Atlanta — Shane Battier climbed the ladder and sliced a couple of strands away from the rim, leaving just enough dangling nylon for Mike Krzyzewski to finish the job.
Clearly, Duke has mastered the net-cutting ceremony at the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament.
The third-ranked Blue Devils routed No. 6 North Carolina, 79-53, Sunday in the finals, leaving little doubt about which school rules one of college basketball's great rivalries.
Duke (29-4) headed on to the NCAA Tournament after becoming the first school in more than three decades to win the ACC three straight years.
"It feels kind of normal," said sophomore guard Jason Williams, who didn't play the final 13 minutes because of a sprained left ankle.
"We have so much passion. We want it so bad."
For the second time in a week, Duke earned a double-digit victory over North Carolina (25-6). But this one was much more convincing than the 95-81 victory at Chapel Hill on the final Sunday of the regular season.
"They got exhausted. We could see it in their eyes," freshman guard Chris Duhon said. "We kept pushing and pushing and they finally reached the breaking point. We saw them getting tired and instead of letting them back in the game, we went for the jugular."
No. 15 Kentucky 77,
No. 14 Mississippi 55
Nashville, Tenn. Tayshaun Prince had 26 points and 12 rebounds as Kentucky won the SEC championship game, giving the Wildcats their 23rd title in 42 tournaments.
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