When Duke had three engagements with Michigan’s Fab Five in 1991-92 and 1992-93, it was really easy to dislike the Fab Five. When they came to Cameron after losing to the Blue Devils in the title game the previous spring, they talked about how Duke “stole” their national championship (they paid a price, too).
Although they came across as very cool to a lot of fans, to Dukies, they came off as annoying, arrogant and unlikeable.
So when Michigan got to the championship game in 1993 against Dean Smith’s UNC Tar Heels, it presented a real dilemma: they couldn’t both lose…