Last away ACC game for Duke tonight vs Wake Forest 9 PM on ESPNU
In a bit of a surprise, the Duke Blue Devils needed overtime to defeat the Virginia Tech Hokies, 70-65. Austin Rivers and Seth Curry continued to set the pace for the Blue Devils scoring a combined 42 out of the 70. Both were very solid defensively with Rivers spending a lot of his time on Jarell Eddie, holding him to 5 points. Curry had the assignment of Dorenzo Hudson and Marquis Rankin holding them to a combined 16 points, with Hudson making some crazy tough shots down the stretch for 8 of his points. Miles Plumlee continued his terrific play as of late by protecting the rim and pulling in 15 rebounds. Tyler Thornton also continued his great play by setting up the offense and taking away the opponents best player, not to mention knocking down the open three. Ryan Kelly was solid and for the most part has been all season, although he has been in a shooting slump. Andre Dawkins has been inconsistent his whole collegiate career, but recently was playing well defensively even when he wasn’t offensively. This game looks to be more of an aberration and Dawkins has been relatively consistent and playing well of late. Quinn Cook, Josh Hairston and maybe Michael Gbinije will be specialist for the team and will see anywhere from 1 minute to 10 for the rest of the season. That leaves Mason Plumlee. Plumlee is struggling with averages of only 7.5 points, 8 rebounds, and 0.6 assists on 38.5 percent shooting. Without the consistent double, double from Mason Plumlee I am afraid this team will fall short of its lofty goals. Many our saying that 2010 didn’t get points from the interior and won it all, but that team had three consistent perimeter threats, this team only has two. Now if Curry, Rivers and either Ryan Kelly or Andre Dawkins all have big games on the same night then you can live without Mason Plumlee having a big game. The problem is that Andre Dawkins is not a consistent scoring threat and Ryan Kelly lives off of certain matchups. If Duke can get their big three of Mason Plumlee, Seth Curry and Austin Rivers up and ready to go in time for the NCAA Tournament they will be good to go.
The all important trap game right before the matchup of the year with North Carolina. The Wake Forest Demon Deacons enter the game 13-15 overall and 4-10 inthe ACC. When playing the Demon Deacons your really need to focus on two guys and if you take care of them you wont have to worry. Garry Harris and Travis McKie are two legitimate players that can play for anybody, but the Demon Deacons have little on the rest of the roster. In the first matchup, McKie and Harris combined for 36 points on 12-20 shooting, This is a big chance for Wake Forest to build some momentum going into the ACC Tournament and into next season. It is important that the Blue Devils aren’t looking ahead to the showdown withNorth Carolinaand take care of business against the Demon Deacons.
Scouting Report
PG- #1 Tony Chennault So. Game 1- 35min, 13pts, 3reb, 2ast
Chennault is a solid point guard, but isn’t anything too special. Chennault is an all around player that doesn’t necessarily possess a single great strength on the court. This a good matchup for Duke and they need to do a better job this time around.
SG- #11 C.J. Harris Jr. Game 1- 32min, 20pts, 3reb, 3ast
Harris is one of the most improved players in college basketball. Harris really used his time well over the offseason to work on his ball handling and shooting. Harris is shooting nearly 50 percent from the floor and from the 3pt line and also is able to get to the foul line. Duke had its hands full with guarding Harris in the first game, but expect Thornton to check Harris.
F- #25 Nikita Mescheriakov Sr. Game 1- 25min, 12pts, 4reb, 0ast
Nikita is a unique player in that he plays a European style. He likes to play finesse on offense with jumpers and ball fakes around the rim. On defense Mescheriakov is aggressive and will foul a lot. This is going to be a real tough matchup both ways for Nikita. Read more
Duke vs. Wake Forest: By The Numbers
After narrowly escaping with an overtime victory over the Virginia Tech Hokies on Saturday, the Duke Blue Devils (25-4, 12-2) will travel on the road for the last conference away game of the season to meet the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (13-15, 4-10) on Tuesday night. The Blue Devils will bring with them a 7-0 ACC road record with them to LJVM Coliseum, as they will look to become the third team in school history to finish with a perfect 8-0 road record in conference play. Duke moved up in both top-25 polls this week as they are up to #3 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and #4 in the AP Poll. Duke is 51-10 all-time when ranked #4 in the AP Poll. The Blue Devils won the first meeting this season over the Demon Deacons 91-73, as they got 61 points combined from Andre Dawkins (21), Ryan Kelly (20), and Austin Rivers (20). The Blue Devils enter atop the ACC standings tied with North Carolina (Duke owns the tiebreaker with a win over UNC), as they are looking for their 23rd ACC regular season championship. Tuesday’s meeting will be broadcasted live on ESPNU with the tip-off set for 9:00 PM ET.
Duke-Wake Forest Series
• Thursday’s game marks the 236th meeting between Duke and Wake Forest, tying it as the most-played series in the ACC.
• Duke and Wake Forest met for the first time on March 2, 1906.
• The Blue Devils lead the series 159-77 and are 10-10 in games played in Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
• Duke has won four straight in the series overall. During that four-game win streak, Duke owns a +18.0 scoring margin. Duke has scored at least 90 points in three of those four meetings.
• The Blue Devils’ last 14 wins in the series have
been by 10 or more points.
• Mike Krzyzewski is 40-23 at Duke against the Demon Deacons. The Blue Devils are 15-14 under Coach K on the road against Wake Forest.
• The Blue Devils have won 24 of the last 29 meetings between the two schools.
• Wake Forest’s last five wins in the series have come in Lawrence Joel Coliseum.
Numbers Game
• Duke and Michigan State are the only teams in the NCAA to rank in the top 5 in RPI, Strength of Schedule as well as the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls.
• Duke and North Carolina are tied for first place in the ACC and each have two games remaining, including their March 3 showdown in Durham.
• Duke is 7-0 in ACC road games this season and is looking to become only the third team in school history to finish 8-0 in ACC road games.
• Duke has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP Poll for 91 straight weeks, tied for the second-longest streak in NCAA history.
• Duke is 7-0 in ACC road games, marking only the fifth time in school history that Duke has won its first seven league road games. Only three Duke teams have gone undefeated in ACC road play, the most recent being the 1999-2000 team (8-0).
• The Blue Devils have scored at least 73 points in all seven ACC road games.
• The Blue Devils are 14-3 on the year in games decided by 10 points or less. The Blue Devils have seven wins in ACC play by less than 10 points. Duke’s 14 wins by 10 points or less are tied for the second-most in school history.
• Duke won its 25th game of the season last Saturday versus Virginia Tech and now has at least 25 wins in 13 of the last 14 seasons. Duke has won at least 25 games in 23 of Mike Krzyzewski’s 32 seasons as head coach. Read more
Duke trying to keep atop the ACC against Virginia Tech today at noon
By Ray Horn — Duke’s 74-66 win in Tallahassee against Florida State may have been their best performance all season long. I think the 8 point margin isn’t as indicative of how well Duke played. I personally thought Duke got the short end of the whistle for most of the game. That’s not to say that Duke didn’t get some questionable calls in their favor because they did, but Florida State seemed to get away with a lot things that Duke didn’t. I think this game goes on what I’ve been saying for the past couple of weeks now. Duke has a 7 man main rotation with Josh Hairston and Quinn Cook seeing spot minutes. Offensively Duke is always going to feed their hot hand which was Andre Dawkins last night, but the focal points of the offense are Seth Curry and Austin Rivers. Rivers is continuing to really play at a high level in all facets and although Curry struggled shooting the ball last night he really stepped up in the clutch. Ryan Kelly and Miles Plumlee both played good defense and contributed offensively. The main issue going forward is the play of Mason Plumlee. He knows he’s struggling and it has really shaken his confidence, you can see it in his face. I know the Blue Devils are playing really well right now, but to reach their ultimate goal, Mason Plumlee has to go back to being a beast in the paint.
It’s a quick turnaround for the Blue Devils with a noon tip-off against the Virginia Tech Hokies. The Hokies come in with a record of 15-13 and 4-9 inconference play. Don’t let the record fool you, the Hokies could very easily be 9-4 in conference play. Five of the Hokies losses in ACC play have come by a combined 12 points. One of the Hokies not so close games came in their first meeting against the Blue Devils, with Duke winning 75-60. The Blue Devils got good performances from all of their roster, especially from Rivers and Kelly. Virginia Tech had some success going inside during the first half, but they cooled off and Erik Green was the Hokies only source of offense for most of the night. Virginia Tech has continued their solid play on the defensive end of the floor, but has also continued to struggle on the offensive end. This is definitely a trap game considering Duke is coming off short rest, off a big road win and has struggled in Cameron Indoor Stadium so far this year.
Scouting Report
PG- #11 Erik Green Jr. Game 1- 36min, 17pts, 7reb, 1ast
Green is the Hokies’ best player and plays the most important position, point guard. But he is not a traditional point guard; he is going to look for his shot more than distributing the ball. Green has very good size for a lead guard at 6’4” and can play good defense. On the offensive side of the ball Green likes the mid range pull up as well as knocking down the three and getting in transition. Shutting him down has to be Duke’s number one priority.
SG- #5 Dorenzo Hudson Sr. Game1- 27min, 6pts, 1reb, 1ast
Hudson was the team’s sixth man, but has returned to the starting lineup. Hudson also has good size at 6’5” and is strong and athletic. Hudson will slash and shoot, but he doesn’t shoot it well at 31 percent. A good perimeter defender, he will most likely spend a lot of time guarding Austin Rivers. Hudson is a real nice all around player although he struggled in the first matchup. Read more
Duke vs. Virginia Tech: By The Numbers
After knocking off the Florida State Seminoles on the road Thursday night, the Duke Blue Devils (24-4, 11-2) return home to play host to the Virginia Tech Hokies (15-13, 4-9) on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Devils enter Saturday’s contest now in sole possession of 1st place in the ACC (they own the tie-breaker over North Carolina) after the crucial road win over Florida State. Duke now goes from possibly their biggest of the year, thus far, to now meeting a Virginia Tech team that has had a very, difficult season. They have lost 6 of their last 10 games and sit at 9th place in the conference. The Hokies are led by junior guard Erick Green who is averaging a team best 15.7 points per game. Green scored 17 points in the first meeting against Duke. The Blue Devils will come in ranked #4 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and #5 in the AP Poll. They sport a 68-24 all-time record when ranked #5 in the AP Poll. Saturday’s game will be broadcasted on the ACC Network as well as ESPN3 with the tip-off set for 12:00 PM ET.
Duke-Virginia Tech Series
• Duke and Virginia Tech have met 46 times heading into Saturday’s game with the first meeting between the two schools coming on Feb. 16, 1912.
• The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 38-8, including a 9-3 ledger since the Hokies joined the ACC.
• Duke won the previous meeting this season 75-60 in Blacksburg, Va., thanks to an 18-point effort from freshman Austin Rivers. Duke has won two in a row in the series and six of the last seven meetings.
• The Blue Devils are 15-1 against the Hokies in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
• Mike Krzyzewski is 9-3 at Duke against the Hokies, including a 4-1 record in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
• Six of Duke’s last seven wins over Virginia Tech have been by at least 12 points. Duke’s last three losses to Virginia Tech have been by no more than four points.
Numbers Game
• Duke is the only team in the NCAA to rank in the top 5 in RPI, Strength of Schedule as well as the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls. Duke has three wins against top 10 teams in the RPI.
• The Blue Devils are 12-2 at home this season with both losses coming against ACC teams. Duke has not lost more than two games on Coach K Court since the 2006-07 season.
• With Thursday’s win at Florida State, Duke has assumed first place in the ACC standings.
• Duke has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP Poll for 90 straight weeks, the third-longest streak in NCAA history.
• The Blue Devils are 13-3 on the year in games decided by 10 points or less. The Blue Devils have six wins in ACC play by less than 10 points. Duke’s 13 wins by 10 points or less are tied for the sixth most in school history.
• Duke averages 25.5 points per game off the bench with 11 games with 30 or more bench points. The Blue Devils have had a double-digit scorer off the bench in 21 of 28 games this season.
• Only four Duke teams have won their first seven ACC road games. The Blue Devils are 7-0 in ACC road games, joining the 2005-06, 1999-2000 and 1998-99 teams as the only groups to win their first seven ACC road contests. Duke has not gone undefeated in ACC road games since 1999-2000.
• Duke has hit at least eight three-pointers in seven straight games. During that streak, the Blue Devils are shooting 37.8 percent from three-point range while averaging 30.4 ppg. from three-pointers.
Duke Player Statistics
• Andre Dawkins leads the ACC with a .422 three-point shooting percentage. Dawkins is 65-of-154 from beyond the arc this season and ranks third in made three-pointers.
• Austin Rivers leads Duke in scoring at 15.2 points per game and has reached double figures in 24 contests. He is attempting to become just the third Duke freshman to lead the team in scoring.
• Miles Plumlee is averaging 9.0 points and 11.5 rebounds over his last four games. He has two double-figure rebounding games and two double-figure scoring games during that span, including a Coach K-era record 22 boards against Maryland.
• Seth Curry has made 16 consecutive free throws and 35 of his last 38 free throw attempts. He ranks second in the ACC with an .884 free throw percentage, which would rank as the seventh highest single-season mark in school history.
• Duke has had at least four double-figure scorers in 16 games this season. The Blue Devils are 15-1 when at least four players score 10 points.
• Seven Duke players have started at least 10 games this season, tying the school record. Duke last had seven players with at least 10 starts in 2008-09.
• In the first meeting this season, Austin Rivers led Duke with a game-high of 18 points as Duke prevailed in Blacksburg, 75-60.
Duke heads to Tallahasse for revenge and control of the ACC
By Ray Horn — The Duke Blue Devils were able to take of business and play an anti-climactic game, going on the road to defeat the Boston College Eagles 75-50. In the game’s first 3 minutes and 19 seconds, Duke gave up only 13 points. For the final 36 minutes and 41 seconds, a focused defensive effort led to the Blue Devils only giving up 37 points on 25 percent shooting. The Duke defense has had their moments and it was nice to see an almost complete performance, even though the Eagles aren’t very talented. Austin Rivers and Seth Curry continued their good play with 16 and 18 points respectively. Tyler Thornton continues to give the team defense and leadership. Miles Plumlee has been playing really well lately and his aggressiveness on the backboard is really paying off. With the recent play from Rivers and Curry, Andre Dawkins has been overshadowed a little bit, but I think Dawkins has played really well as of late. His shooting has just been average for his standards, but his energy level and defense is by far the best and most consistent it’s been since he’s been at Duke. Keeping those five guys playing well and within their roles for the rest of the season seems to be the plan and those guys just need to keep producing like they have been.
That leaves Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly, who have been struggling since the Virginia Tech game. Plumlee is 19-51, 37 percent, from the field in the last six games. He has also been fouling more, picking up four fouls in three of those games, and turning it over more with 12 turnovers to only 5 assists. The one area where Plumlee is still producing is on the boards at 9.3 per game. In Ryan Kelly’s last six games he is 18-52, 35 percent from the field. Kelly, like Plumlee, is also fouling more often; picking up four fouls in four of the six contests. The Blue Devils need both Plumlee and Kelly to pick it up on both ends of the floor if they want to beat the higher echelon teams in March.
That brings us to a battle of two of the three teams tied atop the standings in the ACC. Duke and Florida State are both 10-2 inconference play, and so is North Carolina. The Seminoles defeated the Blue Devils 76-73 on January 21st in Cameron Indoor Stadium on a buzzer beating three from Michael Snaer. As you may know, Florida State is an older team; Coach K called them “a team full of men”. Sporting 6 scholarship seniors who all see minutes, Florida State is known for their defense which is number two in the entire country in field goal percentage against. The key for FSU over the rest of the season is the same as it’s been the past couple of years: can they score enough points? The Seminoles are up to 45.5 percent field goal shooting as compared to 43 percent at this time last year. The glaring issue for Florida State is their assists and turnovers. They are near the bottom in all of the country in both assists per game and turnovers per game, turning the ball over an astronomical 16.7 times per game and only averaging 11.8 helpers. The Seminoles need to improve their ball movement and taking care of the ball if they want to go deep into March. To me, their other key is getting good play from their two big sophomores Okaro White and Ian Miller. Michael Snaer and Bernard James are the Seminoles’ two best players and have been consistent all year long. White and Miller need to bring them some offense or those turnovers become even bigger in a low scoring, low possession game.
Team Scouting Report
PG- #3 Luke Loucks Sr. Game 1- 29min, 8pts, 3reb, 3ast, 2stl
Loucks is the consummate team player that plays good defense and runs the offense. On the offensive side of the ball Loucks initiates the offense then spots up for open threes which he shoots at a good clip. Loucks isn’t going to be doing a whole lot of penetrating. On the defensive side of the ball Loucks has great size and does a good job pressuring the ball. Loucks will draw the assignment of Seth Curry. Curry has been terrific lately and Loucks will have his hands full with him. Curry struggled going 4-16 inthe first matchup, but was in the midst of shooting slump and the shots he was getting have me encourage that if he gets them again in this game he’ll knock them down. Read more
Duke vs. Florida State: By The Numbers
The Duke Blue Devils (23-4, 10-2) and Florida State Seminoles (19-7, 10-2) will meet for the second time this season on Thursday, with a lot at stake. The Blue Devils and Seminoles both enter tied for 2nd in the ACC standings (UNC is 1st at 11-2) with 3 and 4 games respectively remaining for each team. A win on Thursday is pivotal to stay in the hunt for the ACC Championship. Florida State won the 1st meeting last month with a Michael Snaer buzzer-beating 3-point basket that ended Duke’s 45-game home winning streak, as well as their 64-game home winning streak vs. unranked opponents, 76-73. Since that victory over Duke, Florida State has only lost one game, that being against Boston College 15-days ago. Entering Thursday’s meeting, the Seminoles have won 10 of their last 11 games. Snaer leads the Seminoles in scoring at 13.5 points per game. Duke will enter ranked #4 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and #5 in the AP Poll. Florida State enters ranked #15 in the AP Poll and #16 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Duke is 67-24 all-time when ranked #5 in the AP Poll. Duke was ranked #4 in the first meeting when they fell to the Seminoles in January. This key ACC matchup will be broadcasted live on ESPN from the Donald L. Tucker Center with the tip time set for approximately 7:00 PM ET.
Duke-Florida State Series
• Duke and Florida State have met 38 times heading into Thursday’s game with the first meeting between the two schools coming on Jan. 3, 1955.
• The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 30-8, including a 29-8 ledger since Florida State joined the ACC.
• Duke has lost two straight in the series after winning the previous five meetings. The Blue Devils have won 10 of the last 14 games between the two schools.
• Mike Krzyzewski is 28-7 at Duke against the Seminoles, including a 12-6 record at the Donald L. Tucker Center. Duke has won four of the last six road meetings in the series.
• Duke’s eight losses to Florida State have been by a combined 24 points (3.0 points per game). The Blue Devils have not lost by more than five points to the Seminoles.
• 11 of the last 15 games in the series have been decided by 10 points or less.
Numbers Game
• Duke is the only team in the NCAA to rank in the top 5 in RPI, Strength of Schedule as well as the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches polls. Duke has three wins against top 10 teams in the RPI.
• The Blue Devils are currently 6-0 on the road in league play. Duke has not won seven straight ACC road contests since the 2005-06 season.
• The Blue Devils are 4-1 on the season against ranked opponents. The last time Duke played a ranked Florida State team was an 84-81 win at Cameron Indoor Stadium on March 3, 1990.
• Duke has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP Poll for 90 straight weeks, the third-longest streak in NCAA history.
• The Blue Devils are 12-3 on the year in games decided by 10 points or less. The Blue Devils have five wins in ACC play by less than 10 points. Duke’s 12 wins by 10 points or less are the ninth-most in school history.
• Duke averages 25.2 points per game off the bench with 10 games with 30 or more bench points. The Blue Devils have had a double-digit scorer off the bench in 20 of 27 games this season.
• The Blue Devils have had at least one 20-point scorer in each of the last six trips to Tallahassee.
• Only five Duke teams have won their first six ACC road games. The Blue Devils are 6-0 in ACC road games to start this season, joining the 2005-06, 1999-2000, 1998-99 and 1962-63 teams as the only ones to win their first six ACC road contests.
• Duke has hit at least eight three-pointers in six straight games. During that streak, the Blue Devils are averaging 29.0 ppg. from three-point range.
• The Blue Devils have scored at least 40 points in the second half in five straight games. The Blue Devils are averaging 41.5 points in the second half of games this season. Read more
Duke vs. Boston College: By The Numbers
By Chad Lykins — Overcoming their largest halftime deficit (16-points) in the Mike Krzyzewski era and even being down by 20-points with 11 1/2 minutes left in their ACC contest against the North Carolina State Wolfpack, the Duke Blue Devils (22-4, 9-2) once again dug down deep and found a way to pull out a victory over the Wolfpack, keeping them in the top tier of the ACC (along with North Carolina and Florida State). With that win, making it their third straight victory, the Blue Devils will go on the road as they will travel to the Conte Forum to meet the Boston College Eagles (8-18, 3-9) on Sunday evening. The Blue Devils will enter Sunday’s meeting undefeated on the road in league play (5-0), with a sixth straight road win making it the first time since the 2005-06 season where Duke has won six straight ACC road games. The Eagles bring in a 2-game losing streak, with their last and best win coming nearly 2 weeks ago as they took down Florida State in BC. Boston College is led by 6’8 freshman Ryan Anderson as he leads the team in scoring at 10.4 points per game and in rebounding averaging 6.9 rebounds per game. As it stands right now, the Blue Devils are in sole position of third place in the ACC (UNC and FSU both won Saturday) with a win Sunday will once again place them in a three-way tie atop the ACC with UNC and FSU. Duke will enter ranked #4 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and #5 in the AP Poll (66-24 all-time when ranked #5 in AP Poll). Sunday’s game will be televised on ESPNU with the tip-off set for approximately 6:00 PM ET.
Duke-Boston College Series
• Duke and Boston College have met 15 times heading into Sunday’s game with the first meeting between the two schools coming on Dec. 21, 1979.
• The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 13-2, including a 9-1 ledger since Boston College joined the ACC.
• Duke has won four straight and 12 of the last 13 games in the series.
• Mike Krzyzewski is 12-2 at Duke against the Eagles, including a 4-1 record at the Conte Forum.
• Seven of the 10 games since Boston College joined the ACC have been decided by 10 points or less.
• All five games in the series that have been played at the Conte Forum have been decided by 10 points or less.
• Duke and Boston College have met twice in the ACC Tournament with Duke winning both games. Read more
Duke Looks To Build On Resilient Comeback
Just when you think the Duke Blue Devils had turned the corner and were ready to become elite they go down by 20 to a bubble team at home. Once again the 2011-2012 version of the Duke Blue Devils doesn’t play a full 40 minutes and it’s been happening at home. For as bad as the first 28 plus minutes of the game were the final 11 and change were as good as you could ever hope for. Did NC State help dig their own grave? Of course they did, but this had more to do with Duke then it did with the Wolfpack. While both teams have to cooperate during a big comeback I felt that North Carolina blew the game more so than the Wolfpack did. The Blue Devils went on a 37-12 run to end the game which is simply incredible. First to score 37 points in about 11 minutes is almost unfathomable and with the Duke defense being under such a huge microscope this year to hold the Wolfpack to 12 points in 11 minutes is also quite remarkable.
Now what did I take from this game? Inexcusable defense in the first half, the Devils got spread out and totally abused with great cutting and passing. NC State did knock down shots they don’t normally hit and it showed in the second half, but the Duke defense needs to be better than that, especially at home. In the second half I thought the defense was solid for the first 9 minutes and then spectacular in the final 11. It’s quite clear what the Duke offense should and probably is going to be from now on: Seth Curry coming off down screens, Austin Rivers getting ball screens or Mason Plumlee one on one in the post. Everyone else is a complimentary piece on the offense, even Ryan Kelly and Andre Dawkins. Now I am not saying they shouldn’t get the ball or shots, just that they aren’t going to be isolated or the focal point of the offense unless they are having a great game. Dawkins will play a big role in spotting up both in transition and off drives which gives him plenty of shot opportunities and Ryan Kelly will be used on a ton of pick and pops and drive and kicks. My last thought is that it is quite clear that Duke has a solid 7 man rotation and Josh Hairston and Quinn Cook need to be used sparingly. I think both should play in every game, but in short spurts and they shouldn’t and haven’t earned the opportunity to play through mistakes. Both are way too inconsistent and I felt that both really stopped an earlier potential run in the second half with their shot selection and defense. Like I said both should play, just in spot situations somewhere between 2 and 10 minutes a game.
The next challenge for the Blue Devils is the Boston College Eagles. The Eagles are a very young team with seven of its top ten players being freshmen or sophomores. In his second year as BC’s head coach, I think Donahue is a very good and as long as he can recruit the Eagles will again be a factor in the ACC. However, this year’s Boston College team is not all that competitive at 8-18 and 3-9 in the ACC. The high for the Eagles this season is a 64-60 win over Florida State on February 8th. The Eagles play at a rather slow pace which makes their 15 turnovers per game an even bigger area of weakness. This is a team that shoots a lot of threes, but don’t shoot them at a very high percentage. Statistically this is one of the worst offenses in the country and their defense isn’t a whole lot better. The only area in which BC grades out well in is they don’t foul a whole lot. All that being said, BC just beat Florida State at home a week and a half ago and consistency doesn’t seem to be this Blue Devils team’s calling card.
Team Scouting Report Read more
Duke must show it can protect home court tonight against NC State
By Ray Horn — The Duke Blue Devils may have had their most impressive week of play with wins against North Carolina and Maryland. Duke showed a lot of toughness in coming back from ten down with 2 minutes and change left to defeat the Tar Heels. The Blue Devils showed some defense and rebounding to go along with toughness to stave off a Maryland run and win by 18. The official Austin Rivers coming out party occurred at the Dean Dome with his game winning shot and 29 point performance. Most fans knew it was only a matter of time before Rivers had such a big game and the hope is that there are more of these performances to come.
Miles Plumlee had quite possibly his best game in a Duke uniform with 13 points and 22 rebounds against Maryland. If you remember two years ago on their way to a national championship the Blue Devils received a 16 point 17 rebound performance against the Terrapins from Brian Zoubek. That was his coming out party, we can only hope that Miles Plumlee has a Zoubekian finish to his Duke career. Those two performances have stoodout, but lost in the shuffle has been the re-emergence of Seth Curry.
Curry has broken out of his shooting slump and has been terrific in his last three games, averaging 18.7 points per game on 19-38 shooting from the field and 11-21 shooting from the 3 point line. The redshirt junior has also taken care of the ball with 7 assists to only 2 turnovers in the past three games. I had been clamoring for Duke fans to support Curry as it was only a matter of time before he got going again and now he is back to being an all ACC caliber guard. Remember, in the preseason Coach K felt that Curry was going to be one of the better guards in the country. Keep an eye on the Duke defense throughout the rest of the regular season. The defense was strong against Maryland and Coach K stated that Curry and Rivers are playing their best defense of the season and Tyler Thornton is really stepping up on that end of the floor.
The North Carolina State Wolfpack are the next opponent for the Blue Devils. They are on the bubble for the NCAA Tournament and are looking for that signature win to lock them into the field. In his first year on the job as Wolfpack head coach, Gottfried has done a wonderful job on the recruiting trail and has a top five class locked in for next season. In terms of on court performance, Gottfried has done a good job with this crew that was very inconsistent and sloppy last year. Gottfried puts a heavy emphasis on sharing the ball and not just running sets for one specific player. The Wolfpack play a seven man rotation and all five starters average in double figures.
A big move for the Wolfpack was converting Lorenzo Brown from shooting guard to point guard with the transfer of Ryan Harrow. Brown has done an excellent job of distributing the ball averaging nearly seven assists per game. On the defensive side of the ball, NC State puts a lot of emphasis on protecting the rim without fouling, but struggles in guarding the three point line. By my count the Wolfpack have played 8 games against teams that are legitimate contenders for NCAA at large tournament berths. Their record in those games is 2-6. They are giving up 77 points per game and teams are shooting over 47 percent in those games. The staggering stat in those games is that NC State’s opponents are shooting over 41 percent from the three point line. Although the Wolfpack have struggled with upper echelon teams, they still have plenty of talent and the offensive firepower to knock off a team like Duke.
Scouting Report
PG- #2 Lorenzo Brown So. Read more
Duke vs. North Carolina State: By The Numbers
After coming off of wins over North Carolina and Maryland last week, the Duke Blue Devils (21-4, 8-2) return to the floor Thursday night after a four-day layoff to host the North Carolina State Wolfpack (18-7, 7-3). The Blue Devils come into Thursday’s meeting again ranked inside the top-5, as they are #4 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll and #5 in the AP Poll. When ranked #5 in the AP Poll, Duke is 65-24 all-time. The Wolfpack come in unranked in both polls. N.C. State is coming in off of a 3-game winning streak, with wins over Boston College, Wake Forest, and Georgia Tech. Those three teams are also 10th, 11th, and 12th in the ACC standings. The Blue Devils are currently in a tie for 2nd in the ACC (North Carolina defeated Miami last night) with the Florida State Seminoles. N.C. State is led by Scott Wood as he averages 13.4 points per game while shooting .462 from the field, .437 from three, and .949 from the free throw line. Sophomore C.J. Leslie is averaging 13.0 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game for N.C. State. Thursday’s meeting will be televised live on the ACC Network with the tip-off set for 9:00 PM ET.
Duke-N.C. State Series
• Duke and N.C. State have met 235 times heading into Thursday’s game with the first meeting between the two schools coming in 1912.
• The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 138-97, including a 46-23 mark at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
• Duke has won two straight and five of the last six games in the series.
• Mike Krzyzewski is 46-20 at Duke against the Wolfpack, including a 22-5 record at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
• Duke has won 13 straight home games in the series. The Blue Devils have a +18.2 scoring margin in that span.
• The two schools have met 23 times in ACC Tournament play with Duke posting a 14-9 record in those games.
• Duke has won each of the last eight home games against N.C. State by double figures.
Numbers Game
• Duke is the only team in the NCAA to rank in the top 5 in RPI, Strength of Schedule as well as the AP and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. The Blue Devils are also 3-1 against teams in the top 10 of the RPI.
• The Blue Devils have won 20 or more games 27 times under Mike Krzyzewski, including each of the last 16 seasons.
• Duke has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP Poll for 89 straight weeks, the third-longest streak in NCAA history.
• The Blue Devils are 61-3 at home since the start of the 2008-09 season. Duke is 11-2 at home this season and has lost more than two home games just once in the past 16 seasons. Read more
