast to when Duke stomped Michigan by 20 points in the '92 final, though, the Blue Devils survived a dogfight with Arizona, the nation's preseason No. 1 team.

The two teams comprised all five of the All-Final Four team, which included Woods and Jefferson from Arizona along with Dunleavy, Williams and Battier from Duke.