Scotch Plains' Thomas Helps Carry Duke to National Championship Title

Scotch Plains native and Duke basketball power forward Lance Thomas waited his whole college career to make it to the top.

Now, his dream has come true.

The Duke senior helped propel his team to the win of its fourth national title Monday night, assisting in the final seconds of the game to keep the Blue Devils ahead with a narrow lead over Butler University. Duke's Brian Zoubek made 1 of 2 foul shots in the last seconds to secure the win 61-59.

Duke is somewhat of a staple during the NCAA Tournament's final weekend – the Blue Devils have now made 11 Final Fours under legendary coach Mike Krzyzewksi. But before their win Monday night, the team hadn't made the Final Four since 2004 and gone beyond the Round of 16 during Thomas's career.

"It's been pretty tough to handle not being able to advance to the Final Four," Thomas told Patch in January. "We're Duke. We're expected to advance far and compete for championships."

Thomas, who's 6-foot-8 and 225 pounds, played 35 minutes during Monday night's championship game and scored 6 points total for his team. He also had 4 personal fouls, 3 turnovers, two steals, 4 rebounds, and 3 field goals attempted.

Brooklyn-born, Thomas moved to Scotch Plains when he was five and played high school basketball for two years at Scotch Plains-Fanwood High before transferring to Newark's St. Benedict's Prep. While there, he flourished under the tutelage of ex-Seton Hall standout Danny Hurley (brother of famous former Duke point guard Bobby Hurley) and became a 2006 McDonalds High School All-American.

Thomas's mom, Lily Irvin, still resides in Scotch Plains, a place the basketball star says he loves and embraces as his hometown.

"Scotch Plains is my home," he said. "I'm very proud to be from there."

And you've made Scotch Plains very proud to have you, Thomas. Congratulations on your win!

Editor's Note: Patch writer Ronak Patel contributed to this story.