With the end of 2015 quickly approaching, The Chronicle's sports department takes a look back at the biggest sports stories of the year. Each day, The Blue Zone will review a major game, event or storyline that helped shape the course of the year in Blue Devil athletics.
Topping our list as the No. 1 sports story of 2015: Duke's 68-63 victory in the national championship game in Indianapolis, capturing the program's fifth NCAA title and second in six years.
After a pair of midseason departures, the mantra around the Blue Devil program became simple: Eight is enough.
When the final horn blared at Lucas Oil Stadium April 6 in Indianapolis, that slogan officially changed to the past tense: Eight was enough.
Led by the Final Four's Most Outstanding Player, Tyus Jones, and a breakout performance by fellow freshman Grayson Allen, top-seeded Duke stormed back in the second half to defeat top-seeded Wisconsin 68-63. Allen—the least heralded of Duke's top-ranked rookie quartet—came off the bench to score 16 second-half points, injecting a spark onto the court that spurred his teammates to action.
"Grayson put us on his back," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "We went to him kind of exclusively because of his ability to drive and penetrate. And he did—he finished."
Duke rode Jones, Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow, but in the national title game, that reliance reached hyperbolic proportions. Led by Jones' game-high 23 points, Duke's freshman quartet scored 60 of the team's 68 points, and all 37 after halftime.
The Blue Devil veterans left their mark in other areas.
When Okafor struggled to contain AP National Player of the Year Frank Kaminsky down low and landed in foul trouble, junior Amile Jefferson stepped in and frustrated the agile 7-footer. Quinn Cook was as savvy as ever, delivering six points, four rebounds and two assists.
Wisconsin led 48-39 after scoring on nine of its first 11 second-half possessions, but Allen swung the momentum of the game in less than 30 seconds. The Jacksonville, Fla., native knocked down a 3-pointer, dove for a loose ball and knocked it off Badger point guard Traevon Jackson, then added an old-fashioned 3-point play.
The teams see-sawed back and forth, but Jones—who scored 19 of his 23 after intermission—rose up to hit the biggest shot of the night, a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 1:24 left to push Duke's lead to eight. The Blue Devils closed things out from there, exploding onto the court in celebration and onto the podium to watch One Shining Moment.
Back in Durham, students went crazy at a watch party inside Cameron Indoor Stadium, and benches were soon burning on Main Quad.
The Blue Devils breezed through the tournament's opening weekend, blitzing Robert Morris and San Diego State to reach the Sweet 16 in Houston—Winslow's hometown. The swingman led the charge in a close victory against Utah, and then Tyus and Matt Jones paced Duke in an exciting game against Gonzaga to punch a ticket to the Final Four.
The Blue Devils received a hero's welcome back to Durham the next day with a rally in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Soon, Winslow, Okafor and Tyus Jones all declared for the NBA draft, and the process of filling in the 2015-16 roster ramped up with the signings of blue-chip recruits Brandon Ingram and Derryck Thornton.
But the celebrating was not over. In early September, Duke visited Washington to meet President Barack Obama at the White House. During that trip, Krzyzewski presented his squad with their national championship rings during a dinner at the National Archives. To close the book, Duke unfurled its 2015 title banner at October's annual Countdown to Craziness showcase.
For the fifth time, Duke won the national championship in a city ending in '-apolis.' Mark your calendars for 2019 and 2021.
READ MORE on Duke's national championship, the Blue Devils' road to the Final Four, the post-victory celebrations on campus and the White House visit:
FIVE GOLDEN RINGS: Duke wins fifth national title, upending Wisconsin 68-63
50 shades of Grayson: Allen, freshmen carry Blue Devils to national title
Complementary pieces down low: Okafor and Jefferson close out Wisconsin for title
Duke basketball blows past Michigan State to earn spot in national title game
KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES: Duke basketball downs Gonzaga to advance to Final Four
Home Cookin': Winslow propels Duke basketball past Utah in return to Houston
Duke basketball advances to Sweet 16 after rout of San Diego State
Duke basketball uses pair of monster runs to push past Robert Morris in Round of 64
Campus erupts with joy in response to Duke championship
Duke basketball receives warm welcome back to campus after winning fifth national title
Obama welcomes Duke men's basketball to the White House
'Comedian-in-Chief': Humor rules at Duke basketball's White House visit
Duke men's basketball unveils banner, new-look roster at Countdown to Craziness
A look at our full top 10 countdown for 2015:
10. Rebecca Greenwell extends Elizabeth Williams' last dance against Albany
9. A look at Tommy John at Duke and beyond
8. The end of one era; the start of two more
7. Out with the new, in with the newer
6. Tyus Jones leads Blue Devils past North Carolina 92-90 in OT
5. Miami, officials hand Duke Halloween heartbreak
4. A banner year: 5 Final Fours and a bowl win
3. Rasheed Sulaimon's dismissal from Duke basketball
2. Coach K 1K: Krzyzewski earns 1,000th win at Madison Square Garden
1. Duke captures fifth NCAA title against Wisconsin
Honorable mention
Laken Tomlinson selected by Detroit Lions in first round of NFL draft: For the first time in 28 years, a Blue Devil heard his name called in the first round of the NFL draft, as offensive lineman Laken Tomlinson was picked 28th overall by Detroit. Star wide receiver Jamison Crowder followed a few rounds later, going in the fourth round to Washington.
Dean Smith tribute precedes Duke-UNC classic at Cameron Wednesday night: After the legendary North Carolina head coach passed away Feb. 7, the Blue Devils and Tar Heels honored one of the great faces of the Tobacco Road rivalry by locking arms and kneeling at midcourt.
Ohio State knocks out Duke men's lacrosse in opening round of NCAA tournament: The Buckeyes racked up 16 goals at Koskinen Stadium, ensuring that the Blue Devils would not secure a three-peat in 2015.
SWORN IN: Marshall Plumlee completes contracting ceremony before practice Friday: Plumlee completed a contracting ceremony in January and plans to join the U.S. Army Reserves following his completion of Duke's ROTC program. He participated in officer training at Fort Knox this summer.
Jeremy Cash named ACC Defensive Player of the Year: Cash became the first Blue Devil ever to win the award, getting the nod ahead of Clemson's Shaq Lawson. A consensus All-American, the redshirt senior safety amassed more than 100 tackles for the third straight season, but was sidelined for the Pinstripe Bowl victory against Indiana after undergoing wrist surgery.
Queens of Tobacco Road: Duke women's soccer upsets North Carolina: For just the third time in program history, the Blue Devils took down the Tar Heels, winning 1-0 in Chapel Hill on a goal by sophomore Imani Dorsey.
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