Coach K beats Beilein at his own game

Ryan Kelly chipped in 11 points on Sunday.
Ryan Kelly chipped in 11 points on Sunday.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Michigan head coach John Beilein challenged Duke to a chess match against his unusual 1-3-1 zone defense and arsenal of 3-point shooters.

Head coach Mike Krzyzewski beat him at his own game.

Duke adjusted its lineup to incorporate more guards that could protect the perimeter on defense as well as penetrate Michigan’s zone en route to a 73-71 victory.

“It’s an unconventional team that is coached brilliantly,” Krzyzewski said. “You hardly ever play a team that has... a 3-point shooter and sometimes five 3-point shooters out on the court at the same time.”

In the first half, Michigan’s Zack Novak and Evan Smotrycz were able to take advantage of Duke’s larger lineup, including both Plumlee brothers, by combining for five 3-pointers. Duke was dominant on the glass, out-rebounding the Wolverines 18-10, but Michigan stayed in the game by finding good looks from outside.

Krzyzewski reacted by inserting a four-guard lineup onto the floor, with Ryan Kelly playing down low.

“We’ve done it a little bit in practice,” Kelly said. “Defensively we needed me to play the five, and I stepped up to that challenge.”

Despite Kelly’s 6-foot-11 frame, the forward was able to compete athletically with Michigan’s guards, defending both the perimeter and the paint, depending on the personnel transitions. The sophomore proved to be effective as Smotrycz hit no 3-pointers in the second half, and Novak only sank one.

“Because of my size and my length, I could get in the way of shots and do different things that a smaller guy couldn’t do,” Kelly said. “We played really good team defense—there’s the bottom line. A lot of switching happened, especially when we had those four guards and one big.”

Kelly and Kyrie Irving both came off the bench and did an excellent job using their skills to exploit the weaknesses of Michigan’s zone. With three Michigan players clogging the lane, Duke relied more on its guards to find high-percentage looks outside the paint.

Using his size to create favorable mismatches, Kelly added an efficient 11 points on 5-for-6 shooting during his 23 minutes of play. Many times Kelly was isolated beneath the basket, slipping behind the wall of defenders in the paint.

Meanwhile, Irving’s contribution was his ability to get to the line. The freshman used his superior athleticism to beat the Michigan guards off the dribble and then draw fouls in the lane. Irving scored 11 points in the game, nine of which came from free throws.

“Kyrie is a heck of a penetrator,” Krzyzewski said. “If he plays the whole year, he might be the best player in college basketball. The kid is that good. So he has a knack for [drawing fouls] you know, God given, and we try not to hold back what God gave him. We try to put him in positions where he can use his talents.”

The team utilized Irving’s talents by putting the ball in his hands with a one-point lead and just 32 seconds left to play. Irving cut behind the Michigan defenders in the middle of their zone, received a pass from Nolan Smith and nailed a bank shot to give Duke a three-point lead.

“Kyrie penetrated, which you can along that side gap, and he made a great shot,” Krzyzewski said. “That was a big time shot after they hit a big three.”

This game was determined by who could adjust to the opponent’s game plan. While Michigan lacked the personnel to stop Kelly’s size and Irving’s penetration, huge contributions from Duke’s bench enabled it to successfully pick apart the 1-3-1 zone and shut down the Wolverine’s hot shooting. Duke won 73-71 and moved on to the Sweet 16.

Checkmate.

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