Why hide?  Duke fans have enjoyed unparalleled success and if you can't get through one tough season by Duke standards, you are not a true fan.

Yep, this is where many jump off the bandwagon.  It's happened before ,,, 12 years ago.  Shortly thereafter Duke went on a miraculous roll before facing rebuilding again this season.

That is rebuilding the Duke way.  Despite being handed the ACC's toughest slate, Duke managed 22 wins which many schools would die for. Still, it will be sure to cause a stir on message boards from upset fans.

Upset?  Yes, I am and that's what happened on the court too, but I am able to put this in perspective. VCU had a wonderful gameplan.  They pressured Paulus, swarming the ball at all times and they disrupted the passing lanes all night long.

Greg had a career high 25 points but had more turnovers than assist due to the Rams pressure.  Unfortunately, Greg finished the season with more TO's than assists, but his injury really did play into that.

No matter how you cut it, VCU deserved the win.  They played older and stronger and seemed to have an sense of urgency in their game. More importanlty, they communicated well on the court as a team.  Hindsight is worthless, but they were the perfect team to face Duke, having three quick guards and just enough down low clip the Devils.

There are a lot of players that might stand out to fans looking to place some blame, and there are some players who will catch grief for their absence statistically, but the real culprit was a lack of what Coach K has stressed -- that being communication or talking on defense.

Add some key missed free throws and the lack of a three point threat other than Paulus, and you have a recipe for disaster.  And then there are the turnovers that have plagued the Devils during an untypical four game losing streak which ended their season.

There is more ... seven points from the bench, VCU hitting 56.3% from the three point stripe, being outscored on the break 21-6, missed lay ins when the game was on the line and TO's when the game was on the line.

You have to give McRobert's his due.  He was a one man wrecking crew down low.  Interestingly, like Paulus, McRoberts scored his career high 22 points.  Add 12 boards, 4 assists and 5 blocked shots and you have his best effort of the season.

McRoberts career high not enough for Duke to overcome the scrappy Rams.

It was 1996 when Duke last went out in the first round.  Before that it was a couple of times in the eighties, but take a moment to realize the success we have had.  Duke has dominated a league that includes UNC for ten or so years running.

It happens!  At some point there had to be a drop off and players such as Deng leaving early has made Duke hustle to catch up.  Now comes the off season questions ... Will Josh McRobert's return?  Will Patrick Patterson see how well he fits on this team?  Which players will work hard on their games in the off season?

I will answer the last question now.  Duke is already planning for next year.  That's the way it is at Duke.  You may not hear about it, but Coach K will be watching a lot of film and will continue to teach his youthful players the Duke way.

That Duke way has been temporarily lost.  Paulus and Nelson, McRoberts were the only players with any PT returning.  Next year it will be different.  Duke will have a few older players mixed with some outstanding newcomers.

No matter who leaves or who comes in, Duke will head right back to the top of the ACC and will be a legitimate top ten team.  Help is on the way in Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith and Taylor King.

Add these players to a Paulus that doesn't suffer a pre season injury, three players in Thomas, Scheyer and Zoubek that will work on their strength, a senior for gosh sakes in Nelson and you have the core for a scrappy bunch.  Oops!  Let's not forget McClure and a fast improving Henderson and Pocius.  That's more bodies than we have had in three years and while young, look for Duke to remember the lessons learned.

Should McRobert's stay or Patterson sign, Duke will be knocking on the door much closer to April.  Another year and Duke is a National Title contender if not the odds on favorite.  Heck, if you ask Coach K he will tell you that winning the title is the goal next season.

So Duke haters should enjoy this while they can because Duke will now start to get older and wiser.  Players bodies will mature and well, Duke will be better ... much better.

Yep!  We fell out of the top 25.  The sweet 16 streak was broken and there is a first round loss in what is considered the first upset of the tournament ... but add a little more.  Okay, lets don't ... but after all the success Duke Basketball has had ... I can get over this down year by fans standards.

I thought we'd do a little better this season ... sure did! But I see the building blocks and K has never let us down before after one of the few so called lapses in the past and the future will be no different.

Until then, it is Duke against the world.  Be prepared for a lot of haters taking shots.  Be classy!  Don't fall prey to the baiters with no lives other than hating Duke.  That is hating Duke because they set the standard with their success.  Yep!  Beating Duke is an event, but don't look for it to continue for it may be awhile before Duke suffers double digit losses in a season.  They will be back ... history is proof of this.  Go Devils!

Okay, there is no sugar coating how painful last nights loss was for a Duke fan.  Maryland swept Duke aside in route to their sixth straight win, putting Duke firmly planted in sixth position in the ACC.

On this night, three Maryland seniors and three juniors took advantage of a young Duke team, yet the Devils still could have won if ...

Well, there are a lot of ifs, but the one thing Duke sorely lacked was communication.  This was especially true on the defensive end, where the Maryland sets were successful all evening.

Don't think communication wasn't a problem on offense either, despite the Blue Devils scoring much more than their average.  A quick look at the stats shows just nine assists.  Nine!  So, while Duke scored some points, they failed to find each other.  Proof of this is no player had more than two assists.

To show how telling this stat is, look to Maryland freshman, Greivis Vasquez.  I am forced to learn the spelling of his name after he dished out three more assists than the entire Duke team, his total being twelve.

Twelve assists are made easier when your team is running the court and constantly finding holes in the defense.  You would being hard pressed to find anyone who thought Maryland would throw up a bushel of points on a team that ranks with the Nations best with points allowed.

It was one of those nights for Duke.  Despite the score being close, it felt as if we were being whipped the whole game.  The crowd had a hard time finding moments to get in the game. Every time Duke made it close, before you could get a good clap in the Terps scored on an outlet pass to Strawberry.  If Strawberry wasn't there, it would be a kick out for a wide open Mike Jones three.

The experience was especially bad for those watching on TV.  ESPN made it to the game at the 13:59 mark of the first half.  This made it feel as if the emotion meter was on empty or jarred from the outset.

It didn't take long to see that Duke was in for a long night and that the cards would have to fall just right for a win.  Unfortunately, Duke could never stop the Terps momentum and here is the other fixable problem which kept Duke from victory.

When Duke cut into the lead, they took their own momentum away on the offensive end.  There didn't seem to be a continued intensity and the hard work would go to the wayside as Duke would take an off balanced or ill advised one and done shot.  That allowed Maryland to take Uncle Mo right back with their quickness to the ball and boards.

This goes back to nine assists and shows that this team still has a ways to go with their offensive execution.  And there is no reason for Duke to have let up the open looks on the defensive end.  You can bet that this will be addressed in practice this week.

Getting back to ESPN for a moment, you know it is one of those nights when they cut to NFL news on a split screen missing a ton of action.  Add to that, a total glitch in the final moments, meaning you could only witness the entire game having been in Cameron.

So choose your word ... frustrating, dismayed ... they all apply.  This was after all the last home game this season.  Duke wanted to maintain momentum going into the ACC Tournament, but with a trip to Chapel Hill, it may get worse.

There were some bright spots worthy of mention.  Duke never gave up, despite the lack of communication and execution on defense. 

Gerald Henderson showed flashes of brilliance and Paulus continues to shoot the ball quite well.  Add Zoubeks good minutes too.

I attribute this loss to growing pains and think fans might look back on it as a learning experience.  I know the team will break down and grade the film this week and will work hard to rectify the problems.  This is a tireless staff and there is a lot of hooping left in these young Devils.

One day, our eighteen and nineteen year old kids will be the vets, but until that time, fans will have to allow time for growth and that can be painful to those who are spoiled.

Keep in mind that this is new for both the fans and coaches and be happy that Duke rebuilds with a 22-8 record.  It has been a long time since Duke hasn't had players battle tested in the line up.  Rest assured though, that many of these guys will find their groove and that Duke is not going anywhere. 

In fact, the future looks brighter than ever.  Until then, it is still comforting to see we had a chance to win despite a superb Maryland performance.

The Blue Devils will regroup.  As fans, we need to do the same and realize that it's time for the next play.  Just remember that this young team has played three games in nine days and that they are indeed, NCAA bound, which is the sole goal for many programs.

There will be another bounce of the ball. There will be plenty more victories and there will be some growing pains along the way.  Anyway you cut it, I am still proud and steadfast to the blue and white.