As 1-seed Duke prepares to take on 1-seed Houston tonight in the Final Four in San Antonio, it's most of the players' first time on this stage, at least as players. Kon Knueppel has been here as a fan, his mother Chari showed on X, but it's most of the program's first time on a stage this high.
The only player on the Blue Devils' roster who's been here before is Mason Gillis, who competed in the National Championship last season with Purdue, where the Boilermakers fell to UConn to hand the Huskies their second straight national title.
But Gillis' experience and knowledge of a stage this high makes him potentially Duke's most valuable piece, not necessarily on the court, but in the huddle and locker room. Especially with such a young Blue Devils squad, Gillis' knowledge of the biggest stage in college basketball will come in crucial.
After the Blue Devils won the ACC Tournament, most players were, as expected, celebrating. However, Gillis had a different mindset.
"No reason to," Gillis told 247sports' Adam Rowe on whether he's celebrated the ACC Tournament win or not.
Later on the day before Duke opened up NCAA Tournament play, Gillis further spoke about why he hasn't been celebrating at all.
"We said it all year. We haven't done sh*t and we won't have done sh*t until we win the National Championship," Gillis exclaimed.
That veteran leadership is crucial on a stage like this for a young team. It can be incredibly easy to see all the success a program is having and be happy with it. But there's more work to do for the Blue Devils, and Gillis wants the rest of the team to remember they aren't satisfied until they are cutting down the nets early next week.
The graduate transfer from Purdue is a solid contributor on the court for the Blue Devils, averaging 4.2 points per game on 34.4% shooting from three-point range on the season. But it's his attitude off the court and ability to keep the young guys level-headed that makes him one of the most valuable pieces this Blue Devil program has on the bench.
Tune in to CBS at 8:49 pm ET tonight as Duke looks to advance to the National Championship.