NCSportsBuzz

The 2012-13 American Hockey League season officially came to an end last night for the Charlotte Checkers in an exciting and dramatic winner-take-all game five with the Oklahoma City Barons. A remarkable series which saw both teams win big and a couple of close contests finished with a 6-2 win for the Barons, despite being peppered for 51 shots. The Checkers look to head into the offseason with a chip on their collective shoulders, as they blew a 2-1 series lead to be eliminated Saturday night.

The Checkers had a very successful regular season which saw them compile a 42-26-4 record. Their 92 points were good for fourth in the Western conference and they were edged by the Texas Stars for the South Divisional crown. A hot start, thanks in large part to the NHL work stoppage, allowed the Checkers to come flying out of the gates. They held first place in the AHL for several weeks, before losing a couple of players to the big leagues in January. The injury bug also plagued the Checkers for much of the stretch part of the season, as key players were either out or called up due to injury with the Hurricanes.

Despite the adversity, the Checkers put up a valiant effort against the Barons, who finished just below Charlotte in the standings with 91 points.

Charlotte Checkers’ Tim Wallace (21) crashes into Oklahoma City’s Jonathan Cheechoo (18) in the first period of Saturday night’s Game 5 of the best -of-5 American Hockey League playoff series played at Time Warner Cable Arena.

After Charlotte took a commanding 2-1 series lead, the Barons woke up offensively and defensively. Oklahoma City routed the Checkers 8-1 to force a deciding game 5, and then kept the pressure on the Checkers by potting six goals. Despite outshooting the Barons 51-30 in game 5, the Checkers couldn’t break through and ultimately lost the series.

The Checkers were led by Zach Boychuck, who had three goals and three assists in the series. Starting goaltender Rob Madore started all five games, but was pulled twice in the series. He finished with a 4.01 goals against average and a save percentage of 88.1%, not great numbers to have in a best-of-five playoff series.

The Checkers will look to build off of another Calder Cup playoff season. Several players have a chance to crack the lineup in Raleigh, so it will be tough to have a solidified lineup in place until training camp is over. Closing out a series has to be priority number one for Charlotte in the future, but they have a ton to build from after being one of the most dangerous offensive teams in the league this season.

Railhawks 3 , Strikers 1

Saturday night the Carolina Railhawks welcomed the Fort Lauderdale Strikers to Wake Med Soccer Park and sent their sunshine state foes home losers.    The win for Carolina sees them sit alone, atop the NASL standings with 7 points (2W 1D 0L).  Fort Lauderdale was left sitting tied at the bottom of the standings with 1 point (0W 1T 2L).  What looked to be a dominating 3-1 performance Saturday seen by the 3,761 fans in attendance, unfortunately had fans hearing the all too common rhetoric by the losing opposition.  Teams no longer lose; they are made to be losers by an officials missed or bad call.  Fort Lauderdale head coach Daryl Shore is no exception while explaining his dismay at the tying goal in the 27^th minute which saw an offside Zack Schilawski drill a ball into the net.  He was called offside, the goal was and the goal disallowed.  The problem lies with how he got the ball.  Strikers player Darnell King had the ball ricochet off his hand while he was in the box, to Schilawski, Floyd Franks scored the penalty kick and the game was tied 1-1.  That’s where the excitement, disagreement and Fort Lauderdale moaning started. “I know exactly what I saw,” “I saw the referee call handball, and then I saw the linesman raise his offsides flag. So, the referee decided that he’s going to give the handball before the offsides, so it’s a penalty … I saw the flag go up, I saw the guy shoot the ball and it hits a player in the hand. It’s not like the player put his hand out and went to it. But, you know what? Referees are referees, they make decisions. You got a referee that’s from North Carolina, he refs the game in Carolina. What do you expect? It’s just the way it goes. Gotta take your lumps.” – Strikers Coach Daryl Short

Behind two Brian Shriver goals the Carolina RailHawks beat Ft. Lauderdale 3-1 Saturday and improved to 2-1-0 on the season. They currently sit atop the NASL standings with 7 points.- Wral.com

Carolina showed their offensive stride throughout the game as a takedown in the box 8 minutes later saw Brian Shriver score his penalty kick and the Railhawks took the lead.  Once again never letting the facts stand in the way of a good story Daryl Shore thought “Home Cooking” was the reason for this goal, even though he himself admitted tackling. “I guarantee you the second if that’s in our box it’s on us also,” “You got two guys grabbing each other and tackling each other, and he decides to give the home team the penalty. If that was on the other end, he would have given the home team the defensive call.” 

Brian Shriver went on to connect on a second half goal which along with the Railhawks defense playing a tight shut down game from that moment on, preserved a 3-1 score until the final whistle.  Paul Hamilton returned from a one game absence after receiving two yellow cards against Tampa in week 1.  It is safe to say that he immediately make our defense better, as does Akira Fitzgerald, who with 6 saves on the night, leads the NASL after three games with 15 saves and only 2 goals allowed.

www.nasl.com

Carolina continues to show an offensive know how even with the absence of Nick Zimmerman, who led the team last season.  Brian Shriver, Zack Shilawski, and Ty Shipalane have more then picked up the slack for the injured Nick Zimmerman who is recovering from a knee injury suffered before the start of the season.  With the new format in the NASL and the winner of each respective season getting a place in the Championship game, leading the division after 3 games is a good start to the season. The Railhawks now travel North to Minnesota for a May 4^th showdown with the newly named Minnesota United FC before returning to Cary on 5/11.

STANDINGS

*Tiebreakers: 1. Goal Differential – 2. Total Goals – 3. Head-to-Head record

-from NASL.com

The second lowest attendance for a 2013 season opener was recorded Saturday as 5,033 Raihawks fans attended the newly renovated Wake Med Soccer Park.  Carolina was able to leave with all 3 points in a 2-1 victory.  This year the Railhawks have already welcomed a record crowd of 8,054 to the park and while it was against one of the more popular teams in Mexico’s first division, it was still only a friendly.

The Carolina Railhawks were founded in 2006 and averaged a crowd of 3,353 people to watch their games only 2 years ago, 2011, as the Railhawks ran away with the NASL regular season championship.   A starting attendance of 5,033 while low in comparative standards, should not be looked at negatively.  In a market that truly has strong competition for a families dollar, the attendance will continue to increase throughout the season as club President Curt Johnson and Head coach Colin Clarke continue to put a competitive and good product on the field.

Carolina’s Zack Schilawski (22) and Edmonton’s Carlyle Mitchell (19) battle for control of the ball. The Carolina Railhawks took on FC Edmonton in their season opener at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary on April 13, 2013.
Steven Worthy — newsobserver.com

As both teams entered halftime drawn 0-0, the Railhawks were still showing the same play that saw a lackluster offensive display in Tampa Bay the previous weekend.   The goal post could have been selected the man of the match in the first half as it had the best stop in the 16^th minute off of FC Edmonton Forward Daniel Fordyce.  The Railhawks were able to even the possession midway through the first half and even get a couple chances on goal, entering halftime scoreless and being out shot 7-4.

The Railhawks delivered the first blow of the game in the 52^nd minute as Austin da Luz took a Shipalane cross and directed to the back of the net. “It was a fantastic ball from Ty,” da Luz said. “Now that I’ve been playing out wide I’ve been concentrating on getting into the box a little bit more and trying to get on the end of things. I got my shoulder on it—you’ve got to get something on it, put it towards goal and good things will happen.” The second goal came just 20 minutes later as Brian Shriver put a free kick over a wall and in the left corner from 20 yards out, essentially crushing Edmonton’s hopes at a win and delighting the Railhawks faithful in attendance. 

The Railhawks celebrate Brian Shrivers goal midway through the 2nd half

The Railhawks defense still gave up too many chances on the night and will need to continue their work on coming together as a unit.  Saturday’s game was tougher due to the lack of newly acquired, 2012 best XI defensemen selection, Paul Hamilton, who was forced to sit this game after collecting two yellow cards in Tampa Bay.   Carolina was dangerously close to letting Edmonton leave Cary with a win as the second half saw a goal post deflection and a disallowed goal on a fiercely debated albeit correct, offside’s call, all that was standing between 3 and 0 points for Edmonton.   This closely contested match left FC Edmonton’s Coach feeling Edmonton left having been dealt an unfair hand, saying “I thought the best team lost tonight, Probably the man of the match again tonight was the goalkeeper [Akira Fitzgerald]. We had a goal disallowed—I haven’t seen it yet to know whether it was offside’s or not. I’m very proud of the players; I thought they contributed a great deal over 90 minutes. Two defensive errors cost us, and that was the difference.”

Rob Kinnan
Akira Fitzgerald skies against FC Edmonton at WakeMed Soccer Park

The Railhawks sit in 2^nd place in the standings with 4 points only behind Tampa due to goal difference.   

Standings courtesy NASL.com

The Carolina Hurricanes found themselves in the win column for the first time since a 3-1 win in Winnipeg on March 30^th. Before that, the team hadn’t received two points since March 12^th. Going two weeks between wins has been the source of the Canes’ downward spiral in the standings, but the team put aside their most recent seven game skid and played a strong game against the Bruins Saturday night.

Both teams came out of the gates with something to prove. A few chippy battles turned into three first period fights as both teams tried to liven up their respective benches. Boston opened the scoring when Milan Lucic got his body in front of goaltender Justin Peters and deflected the puck in. Jeff Skinner potted his second goal in as many games off a rebound to tie the game at one going into the first intermission.

Carolina Hurricanes’ Jeff Skinner (53) skates up the ice as Boston Bruins’ Jaromir Jagr (68), of the Czech Republic, falls during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Saturday (AP Photo/Gerry B)

Jiri Tlusty scored his career high 18^th goal of the season on a pass from Eric Staal to give the Canes the lead with five minutes remaining in the second, but Tyler Seguin answered right back with a breakaway goal of his own just three minutes later.

The third was all Canes, as Joe Corvo hit a one-timer from the point for the team’s second power play goal to take the lead and Tlusty added an empty netter for good measure to ice the 4-2 decision for Carolina.

There were several key contributing factors to finally breaking the skid. Justin Peters was solid in net all night for the Canes, and made huge saves, including one at point blank range with his glove on Jaromir Jagr. Good goaltending has been incredibly hard to come by since Cam Ward went down with an injury, but the Canes got it on this night. Another factor was the power play. The Canes have struggled with the man advantage all season long, and going up against the league’s best penalty kill didn’t bode well. However, the Canes were able to score twice on the power play, once to tie the game at one, and once to take the 3-2 lead.

Although the Canes haven’t been mathematically eliminated from playoff contention, it would be nothing short of a miracle if Carolina played in games past April. However, the team continues to battle night in and night out, and have come up with some good performances against good teams down the stretch. The role of spoiler might be all the Cane have left to play for, but one thing’s for sure: they aren’t going to quit on the season.

VS.  

April 6^th marked the opening of the 2013 NASL season and 6 of the 7 teams played their first game of the season.  The League will see only seven of its teams playing in the newly created Spring Season, which runs from April 6 through July 4^th.  Defending Champion Tampa Bay Rowdies, San Antonio Scorpions, FC Edmonton, Atlanta Silverbacks, Fort Lauderdale Strikers and our Carolina Railhawks will all be competing from the start to earn one of the two coveted spots in the Soccer Bowl.  After the sweltering month of July allows for a mid season break, the NASL will welcome back the Puerto Rico Islanders (who are not playing in the Spring Season), and the New York Cosmos (who haven’t played since the first NASL go-round in the 70’s and 80’s).  So on Saturday 6, teams played, 2 goals were scored, and everyone sits tied at the 1 point.  The Carolina Railhawks had the daunting task of opening their season with a trip to the reigning champion Tampa Bay Rowdies.

The 2012 Championship banner was unveiled and a crowd of 4,232 came to cheer on a successful start to the new season.  The Railhawks are no doormat, and last years achilles heel, the defense, played valiantly as they were able to come away with a 0-0 draw.  There is work to be done on the defensive side of the ball for sure, but the addition of 2012 Best XI defender and Thor doppelganger Paul Hamilton looks like a good addition to the defensive side of the ball.

You be the Judge…

The newest member to the team (Hamilton) along with new starting keeper Akira Fitzgerald left Coach Colin Clarke feeling they were big pieces in helping secure the road point.  “To come away with a point on the road moves us forward and our defense was a big part of that tonight.  Akira (Fitzgerald) and Paul (Hamilton) had great performances in the back for us tonight.” – Colin Clarke

Offensively, the Railhawks did nothing of note and while they were without the services of 2012 team goal leader and Best XI selection Nick Zimmerman, the experienced Carolina offense was unable to put a solid attack together.  Forwards Brian Ackley, Zack Schialawsky and last years super sub Ty Shipalane all played, but goal scoring chances were at a premium.

Defensively, it was not all roses Saturday night, as the Railhawks were outshot 17-6, and left Akira Fitzgerald scrambling all night. Fitzgerald made seven saves to keeps the Hawks in the game. The Rowdies controlled play throughout and with them playing in front of the home crowd, an air of nervousness that a Tampa first goal would open up a barrage of goals leading to a route, hung overhead while watching. “Any time you come here you know what they’re going to do,” “They’re going to play it long and win second balls but we didn’t do a good job of winning those second balls.  Our goalkeeper and defenders did very well.” –coach Colin Clarke

NASL.com

Andrew Fontein made his Rowdies Debut against the Railhawks and only had to come up with 6 saves, none as impressive as the save old reliable crossbar made in the 90^th minute.  The best chance for the Carolina to score came in the 90^th from Brian Ackley as he rifled a shot from 18 yards and was denied by the crossbar. 

The first game of the season is always a tough judge of where you’re at, but can be a good example of where you may be headed.  Rowdies coach Ricky Hill took the game in stride saying he was “Disappointed that we didn’t manage to take one of those opportunities that we created but delighted with the overall effort and application of the team,”

Rowdies defender Jay Needham protests after an offside call nullifies his would-be score in the first half. Tampa Bay outshoots Carolina 17-6 but settles for a scoreless tie. NASL.com

The Railhawks now turn their attention to winning in the newly renovated Wake Med Soccer Park in Cary, NC.  Having played and dropped exhibition matches against MLS side Vancouver Whitecaps, and Liga MX side UNAM Pumas in the new park, FC Edmonton looks to be the first visiting team to leave with WMSP with a loss.

Starting XI:

Tampa Bay:

GK Andrew Fontein; D Frankie Sanfilippo (Captain), D Jay Needham, D Takuya Yamada, D Andres Arango; M Evans Frimpong (Alex Dixon 71′), M Stuart Campbell, M Luke Mulholland, M Raphael Cox; F Amani Walker (Devin Del Do 65′), Georgi Hristov (Kyle Clinton 90′)

Carolina:

GK Akira Fitzgerald; D Jordan Graye, D Paul Hamilton, D Austen King, D Kupono Low (Captain); M Brian Shriver (Sam Stockley 90′), M Floyd Franks, M Nick Millington, M Austin Da Luz (Ciaran O’Brien 83′); F Brian Ackley, F Zack Schilawski (Ty Shipalane 72′)

The playoffs are quickly looking like a pipe dream for the Carolina Hurricanes this season. After a start which saw the team come flying out of the gates with a 15-8 record, the team has gone stagnant. With a record of 1-9-1 in their last 11 games, the Hurricanes find themselves sitting in 12^th in the Eastern conference, closer to a lottery pick than a playoff spot. They trail Washington by four points for the division lead, but with no cohesiveness on offense, weak team defense, and awful special teams play, the Canes are dropping in the standings quickly.

After last night’s 5-0 shutout at the hands of Tampa Bay, the team seems to have hit rock bottom. Despite peppering goaltender Ben Bishop with 45 shots, they were unable to score. The closest opportunity they had was a disallowed goal, when Alexander Semin kicked the puck into the net. 45 shots sounds impressive, but most of the shots were uncontested slap shots from the blue line. Not to take anything away from Bishop, who was outstanding in net in his Bolts debut. The team has been playing uninspired hockey for much of the past month and a half. Their power play ranks 27th in the league out of 30. Their penalty kill? 28^th.

RALEIGH, NC – APRIL 04: Radko Gudas #75 of the Tampa Bay Lightning flattens Patrick Dwyer #39 of the Carolina Hurricanes with an open-ice hit during play at PNC Arena on April 4, 2013 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)

Since defeating Winnipeg 3-1 last Saturday, the Canes have dropped three straight, and been outscored by a margin of 14-4 in that time frame. Injuries do hurt. Starting goaltender Cam Ward and young defenseman Justin Faulk have missed significant time due to injuries. However, neither Ward nor Faulk makes much of a difference in the 5-0 thrashing we witnessed last night. The team is struggling to find their identity, and despite the production from the first line of Semin, Eric Staal, and Jiri Tlusty, there is no secondary scoring.

Earlier in the season, the Canes expected to be buyers at this year’s trade deadline. Instead, they essentially gave Jussi Jokinen away to the Penguins for a 6^th or 7^th round pick. While they didn’t fully go into fire-sale mode, they didn’t do anything to bolster the team. Add that to the season-ending injury Joni Pitkanen sustained during the game against Washington, and the Canes may have a rough couple of weeks coming up.

Still, with all the adversity in front of the team, they ONLY sit four points out of the division lead. They have to start winning games for the playoffs to become a reality, and have to go on a crazy tare to end the season just to sniff post-season play, but the division is there for the taking. The optimism that was prevalent at the beginning of the season has all but evaporated, and coach Kirk Muller HAS to do something about the team to right the ship. There’s no outside help coming this year, so the team has to take it upon themselves and play better to a man in order to salvage the season.

Don’t look now, but the Charlotte Bobcats have won a few games.   4-6 in the last ten played and while it’s nothing to cheer about, at least it points to a team that is still working hard and trying to put forth an effort.  All the wins have come at home and have come against teams they should compete against.  Teams leaving Charlotte with an “L” hanging over their head were a hobbled Celtics team, the Wizards, Pistons and Orlando Magic.   The good news is the Bobcats have won 10 more games than they did last raising their winning percentage from the 2011-2012 season percentage of .106 to a comparatively monstrous .233.  Still succeeding less than a quarter of the time is not a great way to run a business, any business.

The Bobcats are 17-56 and sit dead last in the Eastern conference.  With only 9 games left this season the Bobcats could get hot and catch some teams ahead of them, but that would only be a homer pick, full of hope and wishful thinking.  There is nothing to point at for reference to predict this team to do anything remotely close to that.  Where are the closest teams to the Cats’ and where do they stand?

-          Washington Wizards: have a record of 27-46 the highest win total DC has seen on the Basketball Court since “Agent Zero”, Gilbert Arenas was brandishing firearms at teammates.  They also have John Wall who as of the second half of this season has turned his game up a notch and should be a good/great player for years to come.

-          Orlando: Left rejected and jilted by a forced rebuilding project thanks to Dwight Howard forcing a move.  The JJ Reddick trade to Milwaukee lets fans know they will have to hit bottom before pushing themselves back up.  They are finishing up a horrible year currently sitting at 19-55 a far cry from an Eastern conference contender in 2008-2010, when they won over 50 games. Cheer up Magic fans you live in Orlando.  Maybe go to Perkins.

-          Cleveland Cavaliers: Sitting at 22-50 have a star for years to come in Guard Kyrie Irving as they look to work their way back to the 60 win seasons LeBron James carried the Cavaliers to prior to him leaving for greener pastures of Miami.

-          Detroit: The Pistons sit at 24-50 and have no stars on their team looking very similar to the Bobcats.  That is where the looks and similarities go in different directions. When you look at so-called effort stats they are far off. The Bobcats rank 28^th in the NBA in rebounds per game and 29^th in points allowed per game. The Pistons are ranked 14^th in rebounds and 17^th in points.

The Bobcats will most likely be turning their attention to this summer’s draft as they look to add pieces to their young guns Kemba Walker and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist.  Kemba Walker has averaged 17.5 ppg and 5.7 ast this season with MKG underwhelming the Bobcat faithful as he has struggled at times during his rookie campaign, averaging 9.1 ppg and 5.6 rpg.  The draft may not help tremendously as it has been described as possibly the weakest draft in 13 years.  Not what fans or Michael Jordan and company would like to hear.

The season finally came to an end for the Duke Blue Devils Sunday evening as they ran into the buzzsaw that was the number one overall seed in the tournament: the Louisville Cardinals. The Cardinals used an explosive attack in the second half to pull away from Duke and ended up winning the game 85-63 to advance to the Final Four. The last four teams left in the tournament are now officially set, and no teams from the Triangle find themselves competing for an NCAA championship.

Louisville forward Montrezl Harrell (24) blocks a shot by Duke forward Mason Plumlee during the first half of the Midwest Regional final in the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 31, 2013, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

The game was very competitive throughout the first 27 minutes of action, but the speed of Louisville was too much to handle for the Blue Devils. With the game knotted at 48 apiece, the Cardinals went on a tear and outscored, out-hustled, and out-rebounded Duke to secure the victory.

Louisville may have been given some extra motivation to finish the game off as a grisly scene was produced in the first half of the game. Sophomore guard Kevin Ware came down awkwardly after a block attempted and broke his right leg in two places in front of the Louisville bench. The injury was one of the most gruesome I’ve ever seen and the reaction of his teammates, who collapsed on the floor in anguish and sobbed openly for their teammate, said it all. After a brief delay, play somehow continued and the Cardinals held a 35-32 lead at the half.

Kevin Ware #5 of the Louisville Cardinals talks with teammate Luke Hancock #11 as Ware is tended to by medical personnel after he injured his leg in the first half against Duke. (Credit: Streeter Lecka, Getty)

Mason Plumlee led the team in scoring with 17 points and 12 assists, but didn’t do very well against the face paced Louisville offense. Seth Curry was stifled all night, and only managed 12 points on 3 for 9 shooting. The Louisville defense was able to smother Duke for the majority of the game. Senior Ryan Kelly, who sat through much of the first half in foul trouble, only finished with seven points.

The season was a good one for Duke, as they finished second in the ACC behind Miami, and held the number 1 spot in the nation for several weeks throughout the season. However, with no ACC banners to hang, no Final Four appearances to enjoy, and no national championship, this season may feel like somewhat of a letdown for fans and players alike. Plumlee, Curry, and Kelly have all played their last games in the Duke jersey and these three will certainly be missed on next year’s team.

Rest assured: the Blue Devils will be right back in the thick of things next season. With an impressive batch of freshman coming to Durham, and the leadership of Coach K behind the bench, Duke will be in the mix in the new-look ACC when next season rolls around.

It took 18 days, but the Carolina Hurricanes finally got their first win since defeating Washington 4-0 way back on March 12^th. Not only did the Canes get two points, but they were a big two points, as Carolina traveled to Winnipeg to take on the division-leading Jets for the second time in a week. After dropping the first meeting of the week in Raleigh 4-1, the Canes came out strong against Winnipeg and got some great goaltending from Justin Peters to win 3-1.

Peters had a great game for the Hurricanes, making 34 saves, including a couple from point-blank range. He stoned Bryan Little on a break-away, he stopped Zach Bogosian, who was left wide open in front of the net, and the only goal he gave up on the night was a deflection off of Olli Jokinen’s skate blade.

Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Justin Peters (35) saves a shot by the Winnipeg Jets during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Saturday, March 30, 2013. (AP Photo/The …

The offensive side of the game was better as well. Alexander Semin opened the scoring up just 66 seconds into the game, as he put home a loose puck in front of goaltender Ondrej Pavelec. Jussi Jokinen, in his first game back since clearing waivers, scored a goal from a nice cross-ice pass from fellow Finn Joni Pitkanen to put the Canes up two. Olli Jokinen scored the only goal of the second period, and Winnipeg looked to have momentum on their side after killing off six straight minutes of power play time just as the period expired. However, Eric Staal found himself wide open in the slot and wristed a shot past Pavelec just 28 seconds into the final period for his 16^th of the season, and Carolina would hold on to the two-goal lead for the rest of the game.

The power play continues to be a trouble spot for Carolina. On paper, the team went 0-6 with the man advantage, although Jokinen’s goal came just after the power play expired in the first. The Canes had good chances and kept possession of the puck well during the power play, but they were unable to put the biscuit in the basket. The power play goals have to start happening if the Canes want a sniff at the post season.

The win puts the Canes just four points behind Winnipeg for the division lead, and with three games-in-hand on the Jets, the Canes control their own destiny. A win may have the team feeling good right now, but the only way to right the ship is to string together a couple of good performances and get a few more points. The Canes travel to Montreal tomorrow to take on the Canadiens, who are currently sitting second in the Eastern conference, and 15 points above Carolina in the standings.

Seth Curry would not be denied. Nine times he shot the ball from three point range, he hit six of those attempts. Seven times he shot a free throw, he hit all seven of those. Curry finished the game with 29 points, two shy of his season high, and the carried the Duke Blue Devils on his back past a very tough Michigan State team into the Elite Eight.

Duke guard Seth Curry (30) drives around Michigan State guard Gary Harris (14) during the second half of a regional semifinal in the NCAA college basketball tournament, Friday, March 29, 2013.

There were many factors that contributed to Duke’s 71-61 win over the Spartans, but Curry was obviously the main reason. With his family in the crowd, he didn’t disappoint. The free throw shooting for Duke was unbelievable all night. As a team, Duke hit 24 of their 26 attempts from the charity stripe. 92.3%. That’s amazing to do in a regular season game, let alone the Sweet Sixteen against a sure fire Hall of Fame coach in Tom Izzo and his battle-tested Spartans.

Freshman Rasheed Sulaimon added 16 points and Mason Plumlee scored 14 with seven rebounds to help the Blue Devils. On a night where senior Ryan Kelly lost his shooting touch from beyond the arc, Curry stepped up in a big way and gave his team confidence. ”Seth was scoring on every possession and it was almost like we felt like we could relax on defense,”head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. ”When you’ve got a guy hot like that and you can put a couple of defensive stops with it, you can get separation.”

 Despite being out rebounded 33-26, Duke was able to make most of their possessions count in a big way. In a tightly contested game where Duke held a slim one-point lead at the half, Curry and team defense created separation in the second and didn’t look back.

Next up for Duke is the number one overall in this year’s tournament: Louisville. In a clash of two powerhouses, the first and second ranked teams in their side of the bracket will battle it out on Sunday for a Final Four spot. Louisville is an incredibly gifted team who is playing great team defense and hitting shots left and right. In order for Duke to be successful, they’ll have to keep shooting a great percentage from the field and the free throw line, and play some lock-down defense on guys like Peyton Siva.

Duke is North Carolina’s last shot at a title this season, but the road to the Final Four just got a little more difficult with the Cardinals standing in their way. Duke has the ability to be successful, but like all teams who rely on jump-shoots to win games, their guys will have to be on point if they want to be one of the last four standing.