One fact of every Duke game is that opposing coaches, players, and Duke haters all over social media are going to complain about the officiating every time the Blue Devils win.
Even when the game ends up not being close.
Duke beat TCU by 23 points in the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament. It did it thanks to stifling defense, the return of Patrick Ngongba, and a monster second-half by National Player of the Year front-runner Cameron Boozer.
That seemed obvious watching the game, unless you're a Duke hater and/or TCU head coach Jamie Dixon, who wanted to blame the officiating for the loss. I guess that's easier than admitting you got your butt kicked.
"We lead the league in free-throw attempts. Didn't happen today," Dixon said. "They made their free throws. They beat us from the free-throw line, simply put. That's where there was scoring.
Duke ultimately shot 13 more free throws than TCU, converting 20-of-23 attempts while the Horned Frogs were just 5-of-10. But it's not hard to see why Duke shot more free throws. The Blue Devils were the more physical team, outrebounding TCU 42-25.
And the Horned Frogs - like so many other teams this year - could do nothing with Boozer other than foul him repeatedly.
Jamie Dixon's officiating frustration was compounded by a techncial foul
The one legitimate gripe Dixon had was with what should have been a goaltending call on Duke that the officials missed in the second half. His ire with the refs was obvious in the aftermath, and a couple of possessions later, he was hit with a technical foul.
"Obviously, we know what it was. Everybody knows what it was," Dixon said. "You know, it's -- what can you say? What can you say? It's a big play, big play. Then you compound it. I didn't cuss. I didn't say anything bad. Had a conversation with him. It's a huge impact on the game."
Duke was leading TCU 59-50 when Dixon was hit with the technical foul call. The Blue Devils finished the game on a 23-8 run to win 81-58.
Missed calls are going to happen. Duke fans were certainly livid - and justifiably so - with the flagrant foul call on Cameron Boozer in the first half. The difference? The Blue Devils shook it off and played winning basketball to advance to the Sweet 16 instead of dwelling on a missed call.
Dixon spent the majority of his postgame press conference with thinly-veiled complaints, and then had the audacity to say:
"No excuses from our guys. Certainly there's plenty of opportunities to come up with excuses, but you haven't heard any from us," Dixon said.
Sure thing, Coach Dixon.