Duke's Basketball Program: A Tradition of Excellence Like None Other

The Duke men's basketball program consistently garners attention from fans, the media and broadcasters around the country on a yearly basis.

Whether it be a 30-win season or even a 10-win season, people are going to expect a lot out of the Blue Devils year in and year out.

These high expectations, and the pressure that stems from these expectations, are directly related to the high level of excellence and success that the Duke basketball program has achieved over the last 20-plus years.

Last season was no different for coach Mike Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils, as Duke defeated the Butler Bulldogs in a memorable title game and gave the basketball program its fourth NCAA championship with Coach K at the helm.

Although much was expected from other teams in the country during the beginning of last season, many speculated that the Blue Devils wouldn't have the pieces in place to compete for the national title, and they got a lot of criticism for their lack of depth at the guard position.

The season slowly progressed, however, and after several weeks of the season had passed, Duke was once again considered a favorite to make it to the last week in March.

Much of that was due to the stellar play of Jon Scheyer, Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler, but the success of the program as a whole gave the media and fans assurance that this was a team that would be competitive once the NCAA Tournament began.

Sure enough, after knocking off five opponents, the Blue Devils made an appearance in the NCAA title game once again and knocked off the home favorite Butler Bulldogs in a game that literally went down to the very last shot.

The Duke men's basketball program was once again on top of the college basketball landscape, but they had already captured the attention from the media and sports broadcasters before the tournament even began.

Headlines such as "Can the Blue Devils Reach Elite Status Once Again?" and even "How Will the Blue Devils Fare in the NCAA Tournament After Bowing Out Early the Past Few Seasons?" began to surface, and Duke was quickly labeled a "contender" for the title.

Yet because of Duke's high level of excellence over the years, they had already been considered a favorite long before March arrived and were once again making headlines around the nation.

Another team that has had its share of the national spotlight is the women's basketball program at Duke. Although they have never won an NCAA title, they have long been ranked inside the Top 10 in the women's basketball polls and have gone deep in the tournament countless times.

Last season they made headlines by reaching the Elite Eight and were the favorites to make it to the Final Four heading into their matchup with Baylor. With a little over four minutes remaining and the Blue Devils up by four, they lost control of the game and ended up losing in a heartbreaker.

However, because they reached the final eight of the NCAA Tournament, their season was considered a success. This year's team is hoping to build off that success in the hopes of winning the program's first NCAA title.

At this point early on in both the men's and women's college basketball seasons, the Duke men are ranked No. 1 in the country and the Duke women are ranked No. 6. They both have perfect records, and both seem to be running on all cylinders as the season is just getting under way.

Although they both are ranked so high, they would be garnering the media and fans' attention regardless of their record at this point. Take, for example, if the men lost their opener; ESPN would be going crazy analyzing every detail of the game that caused the Blue Devils to lose.

Why would they go to such an extreme when a team loses, you may ask? Because the Duke basketball programs are known for their high level of excellence and success over the past few years. An early loss would seem uncharacteristic, and the country would take notice.

Say what you may, and hate if you must, but the Duke basketball program in general is one of the top, if not the top program in the country at the moment. There are high expectations for both teams this season, and looking at previous teams over the years, they are almost surely going to go above and beyond what is expected of them.

The Duke basketball program has achieved a level of success over the years that is hard to duplicate, and they deserve to be recognized for their high level of excellence and for all of their various achievements throughout the program's rich history.