On Saturday morning, the No. 2 Virginia Cavaliers were undefeated and were likely the best basketball team in the country outside of No. 1 ranked Kentucky.
Head coach Tony Bennett built a reliable system that demanded crisp offensive execution and a dominant defense, while having just one McDonald’s All-American.
No. 4 Duke, which had three losses in its past six games, headed to Charlottesville to take on Virginia with eight McDonald’s All-Americans.
That’s the same amount as No. 1 Kentucky, which has famously platooned its players to accommodate the needs of multiple high-grade NBA prospects.
The contest between the two heavyweights started out with Virginia in front. The Cavaliers smothered the Blue Devils’ offense and ran its offensive sets to perfection.
At halftime, Duke’s freshman-phenom Jalil Okafor had more turnovers than he did points. The Blue Devils didn’t even have one three-pointer until about halfway through the second half.
But when Duke’s shots started to fall, Virginia was put under the microscope.
Duke had players that could create shots, Virginia didn’t. When the plays broke down, Duke succeeded and made clutch shots, Virginia failed and withered.
When it was all said and done, Duke emerged with a big 69-63 win.
It was another display of a non-traditional basketball program, with a clear identity and winning streak, falling short against a highly-talented, historically vaunted program.
Virginia’s narrative was much more enjoyable than Duke’s to the nation at-large.
Who wouldn’t cheer for the grass-root start-up over the corporate machine?
But, just like business, money – or talent – talks.
To win in college basketball, teams need talent. The players might not need to be identified as a McDonald’s All-Americans or five-star recruits, but top-notch talent will always beat well-coached hustle players.
Even some of the best Cinderella stories, like Davidson, VCU, Butler or UConn had high-end NBA talent on their rosters.
Teams like Virginia, Gonzaga and Wisconsin may very well find themselves playing deep into the NCAA Tournament. But when they have to face teams that combine hustle and talent like Kentucky, Duke, Louisville or even Arizona, they are going to be a step behind.
Follow Josh Schlichter on Twitter @joshschlichter