"That was the basket that was good to me," Dunleavy said of the rim he fired at while breaking out of a little shooting slump. "I got my little piece of the net and got a little kiss in, you know, just to say 'thank you.'"

A lift by Mike Dunleavy (right) helps deliver a national title for Coach K (left) and Shane Battier.(AP)

The rims in Minnesota weren't that kind to Dunleavy until Chris Duhon found him wide open 23 feet out with 17 minutes, three seconds left in the national championship game. As he pulled the trigger, Dunleavy was 3-for-16 on the weekend, his confidence about as shaky as his stroke. Twenty-three feet later the very twine he would later clip was ripped and Duke was on its way to its third national championship.

There were plenty of heroes in the Blue Devils' 82-72 victory over Arizona on Monday, but Dunleavy's blast of offense early in the second half was the difference, not just for the 15 points he scored in two sudden, shocking bursts, but the way Arizona was forced to switch its game plan to deal with the ensuing deficit.

Just 26 seconds after his first 3-pointer, Dunleavy nailed a 21-footer from the left side. Nineteen seconds later he hit again from virtually the same spot. What had been a three-point Duke lead was, just 45 seconds later, 10.

"It was key because they were really keying on Jason and Shane," guard Chris Duhon said of Arizona's game plan of limiting Duke All-Americans Jason Williams and Shane Battier. "But that changed with Mike's three shots."

Forced to respect Dunleavy from deep, Battier and Williams found enough space late in the game to score 11 of Duke's final 13 and pull out the win. Forced to deal with a game that was about to be busted wide open after Dunleavy's outburst, the Wildcats abandoned the post-first offense that gave Loren Woods and Michael Wright 21 combined points up to that point. Over the next 9:16, Arizona's two post presences each got just a single basket as the Wildcats tried to get their way back into it with 3-pointers.

"Not going to Loren surprised me because he was having a phenomenal game," Duke center Carlos Boozer said. "They started shooting jumpers."

Said Williams: "I thought it was great. People are always saying you stop Shane and I, you can beat Duke. We're so much bigger than that."

For Dunleavy, the three 3-pointers in 45 seconds was a barrage that will make him a celebrated figure in Duke basketball lore. His six consecutive points later in the half -- a layup, a dunk and a 7-foot bank shot -- didn't hurt either.

And you can see why Dunleavy was kissing the rim. If it wasn't for him, Duke was a Minnesota winter cold from beyond the arc -- the rest of the 3-point reliant team hitting just 4 of 18. Dunleavy wound up 5 of 9 and finished with a team-high 21 points.

Coming into the second half, Dunleavy was an unlikely hero. In Saturday's national semifinal against Maryland he hit just 2 of 8 shots and scored only four points, tying his worst outing of the season. He was 1 of 6 from the field in the first half, then missed his first two after the break. He was 7 of 9 the rest of the way.

"Coming into the second half I was just thinking, 'stay aggressive,'" said Dunleavy, who averaged 12.6 points for the season. "(Assistant) Coach (Chris) Collins and I had a long talk yesterday about being aggressive on offense. Shots didn't go in for me in the first half but that didn't change my mindset.

"I came out in the second half, I think I might have missed my first two. But Chris kicked the three out to me and it was pretty deep. (But I) shot it (and) it went in. Then that kind of got me going. It was good timing too, to do it at the national championship game."

The sophomore from Portland is the son of the Trail Blazers head coach of the same name. He is well schooled in shooting mechanics and was a deft jump shooter heading into his senior year at Jesuit High School when he stood just 6-feet-4. But a late growth spurt, which stretched into his freshman year in Durham, now has him standing a long but lean 6-8. He now is able to shoot the ball over virtually any defender, even the quick Wildcats who relentlessly closed on the perimeter all night.

"Mike didn't have a great game Saturday against Maryland," Duhon said of Dunleavy's 2 of 8 shooting performance. "He put pressure on himself to step up big and show what type of player he was."

"Mike Dunleavy's not a great basketball player, he's a phenomenal basketball player," Battier said. "I think he's overshadowed on this team. People talk about Jason and myself. But we believe Mike is just as good as us."

They'll be talking about Dunleavy now for a long time to come. The three 3-pointers, the 21 points, the second-half dunk and, of course, the kiss. The Blue Devils' championship kiss.