OTHER WEEKLY RDL: BATTIERBLACKDUKEVCAROLINA
INSPIRATION
OUTFIT
PIECES
Headwear: Trucker Logo Hat by Bass Pro Shops
Jacket: Duke Blue Devil Satin Team Jacket by Nike
Top: Duke Shooting Shirt by Nike
Top B: Shane Battier Jersey by Nike
Top C: L/S Shirt by ASOS
Pant: Tech Fleece Jogger by Nike
Footwear: Shroud by Reebok
The inspiration for this week's outfit is the Duke vs Carolina rivalry. I don't care what anybody says, this is the greatest rivalry in all of sports. Better than my Lakers and Celts. Better than the Red Sox and the Yankees. Better than OSU vs Mich. Better than Ali and Frazier. It simply doesn't get any better than Duke vs Carolina. I've mentioned before how I'm getting into vintage apparel, and it's a bad addiction. I'm scouting eBay and Etsy almost hourly. I spend more time on eBay than I do on all of my social media combined. It's bad, but exhilarating. It's a modern-day-real-life treasure hunt, just digital. With the Duke/Carolina game coming up Thursday, February 9th, I figured this would be a perfect time to break out this outfit. Everything is made by Nike with the exception of my Bass Pro Shops cap and my sneakers. The Bass Pro Shops hat is an essential in my wardrobe. It's been this way for 5 years. The hats are cheap and light weight. It's perfect for everyday wear as you don't have to worry about getting them dirty or tearing up as they are only a few dollars. I love uniform matching, but fashion is all about personal taste as well. It is in my personal taste the Bass Pro Shops cap complements any outfit, and it is in my personal opinion I have extremely-highly favored personal taste. The footwear is provided to by Reebok. I saw the Shroud at Finishline two years ago. My first impression of the sneaker was mixed. I didn't know how to feel, but the more I researched it, I fell in love with it. From the subtle 3M accents to the neoprene shroud, it not only looks futuristic, but it appears clean and minimal. Really great shoe, comfortable as well. You can find a few pairs out there, I got mine for $75.00 off of Amazon.
When people think Duke vs Carolina, many games come to mind. For me, there are two. The double OT game at Cameron Indoor in 1995 and the buzzer-beater at the Dean Dome in 2012. The double OT game in 1995 is renowned as perhaps the greatest game in the history of the rivalry. Interesting story is that my father was there, but there's a catch. My father went to Duke, in fact, he got his post-doctorates from Duke. At the time of the game in 1995, I was a mere 1.75 years old. My father took my older sister to the game at Cameron Indoor. Anyone who knows college basketball, knows that Cameron is the toughest place to play for an away team in the nation. Duke that year had not been doing well. This was supposed to be a walk in the park for Carolina. For the majority of the game, Duke was getting stomped. My dad watched this beating live. Duke managed to come back and force OT. During OT, my dad said at a certain point it seemed like Carolina had them, so he began to leave in order to beat traffic. As he is leaving, he says he hears the place explode. He walks back toward the court and Duke somehow had forced double OT. What happened when he was leaving was Jeff Capel hit a 3 with only 3 seconds left after a missed free throw. Eventually, Carolina ended up getting the best of Duke at home after double OT, 102-100.
Revenge was served 17 years later when I was a freshman living in Moore hall at UNC-Charlotte. I'm in my dorm room watching the game off of my roommate's television. It was a small television maybe 19-20 inches. He was cool enough to share it with me. I had the game on and North Carolina was ahead the majority of the game. Duke would mount short comebacks but nothing to put them in striking distance. I remember us being down 11 or so with 2 minutes and some change left. I rarely ever turn a game off, but oddly for that game I did. I thought we lost, so I began doing homework on my laptop. A few minutes later, I heard a bunch of commotion coming from my hall. I go out to see what the deal was. When I opened my door I hear chatter going on.
"YOOO WHAT THE FUCK?!!"
"I CAN'T BELIEVE HE HIT THAT, LIKE DID TIME EXPIRE?!"
"NO. FUCKING. WAY."
I thought to myself, it's no way they are talking about Duke and Carolina. Duke wasn't even competitive the whole game. I turn my roommate's television back on and see the replay of Austin Rivers hitting a three to ice the game for Duke. I couldn't believe it. It was off of a missed free throw identical to Jeff Capel's shot in 95', the game my father went to. My second immediate thought was how this guy was my age, and he just hit one of the biggest shots in the rivalry ever. I knew it was history as soon as I saw the replay. Much like my dad, I had missed a once in a generation shot. When I see replays of Austin's 3, I get chills, but I also get a bit bitter because I cut the game off prematurely. Nonetheless, like father like son. I haven't missed a Duke vs Carolina game since.
Jeff Capel's shot in 1995 at Cameron Indoor.
Austin Rivers' shot in 2012 at the Dean Dome.