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Whether he admitted it or not, it was a game Anthony King dreamt about. The game he wanted to play well in, more than any other game the ‘Canes competed in this season. Facing Duke, the team he grew up watching as a native of Durham, North Carolina, King got the chance to show the Blue Devils they made a mistake by not recruiting him.

As a kid, he thought he would end up at one the schools in the triangle, whether it was in Tar Heels baby blue, Duke’s royal blue or N.C. State’s crimson red.

The last place he imagined himself was wearing orange and green in Miami.

But he became a ‘Cane and has already made a splash and is sixth in the nation in blocked shots.

Earlier this season, King recorded the first triple-double in school history.

Although he was taught a few lessons by Duke’s Shelden Williams as the superstar center blitzed Miami for 30 points, King came out hungry and with purpose at the tip.

He matched Williams bucket-for-bucket in the first few minutes of the game scoring eight of Miami’s first ten points and finished with 10 points for the game.

But King dominated the boards, grabbing 10 rebounds to help Miami control the glass against Duke 37-30.

“I’m from Durham,” King said. “It was wonderful to play against Duke. I grew up watching Duke and Carolina. I was very excited. It was a great challenge for me cause I am undersized compared to Williams. He just got great position.”

While King was formidable on the offensive end and on the boards, the one area he struggled mightily was in guarding Williams.

Coach Frank Haith noted that most of the game, King was guarding Williams one-on-one. That’s a recipe disaster especially when Williams was able to camp out within six feet of the hoop and has a sweet touch.

“It’s a double-edged sword,” Haith said. “If you double, you leave guys open who can knock down the three. Williams got great position and got the ball so deep. He’s a great player.”

But even so, King recognized things that he needed to improve upon. The main thing is to keep Williams off the block and make him catch the ball up higher.

How will King do that when he gets a second shot at Williams at Duke on March 3?

“I have to beat him to the spot,” King said. “He beat me to the spot most of the game. They would do a push cut and then he would sweep through the lane. The way I keep that from happening is beating him to the spot.”

The goal is not to stop Williams because that’s virtually impossible, but to simply contain him.

And King, a sophomore, who barely played last year, has shown improvement in every game that he’s played this year.

Should we expect anything less when he goes to Durham to face his hometown team?