How many times has Duke lost as a 2 seed? Exploring Blue Devils' infamous March Madness run

The Duke Blue Devils’ record in the NCAA tournament speaks for itself. It is a fact that very few programs can boast of being a five-time national champion, but the Blue Devils are among those few.

Over the years, especially under Coach K, the Blue Devils have established a culture of national dominance. However, there have been times when the team fell short of expectations and Duke has lost as a 2-seed 12 times.

Let's revisit some of the instances below.

Revisiting Duke's performances as a 2-seed

The Blue Devils earned their first second-seeding in 1979 and were last seeded No. 2 in 2022. Within that period, the program has been seeded No. 2 for the NCAA tournament a total of 13 times.

Out of the 13 campaigns the Blue Devils have had as a 2-seed, they’ve only gone on to win the championship once. That was their first national championship won under Mike Krzyzewski in 1991.

Most recently, the Blue Devils went to the NCAA tournament as a 2-seed under the guidance of Krzyzewski in 2022. The team went all the way to the Final Four where they lost 81-77 to North Carolina. It was the Blue Devils’ last outing under Coach K and quite an underwhelming way for him to bow out of coaching the team.

The Blue Devils also played in 2017 and 2018, bowing out in the Elite Eight in 2018 and the Round of 32 in 2017. In 2018, Coach K’s men lost to Kansas 85-81 in overtime. Similarly, South Carolina eliminated them the previous year with a score of 88-81.

The Blue Devils’ outing as a 2-seed in 2013 was a bit better. That time, they went as far as the Elite Eight where Louisville beat them 85-63. However, their outing in the preceding season when they were also a 2-seed was poor by Duke’s standards. The Blue Devils lost in the Round of 64 to the Lehigh Mountain Hawks in what is perhaps the most infamous loss in the program’s history.

For two straight seasons before their historic national championship win in 2010, the Blue Devils were 2-seed in the NCAA tournament. They ended both campaigns in the Round of 32 and the Sweet Sixteen respectively.

As previously mentioned, the Blue Devils’ history as a 2-seed in the NCAA tournament hasn’t been all about heartbreaks. Their first-ever triumph in the national championship came as a 2-seed. Will Duke win another national championship as a 2-seed?