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He had been telling classmates that Duke was going to win, so he expected to be made fun of. His parents' answer was that he was going to school, and that he would wear a Duke shirt instead of his uniform.
Two years later, at ten, he had a $2 bet with his uncle, his father's older brother, who was visiting. Duke was likely the favorite, and the uncle still gave him straight win-lose terms.
In the 1992 regional final against Kentucky, Sean Woods hit a bank shot to put Kentucky up 103 to 102 with 2.1 seconds left. The uncle, being kind, offered to switch sides: the boy could take Kentucky, and the uncle would take Duke. The boy stuck with Duke. Then Laettner hit the shot.
How did Duke score with 2.1 seconds left?
Grant Hill threw a long pass from the baseline to Christian Laettner at the free-throw line. Kentucky had no defender on the player inbounding the ball, which left Hill free to throw. Laettner caught it, dribbled once, turned, and made the shot as time ran out, giving Duke a 104-103 win in overtime.
How lopsided was Duke's loss to UNLV?
UNLV beat Duke 103-73 in the 1990 national championship game, the largest margin in an NCAA title game. The Runnin' Rebels were led by Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon, and Greg Anthony. They finished that season 35-5.
How did Laettner play that game?
Laettner made all ten of his field goal attempts and all ten of his free throws, scoring 31 points. It is regarded as one of the best performances in NCAA tournament history. Duke went on to beat Michigan's Fab Five 71-51 in the final that year.
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