Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:07 AM)

Hey, sorry I'm late. Technical difficulties. Ready to roll here from Pebble Beach.

John (Durham)

Gene ... loved the book. Have the ask ... while Laettner says he loved everyone and did all the mean things he did to help them, he still came off as a bit of a jerk. So is he a jerk or not?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:08 AM)

A jerk--but in a good way. He was a basketball dictator, despised at times by his own teammates. But they understood his passion for the game and his talent--and they followed him. Sometimes, said Jay Bilas, they followed him reluctantly. But he did truly love those teammates and Duke.

Larry (Dallas)

We all know about that Duke team, because they went on to win the title.....but just how good was that Kentucky team?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:10 AM)

Mashburn was a generational player. Pitino said he was going to start on that UK team even if he could just breathe. The rest of those guys, with the exception of Sean Woods, wouldn't have made it into a layup line of a regular UK team. But Pitino molded them into something special--and he realized those guys were a LOT better than he and his assistants realized. They had heart. . . and underrated talent.

keith (la)

how long did it take for you to write the book?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:12 AM)

From start to finish, 2 years. Did nearly 100 interviews, traveled the country talking to all parties involved, researched it, reported it---and then sat down to write. But I loved every minute of it.

Ted (Seattle)

While the Duke story gets all the love, the Kentucky side of this was as compelling considering where the Cats came from. Can you say that they are the real stars of this book (which I couldn't put down even though as a Kentucky fan knowing Laettner makes that freakin' shot still hurts)

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:13 AM)

I sort of agree with you. The more reporting and research I did, the more I realized that UK's story was as compelling, if not more compelling than Duke's. The Unforgettables. . . Mash. . . Pitino. . . where that program came from. . . And incredible story. I know they lost the game, but that team made Kentucky basketball whole again after the near death penalty from the NCAA.

Steve (Columbus)

Where does the Duke-Kentucky game rank among the things you've covered or seen?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:14 AM)

Best game I've ever covered--and I've been doing this for 25-plus years. And I'll go to my grave saying it's the greatest college hoops game ever played.

pete (ca)

how much access did you have to the players from both teams?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:15 AM)

Total access. Everybody was unbelievably cooperative and generous with their time--from Laettner to Hurley, to Pitino and K, to the assistants, to, well, all of them.

Ryan (RI)

Do you think with the way players gravitate to the NBA that the college game is suffering? It's hard to imagine seeing a team like that Duke team, with all of that talent these days.

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:17 AM)

Absolutely. And that's partly why that game changed college basketball. It was the beginning of the end of guys who stayed all four years. Laettner would have never stayed four years now, right? The same for Hurley. Grant Hill and Mash were upperclassmen. These days, they'd probably be one and dones. It was a simpler, purer time back then.

Kyle (VA)

Is this a book you've always wanted to write, or did the idea come to you more recently?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:19 AM)

Been thinking about it for about the last five years. And with the 20-year anniversary coming up this March, it was a natural hook and time to do this project. But I knew that night in Philly--and I covered the game for the LA Times--that I had seen something historic and lasting.

Ryan (San Diego)

So, what do you think was the best part about the best game ever? The Shot? OK...then what's the second best part?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:21 AM)

The game was played at an amazingly high level from start to finish. I've watched the game 50 times, at least. The number of truly amazing shots is off the charts. Laettner's shot was the third most difficult shot made that night. But his shot won the game. It was underdog vs. overdog, Pitino vs. Coach K, Laettner, Hurley, etc. vs Unforgettables, dynasty in the making vs. a program trying to become a powerhouse again.

Greg (VA)

do you think the lack of three and four year players on many of the elite teams will not allow us to have great teams like Duke and Kentucky 20 years ago?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:24 AM)

Well, this year's Kentucky team looks like it could be one of the greats. Maybe. But we don't get a chance to ''know" these guys anymore. They don't stick around long enough for us to watch them develop. We saw Laettner from start to finish. It was an impressive transformation. Do we really think Davis is going to stick around at UK? Doubtful. Don't blame him for leaving, but those days of great players staying 3 and 4 years is long gone.

Doug (Houston)

Was this the Laettner "stomp" game as well? That gets lost in all of the rest of it.

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:25 AM)

Yes, this was the Laettner Stomp on Timberlake game Laettner got a technical, but could have been thrown out. And had he been thrown out, just think how the history of college hoops could have changed. Duke might not have won that game, and gone on to win a second consecutive national title.

Ryan (Texas)

Do you think Mash and those guys would be household names if they had won that game?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:27 AM)

I think, in many ways, they're household names because they LOST that game. Even in losing, they sort of won for the UK program. The Unforgettables were named and their jerseys hang from the rafters at Rupp. What an incredible honor for a team that didn't even reach the Final Four. Mash had his jersey retired. UK won a national title a few years later. That team deserves more credit than it gets, but I think most folks remember those guys.

Danny (Charlotte)

What did Christian tell you about that stomp? Do you talk about it much in the book?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:29 AM)

We talk about EVERYTHING in the book. Laett says it was a love tap, that he didn't deserve to get thrown out. The UK guys say he should have been tossed---and that had it been anyone else except Timberlake he stomped on, there would have been a huge brawl. Timberlake was a freshman and was sort of pacifist. Had that happened to Mash, there would have been a fight.

Orlando (Atlanta)

Do you think that game changed the Duke program? They got back to back titles and that kind of jumped them into an elite status ever since then.

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:30 AM)

They were already an elite program, having won the title the year before. Plus, they were going to Final Fours every year. They were on a crazy-good run. But back to backs hadn't been done since the Wooden/UCLA days. It cemented their place in hoops history.

Jeff (KC)

What was so great about that game that you think it was the "last" great game? Don't think we'll see another great gamel ike that?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:31 AM)

You'll have to buy the book (please) to understand all the reasons why it was the last great game. Maybe there will be a game better than that one (the Duke-Butler title game came thisclose), but I'm still waiting.

Paul (Miami)

What was the most interesting thing you think you found out while researching the book?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:35 AM)

That Duke was a functionally dysfunctional basketball family at times. . . that Laettner ruled that team with an iron fist. . . that Pitino's conditioning program was borderline inhumane, but that it worked. . . that those Kentucky kids were basketball heroes. . . that Dr. David Roselle, who basically got run out of his job as UK president, actually saved that program from the NCAA death penalty. . . that the recruiting stories behind each of those players on UK and Duke were fascinating. . .that the relationship between Coach K and Bob Knight was complex and perplexing at times. And that's the short list.

Karl (Denver)

Would you say the game itself was what made everything so special, or was it everything surrounding the game that played a role? Things like the situation, the fact it was for a trip to the Final Four, two different teams, etc.

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:37 AM)

All of the above. But it was DUke vs. Kentucky---two Mt. Rushmore programs. It was K and Pitino. It was all the backstories. It was for a trip to the Final Four. It was an OT game. The shots made were fantastic. And it meant SO much to both teams. And even 20 years later, it still means so much to everyone involved. I love the passion of everyone associated with the game.

Kevin (CT)

Gene, what was your inspiration behind writing this book?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:38 AM)

Simple. I wanted to do that game, that season, those two teams justice. I understand why UK fans would be reluctant to re-live that game, but I think if they give it a chance, they'll appreciate that UK team more than ever---and they'll come away with a real respect for K and that Duke team.

Peter (RI)

What do you think a game would need to have it pass this one as the "last great game"?

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:40 AM)

Put it this way: had Butler made that final shot against Duke in the championship game, that would have surpassed it. But I think we'll know it when we see it, you know what I mean. It will be obvious, just the UK-Duke game was.

Seth (Boston)

Being in that arena that night, what was the atmosphere like? We have seen some tight games, but that game was in the 100's in OT...that's crazy. I mean, last year's title game was in the 60s.

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:42 AM)

All I can tell you is that I've never felt that way after covering a game. Everybody felt that way on press row. Everybody felt it in the stands. It was an electric atmosphere. Find a DVD of it. Or watch Grant Hill's documentary on it (coming out soon). Or ESPNU's upcoming program on it. You can't help but get caught up in it.

Evan (Cleveland)

What was the basketball landscape at that time? Was Kentucky how we view them today? Were they a legit contender that year? We all know Duke was loaded.

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:43 AM)

Kentucky was a No. 2 seed, but a longshot to beat No. 1 Duke. Kentucky was getting there, but it wasn't the UK that we would see several years later. They were a contender, but Duke was definitely the prohibitive favorite.

Scott (Northglenn, CO)

Is the book geared towards the causal basketball fan, or more towards the reall college hoops enthusiast??

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:45 AM)

Both. There's a lot of detail and layers. But you don't have to be a Dookie or a member of Big Blue Nation to enjoy it. I recommend buying a copy for all members of your family. But that's just me.

Gene Wojciechowski

  (11:46 AM)

Hey, thanks for taking the time to chat with me about the book. Hope you enjoy ''The Last Great Game."Take care.Geno