IF YOU WANT TO BUILD THE PERFECT TEAM, DUKE IS NOT A BAD . . . BLUEPRINT.

Byline: Nicholas J. Cotsonika Detroit Free Press 

There is no Lou Holtz in Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. No false modesty. No pessimism. No shiftiness in the spotlight. He has no fear of stating the obvious for the record:

He has the top talent, and Duke should win.

``We have a very good team,'' Krzyzewski said. ``There should be high expectations of us.''

And he doesn't mind if his players say the same. Many coaches prefer to hide in safe understatement, fearing the perception of arrogance. But Krzyzewski preaches upright, unashamed, matter-of-fact excellence, and he teaches his players to give no quarter.

The result is a cold, merciless machine marching toward a Saturday night Final Four date with Michigan State.

The Blue Devils own a school-record 31-game winning streak. They have won four NCAA Tournament games by an average of 30 points. Only twice since December have they won by fewer than 10 points.

They are, perhaps, a team for the ages.

``The thing about Duke is that they have better athletes than anyone else - but that's not all,'' Temple coach John Chaney said. ``They respect the game, too. They play the way you should play.

``They don't play for today. You don't see them slapping hands and bumping (behinds) after they make a basket. There's a class about that team, a confidence. They don't celebrate the little pit stops. They dot the i's and cross the t's. They've got will and skill. And they've got wisdom.''

Duke waxed Temple by 21 points Sunday in the East Regional final. The Blue Devils' only loss came in November at the Great Alaskan Shootout, when Cincinnati nailed a last-second shot for a two-point upset. Duke had a close call with Michigan State four days later, but that was after a flight from Anchorage to Durham and after another from Durham to Chicago for the Great Eight. The Blue Devils had no legs, though they won 73-67.

Since then, they have been unstoppable.

Their depth is well-documented: bruising center Elton Brand might be the nation's best player, guard William Avery could go pro now, guard Trajan Langdon is an invaluable leader, forward Shane Battier is the nation's top defender, freshman Corey Maggette could become the best Blue Devil ever . . . and so on.

But what makes the Blue Devils horrifying, instead of simply scary, is their relentless attitude.

``They are like a bunch of sharks,'' said Tulsa coach Bill Self, whose Golden Hurricane was blown away by Duke in the second round. ``When they smell blood, they definitely swarm at you. The message is: There's a runaway train coming. Get out of the way.''

Said forward Chris Carrawell: ``It's kind of funny, huh? Teams look at us like, `We can play with them.' Then, they get out on the court, and it's like, `Damn. We're down 30 already?' It's like they're kids and someone stole their bike.

``That's what you want to send. That's a defeated look. You want to send that message, where you're looking in their eyes, and they're bending over, huffing and puffing, while we're saying, `Let's go! Let's go!' ''

By Carrawell's estimate, at least 30 teams have quit on Duke.

``A couple of teams we played, they'd start talking to us,'' Carrawell said. ``They'd say things like, `You guys are really good.' It becomes a conversation, not a game.''

Battier wouldn't call Duke's attitude a killer instinct. He called it something that, if you're a Michigan State fan, is much more chilling.

``At this point in the year,'' he said, ``it's more of a habit.''

CAPTION(S):

Photo

PHOTO (Color) Elton Brand, left, and Shane Battier are key components to Duke's NCAA mastery.

Kathy Willens/Associated Press