Entering this season, three-quarters of Duke students had never experienced a loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium, but the team has fallen twice on Coach K Court in 2012.
Miles Plumlee, the only senior on this year’s team, was the only Blue Devil to know the feeling of a home defeat before Florida State guard Michael Snaer’s buzzer-beater ended Duke’s 45-game home win streak Jan. 21.
When the No. 4 Blue Devils host archrival North Carolina at 7 p.m. Saturday with the ACC regular-season crown on the line, it marks the culmination of Plumlee’s career, and his senior season, in which he has been both the team’s elder statesman and most improved player since a dramatic midseason evolution.
“I think Miles has played his best basketball this last month,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “He’s contributed more with this team. From the start he has been our most respected player... so when he does speak the guys will listen to him. He’s been more vocal in the last month than ever before.”
When Duke and North Carolina previously met, the Blue Devils drained 14 3-pointers, including Austin Rivers’ sixth of the game with time expiring to give the team its 85-84 victory. Plumlee played just 17 minutes, scoring three points and grabbing three rebounds.
“I don’t think I was as physical and aggressive as I could have been in that game,” Plumlee said. “Since then, that’s been my M.O. going into every game, so I’m just going to bring that on Saturday.”
In his contest after facing the Tar Heels, Plumlee grabbed 22 boards against Maryland, kicking off a six-game stretch in which he has collected 12.0 missed shots per game. The performance has earned him frequent comparisons to former Blue Devil center Brian Zoubek, who had a similar breakout midway through his senior season with a double-double against the Terrapins in 2010.
North Carolina, which averages the most rebounds in the nation at 45.8 per game, torched the Blue Devils on the boards 42-35 earlier in the year and outscored Duke in the paint by 28 points. 7-foot post player Tyler Zeller racked up 19 points and eight boards in the first half alone.
Krzyzewski believes that the evolved Miles Plumlee will be a “key aspect” in changing the interior dynamic for this rematch if he replicates his recent performances.
“When we played Florida State, we could have gotten into a lot of trouble early because it was such a physical, intense game,” Krzyzewski said. “Miles was really the guy who was the most intense and most physical for us and kept us in there. I hope he can set that kind of tone.”
Much of Plumlee’s recent success has stemmed from his ability to avoid foul trouble and stay on the court. In the last six games he has played an average of 26.7 minutes per game, the longest stretch of the season in which he has played at least 20 minutes per contest.
Plumlee, his brother Mason and Ryan Kelly will need to stay on the court as much as possible to battle Zeller and fellow forward John Henson, who leads the ACC with 10.3 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game.
The frontcourt could receive additional help from Josh Hairston, who sat out Tuesday’s game against Wake Forest after suffering a head injury Sunday against Virginia Tech. According to Krzyzewski, Hairston was limited in practice Thursday.
The Blue Devils’ need for physicality extends beyond the post, however, as the Tar Heels possess a height advantage at every position. North Carolina’s smallest starter is 6-foot-4 Kendall Marshall, who leads the ACC with 9.6 assists per game.
Marshall, who has been primarily a passer, registered his second-highest scoring total of the season against the Blue Devils with 14 points on an efficient 5-of-9 shooting performance.
“He uses his vision very well and he changes speeds very well,” said Tyler Thornton, who played extensively against Marshall in high school. “It’s really hard to guard a point guard like that [who] can make a pass whether you’re pressuring him or laying off him.”
Reggie Bullock, who joins Marshall in the backcourt, stands at 6-foot-7, while the team’s leading scorer, 6-foot-8 Harrison Barnes, plays small forward. To make up for the Duke’s size deficiencies across the board, Krzyzewski regularly rotated the defensive matchups, even playing the 6-foot-1 Thornton on Barnes at times.
Although Zeller dominated the first half against the Blue Devil interior defense, Barnes scored 19 of his 25 points in the final 20 minutes of play, making use of his consistent size advantage.
Duke is unsure who its go-to scorers will be on a nightly basis, but the team is cognizant of the need for every player to match up with the Tar Heels’ length defensively.
“Even now we may not know who’s going to have a breakout game,” Miles said. “But if everybody brings it on defense, playing physical and aggressive, we’re going to do fine.”
Although Miles came to Durham with two others in his recruiting class—Elliot Williams and Olek Czyz, both of whom transferred—he stands alone as a late-blossoming senior with an ability to dominate the glass.
Saturday night, Miles will once again look to emulate Zoubek, who also played his final regular season game at Cameron Indoor Stadium against North Carolina, snagging 13 rebounds while leading the Blue Devils to a 32-point win.
Despite the temptation to be retrospective in his final home game, Miles understands that he cannot yet expend effort thinking back on his four-year career in royal blue.
“The time to reminisce will come after the season,” Miles said. “Right now we’re in the process of the opportunity to win the regular season outright and getting ready for the ACC and NCAA [tournaments].”
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