• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Singletary's remarkable shot beats Duke in overtime

Feb 2, 2007 - 7:13 AM CHARLOTTESVILLE, Virginia (Ticker) -- Sean Singletary didn't make it easy on himself.

Singletary overcame a poor shooting performance by nailing an acrobatic floater with one second remaining in overtime as Virginia ended a long losing skid against No. 10 Duke with a 68-66 victory.

J.R. Reynolds scored 25 points and Singletary added 17 for the Cavaliers, who snapped a nine-game losing streak against the Blue Devils, notching their first win in the series since February 28, 2002.

"It was like, finally. We finally beat them," Reynolds said. "They are a very good team, and I was so pumped when Sean made that shot. It feels really good to beat a great Duke team."

With the game tied, 66-66, Blue Devils freshman guard Jon Scheyer picked up his dribble deep in the left corner and had to force a shot that careened off the side of the backboard.

On the ensuing possession, Singletary took advantage, splitting two defenders and lofting in the go-ahead shot while falling to the floor along the right baseline.

"It was either going to be one of the two (Reynolds or Singletary)," Cavaliers coach Dave Leitao said. "(Assistant coach) Rob Lanier and I talked briefly about it, and we were going to win or lose with one of those two, and we chose Sean. He's a big-time player, especially in those situations."

Duke guard DeMarcus Nelson could not believe the shot went in.

"It was a crazy, tough shot," Nelson said. "We couldn't have made him take a tougher shot. He threw up a shot out of desperation over two defenders and it went in." Virginia finished the game on a 17-7 run - bridging regulation and the extra period - capped by Singletary's remarkable runner.

"We definitely want to be mature about the situation," Singletary said. "Duke's a good team, and we beat them, but we're looking towards the future. It was great to get a win, but we expected a win. We'll get some rest and come out with a lot of energy against Miami (Saturday)."

The Blue Devils had one last chance to pull off yet another dramatic win. However, after catching a baseball pass from Josh McRoberts on the left wing, Greg Paulus missed a wide-open 3-pointer as time expired.

"There were three guys down there so I was looking to throw it down to them," McRoberts said. "Greg was open."

Singletary was 6-of-17 from the field. Reynolds shot 7-of-15 and 10-of-11 from the free-throw line.

McRoberts scored 19 points for Duke, which shot 44 percent (26-of-59) and had its five-game winning streak snapped.

"It was a heck of a game. Their free-throw shooting at the end of regulation, to get up and make clutch free throws like that, was big," Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski. "Their two guards are sensational. We had some shots, including the one at the end of regulation that were great shots. We just didn't knock them down.

"Greg had one in overtime, and at the end of regulation. They just executed so well. That's what close games come down to. I think that both teams played their hearts out. It's a great win for them and a really tough loss for us. That's the way it is in the ACC."