In the Spectrum in Philadelphia, in this East Regional final, two teams with great basketball traditions left everything they had on the court. Together the two teams scored on the last five possessions, swapping the lead five times, and it took Christian Laettner's buzzer-beater to win it.

     Duke was the defending national champion, a powerhouse club led by Laettner, Grant Hill, Bobby Hurley, and Thomas Hill. The Kentucky Wildcats were an upstart team, led by head coach Rick Pitino - they were the #2 seeds in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament.

     The Wildcats showed that they weren't intimidated; they had hit over 300 three-pointers during the season, and they began here by lighting it up from outside. With Jamal Mashburn working effectively inside, they raced to an 8-point lead. But Duke quickly adjusted to the Wildcat offense, and at the break the Blue Devils led 50-45.

   The champs began to pull away in the second half, and a three-pointer by Hurley put them up by 12 with 11 minutes to play. For coach Rick Pitino's Wildcats, it wa gut check time: could they come back against the heavily favored Blue Devils, or would they simply fold under the intense pressure?

   Answer: the Wildcats engineered a remarkable comeback. Duke didn't choke, they maintained their high quality of play; but Kentucky simply raised the game to another level. Mashburn hit a pair of threes to get Kentucky close, and what ensued was probably the highest-quality 8 minutes of basketball ever played. Spectacular play followed spectacular play, and when regulation ended both teams were deadlocked at 93.

   The flawless play continued into the overtime period. The teams scored on the last five possessions, as the lead changed hands each time. Kentucky took a one-point lead on Sean Woods' bank shot with two seconds left. After a timeout, Duke's Grant Hill was left unguarded (Kentucky coach Rick Pitino's decision) and he flung the inbounds pass some 80 feet to a leaping Laettner, who outjumped double coverage near the foul line with his back to the basket. The 6-foot-11 senior took one dribble, faked right, turned to his left and hit a 17-foot jumper to give Duke a 104-103 victory and its fifth consecutive trip to the Final Four.