YOUTH BEDEVILING BLUE DEVILS.

Byline: BRIAN DOHN

COLLEGE BASKETBALL 

Everyone around college basketball wants to know what's wrong with Duke, which is precisely why everyone around college basketball is either a Blue Devils fan or carries a strong dislike or hatred for them.

The consensus seems to be Duke being ranked in the top 10 and being a contender for the Final Four is a birthright, and stumbling along like every other program is unimaginable.

The reality is that Duke lost J.J. Redick and Sheldon Williams and could not replace them, mainly because they are irreplaceable.

So why was Duke sitting at 18-7, and tied for sixth in the Atlantic Coast Conference, heading into Wednesday's game at league-leading Boston College?

Simple -- its only senior is Josh Pagliuca, and he has played 12 career games. And while junior DeMarcus Nelson leads the team in scoring (14ppg), Duke's next six top scorers are freshmen and sophomores.

"They're young," Maryland coach Gary Williams said. "You don't lose Sheldon Williams and J.J. Redick, two of the best players in the country last year, and not have to get some experience for your players coming in, no matter how good they are.

"Duke has some good players that will continue to improve, and they're still playing with the same energy level all the great Duke teams have played with. They're close."

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski gets his just due in the criticism department for coming off whiny after disappointing NCAA Tournament losses, but the reason for the national hubbub is his high level of success.

When the Blue Devils fell at Maryland on Sunday, it pushed their losing streak to four games. That is the longest losing streak for Duke with Krzyzewski on the bench, although Duke lost sixstraight during the 1994-95 season when the coach took a leave of absence because of back problems and exhaustion. Bob Gaudet was on the bench for the final five games of that streak.

"I think I should have been credited with all the losses," Krzyzewski said. "Overall, the bottom line is, I'm responsible, even though I'm not there. That's the way I looked at it, but it doesn't make any difference to me. I wouldn't want the wins. Let's put it that way. But you can give me the losses."

Now, losses to Virginia, Florida State, North Carolina and Maryland have put Duke in another unfamiliar spot. And, no, we're not talking about being on the NCAA's bubble. Duke will win 20 games this season, and that will be enough for another dance ticket.

The Blue Devils are not ranked by the Associated Press for the first time in 201 polls. But neither the NCAA Tournament nor the polls are of concern.

"I think right now, with this team, and we've basically done that with all of our teams, just concentrate on the job at hand," Krzyzewski said. "If you don't take care of the job at hand and attempt to do as well as you can, then the big picture will always be not as good."

The toughest part for Krzyzewski is trying to get out of the funk. In the first three games of the losing streak, Duke had double-digit leads.

"Losing, and how you lose; is it lack of effort? Is it lack of belief? Is it lack of work?" Krzyzewski said. "No, it's none of those things for our guys. They believe. They work hard."

Zig-Zaggin' to NCAAs: The NCAA selection committee could have an interesting decision when it comes to Gonzaga.

After seeing their 50-game home winning streak come to an end Monday against Santa Clara, the Bulldogs are in second place in the West Coast Conference.

Although Gonzaga (18-9, 9-3) has victories against North Carolina and Texas, its RPI was No. 57 heading into the week. The selection committee usually takes injury and suspension into consideration for choosing teams, and the Zags are without second-leading scorer and leading rebounder Josh Heytvelt (15.5ppg, 7.7 rpg). Heytvelt and teammate Theo Davis were arrested Saturday for possession of marijuana and psychedelic mushrooms.

The Bulldogs, usually a lock for the 65-team field, might have to win the WCC tournament to get into the NCAAs. Adding to that difficulty, the Zags won't have the home court to rely on;this year's WCC tournament is at the University of Portland.

Nice decision: Think television might be regretting a decision before the season to switch the days UCLA plays the Washington schools to end the season?

If the original schedule remained, the first-place Bruins (21-3, 10-2) and second-place Cougars (21-4, 10-3) could be meeting March 3 in Pullman, Wash., to decide the Pacific-10 Conference title. But TV wanted a marquee matchup between UCLA and Washington to end the season, so the order of the trip was flipped.

So the March 1 game in Pullman will come on a Thursday, and could still be for the conference title, while the Huskies (16-8, 6-7) could be battling for an NCAA berth in the season finale with UCLA.

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CAPTION(S):

2 photos, 6 boxes

Photo:

(1) Without strong leadership from upperclassmen this season, it's been a struggle for Duke and its young players, such as Greg Paulus, left, and Lance Thomas.

Sara D. Davis/Associated Press

(2) After a big win against UCLA, Da'Sean Butler and West Virginia fell to Georgetown.

Gerald Herbert/Associated Press

Box:

(1) Daily News/CBS 2/KCAL 9 SPORTS CENTRAL POWER RANKINGS

- Brian Dohn

(2) THEY SAID IT

(3) KEY STAT

(4) RUMOR MILL

(5) SCOUTING THE FIELD

(6) THIS WEEK'S BEST BET