Thoughts on the AP Poll: Week 13
(11/18/13 9:21pm)
Guess Who’s Back
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Guess Who’s Back
No. 13 Duke overcame a large second-set deficit to sweep Wake Forest in straight sets 25-20, 25-23 and 25-20 Friday evening in a hostile environment at Reynolds Gym in Winston Salem, N.C. Despite struggling in the opening set against Georgia Tech Saturday at Cameron Indoor Stadium, the Blue Devils adjusted and controlled the rest of the match, defeating the Yellow Jackets in four sets 23-25, 25-16, 25-21 and 25-16.
After winning their last contest by 83 points led by their pressure defense, the Blue Devils used more pressure defense to jump on their first SEC opponent of the season early and cruise to an easy victory.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The Blue Devils (2-1) bounced back after their first loss of the season and jumped on the Owls (1-2) early behind aggressive play from redshirt sophomore forward Rodney Hood, building early leads of 12-2 and 32-12 before eventually winning 97-65. Graduate student guard Andre Dawkins nailed five 3-pointers after sitting out a season ago and freshman forward Jabari Parker made Duke history by becoming the first Blue Devil player to ever score 20-plus points in his first three games. Parker finished with 21 points and 10 rebounds.Revisiting the three keys to the game:
BERKELEY, Calif.—The Blue Devils were able to use an impressive display of rebounding and senior guard play to earn a quality road win in their first game of the season.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The NBA season is now in full swing. After more than a week of action, there has been plenty to of newsworthy items on the former Blue Devils in the Association.Miles Plumlee, Phoenix Suns: After recording two double-doubles to start the season, Plumlee has slowed down a bit. Regardless, he is still averaging 11.2 points per game and 8.8 rebounds in five games as the starting center for the 3-2 Suns. Expect Plumlee to average close to a double-double if not a full double-double, this season as he gets more and more comfortable as the primary center for Phoenix.Mason Plumlee, New Jersey Nets: Plumlee has logged minutes in two of the Nets' first four games this season, scoring his first NBA basket on Sunday in a 21-point loss to the Orlando Magic and scoring five points and grabbing four rebounds in 17 minutes in Brooklyn's 16-point win over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday. As the team's third string center behind Brook Lopez and Andray Blatche, Plumlee's opportunities will likely be limited the rest of the season and only come in games with lopsided scores such as the two he has played in thus far for the 2-2 Nets. Gerald Henderson, Charlotte Bobcats: As the Bobcats starting shooting guard and main wing threat, Henderson had a woeful start to the season from the field, going 10-of-36 in the team's first three games. He has drastically improved his play in the team's last two games, scoring 18 points and grabbing eight rebounds in Charlotte's 102-97 win at New York on Tuesday and scoring 23 points on 10-of-17 shooting on Wednesday in a 92-90 win over Toronto to help propel the Bobcats to 3-2. Josh McRoberts, Charlotte Bobcats: Henderson has shared a lot of court time with his former Duke teammate so far this season. McRoberts has seen increased minutes this season up front for the Bobcats because of starting center Al Jefferson's injury, and has taken advantage of increased minutes with his versatility. He made three 3-pointers and scored 15 points in the team's first game, a 13-point loss to Houston. McRoberts then dished out eight assists in the team's next game, a 90-84 win over Cleveland, and had 13 points, six rebounds and five assists in the team's fifth and most recent game. Carlos Boozer, Chicago Bulls: Boozer had one of the best first weeks of the NBA season as the starting power forward for the Bulls. He scored 31 points on 13-of-18 shooting and grabbed seven rebounds in Chicago's opening night loss to Miami. Boozer added 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting with seven rebounds in the team's 82-81 win over New York, and totaled 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting with 10 rebounds in Chicago's 107-104 loss to Philadelphia. Boozer came back down to earth in Wednesday's game, a 97-80 loss to Indiana, in which he finished with just six points on 3-of-10 shooting, though he still grabbed nine rebounds. Luol Deng, Chicago Bulls: While Boozer has been extremely efficient for the most part this season, the normally efficient Deng has struggled mightily so far, going 24-of-62 from the field in four games this season. It is no coincidence that Deng's best performance—a 17-point effort on 8-of-15 shooting with six assists—came in the team's only win; in recent years, Deng's play has usually been a barometer for the Bulls.Kyrie Irving, Cleveland Cavaliers: The Cavaliers starting point guard and franchise player, Irving has been battling an elbow injury so far this season and his shooting has taken a hit as a result. Nonetheless, his rebounding numbers and assist numbers have increased; he is averaging 7.0 assists and 5.4 rebounds per contest. As his elbow heals, Irving should also get back to being the normally proficient shooter he has been throughout his career when healthy. In his last game, a 109-104 loss to the Bucks on Wednesday, Irving had 29 points on 10-of-20 shooting, adding eight assists and five rebounds. Such tremendous performances will likely become more and more common as the season progresses for the 2-3 Cavaliers as long as Irving can stay healthy. JJ Redick, Los Angeles Clippers: Redick is having a tremendous start to his first season with the Clippers, beautifully playing off of Chris Paul and Blake Griffin as the team's starting shooting guard. In six games this season, Redick is averaging 16.8 points per game on 47.2 percent shooting and 35.3 percent from 3-point range in 30.2 minutes per contest. His best game of the season was a 26-point effort on 8-of-15 shooting and 8-of-8 from the free throw line in the Clippers' 137-118 win over Houston on Monday. Redick continually made Rockets All-Star guard James Harden pay for his defensive laziness. Being in Los Angeles has definitely agreed with Redick thus far this season.Ryan Kelly, Los Angeles Lakers: A third string forward for the Lakers, Kelly saw his first NBA game action on Tuesday and made the most of his brief opportunity, knocking down his first and only shot, a 3-pointer, and grabbing a rebound in three minutes in the Lakers' 123-104 loss to the Mavericks. Like Mason Plumlee, Kelly will likely only see action when the 2-3 Lakers are playing one-sided games. Shane Battier, Miami Heat: Battier seems poised once again to take on the role of being a solid wing defender and timely 3-point shooter for the 4-2 Heat this season. Though he struggled after making all four of his 3-pointers in Miami's opening night victory against Chicago, Battier has bounced back nicely in the past two games, drilling three of his six attempts from beyond the arc.
After four of their less experienced players went unbeaten at the Winthrop Invitational, the Blue Devils will look to keep their momentum going and conclude the fall season on a high note.
After cracking the top 15 in the Coaches Poll for the first time in six years, the Blue Devils will look to maintain their lead in the ACC with back-to-back road games this weekend.
Duke has gotten close to the Final Four but failed to make it each of the past four seasons—this is why it will be five.
Overview: The Orange will be playing their first season in the ACC after losing three of their top four scorers, including their entire backcourt. Fortunately for head coach Jim Boeheim, they return their leading scorer and rebounder—lefty senior forward C.J. Fair, the preseason Player of the Year in the ACC. Boeheim will likely run much of the offense through the versatile Fair and use his team’s length and athleticism to make the 2-3 zone Syracuse is famous for even more formidable. Fair and the rest of the Syracuse bigs are all capable of playing tough defense and beating people up on the glass. The foundation of this year’s Syracuse team will be its physical frontcourt.
Overview: The Cameron Crazies may want to thank Norfolk State—after the game of course— if the Spartans beat East Carolina and face Duke Nov. 19 as part of the NIT Season Tip-off. Norfolk State upset Missouri as a No. 15 seed the same infamous day that Duke fell to Lehigh two seasons ago.
Outlook: After losing their entire starting lineup from a season ago, the Jayhawks’ success will hinge on their ability to play together as a unit in Self's system based on ball movement and efficiency. They will be led by No. 1 recruit Andrew Wiggins, a 6-foot-8 Canadian guard who likely would have been the first pick in last June's NBA Draft if he were eligible with his versatility and jaw-dropping athleticism. Wiggins’ matchup against Jabari Parker when Kansas plays Duke Nov. 12 could very well be the best individual battle in college basketball this season.
For Duke to meet expectations this season, three returners will have to redefine their roles and play off of Parker and Hood—junior point guard Quinn Cook, sophomore guard Rasheed Sulaimon and sophomore forward Amile Jefferson. Cook, a starter last season, has the unique opportunity to be a true floor general this season with so many talented offensive players to feed the ball to. His ability to manage the pace of games, organize the team in its halfcourt sets and knock down open jump shots will be crucial. Sulaimon, an inconsistent freshman starter a season ago, showed flashes of explosiveness and brilliance on both sides of the ball but will have to improve his consistency. Finally, Jefferson, the team’s starting center, could allow the Blue Devils to present a matchup nightmare for opponents if he is able to hold his own down low as an undersized frontcourt player. His ability to defend, rebound and finish around the hoop will be huge when Duke faces teams with strong post players.
Overview: The Wildcats lost their two best players from last season in point guard Mark Lyons and forward Solomon Hill, but still have one of the most talented teams in the country. Arizona should have one of the best frontcourts in the nation, with top-five recruit Aaron Gordon joining returning sophomore starters Brandon Ashley and Kaleb Tarczewski to give the Wildcats three prolific rebounders and capable inside scorers in their starting lineup. Gordon will have to deal with extremely high expectations after starring for Team USA in the FIBA Under-19 World Championships in Prague this summer and leading the team to a gold medal. Known mostly for his hops, Gordon threw down a number of big slams in the 2013 McDonald's All-American game en route to MVP honors.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Al Brown is the only coach in college basketball history to coach in the men's and women's national championship games, but he might be better known by Duke fans as the assistant coach who wears flamboyant sweaters. "In the men's game, I always wore a tie and sports coat or a suit," Brown said. "In the women's game, probably three or four years after I started, I started wearing sweaters. It was just purely by accident. I forgot my sports coat and everything and I thought, 'Well, this is a pretty good idea.' Honestly, I had never, ever thought it would become what it's become. I never thought it would have a life of its own."Brown, who is now in his seventh season as a Duke assistant coach, graduated from Purdue in 1964 and became a member of the Boilermaker staff in 1967. He coached in the 1969 national championship game when Purdue fell to John Wooden's UCLA squad. Brown was an assistant at four other schools and was the head coach at Ball State from 1982-87, leading the Cardinals to one of their most successful seasons in 1986 before joining the women's game as part of Pat Summit's Tennessee staff in 1995. After winning three consecutive national championships with the Lady Vols from 1996-98, Brown was eventually hired as an assistant by Joanne P. McCallie at Michigan State in 2004. After leading the Spartans to their first-ever national championship game in 2005, McCallie and Brown took their successful partnership to Duke in 2007."It's just so great to have such wisdom and experience," McCallie said. "I like to have a coach that can compare things to the men's side and women's side, and then we can apply them. He's one of the best scouters in the country.... His attention to detail is terrific."Brown works heavily in the film room, breaking down each Blue Devil opponent and analyzing ways in which Duke can attack them. Additionally, he works heavily with Duke's post players."I think we see the game similarly," McCallie said. "We're pretty efficient in getting ready for an opponent. We both watch a great deal of film, but he watches the most film.... He wears many hats, and those hats are certainly all appreciated."Although Brown's coaching in practice is extremely valuable, the statistics he keeps during Duke games are also helpful, allowing the coaching staff to make in-game adjustments more efficiently. Most people would likely fail to notice the stat sheet in Brown's hands during games, though, and instead be curious about the unique sweaters he dons."I think it's cool that he has his own trademark," junior forward Elizabeth Williams said. "When we went to France [during the summer of 2012], we went into one of the stores and it had a bunch of sweaters like that, so we each pitched in and got him a new one. They're really cool. I think it's awesome. I love his sweaters. I think it's odd when he's not wearing a sweater."In recent years, a twist has been added to Brown's quirky habit, as practice player Will Giles—now a junior and captain of the practice squad—has gone beyond his voluntary duties and helps Brown keep detailed statistics at home games. Giles has started showing off his own flashy sweaters, starting a friendly rivalry between two of the more competitive men associated with Duke women's basketball."Will is a great young man," Brown said. "He just loves the game and he loves sweaters. He and I, I guess, according to him, have a contest. According to me, it's no contest, he has to finish second.... That's been fun to do. I've enjoyed that, and I think he has too."Brown's 35th season as a basketball coach will commence Sunday, making him one of the longest-tenured basketball coaches in the college game today. The Blue Devils definitely do not take the man behind the sweaters for granted."Coach Brown is great," Williams said. "He's seen the game from all types of perspectives and seen the game grow. He's just a great coach and mentor. We can just go into his office and talk about anything. As the post coach, he does a really good job of honing in on the details and knowing where we should be and what we should do in certain situations."Anyone wanting to see what sweater Brown chooses to wear to start the season will have to tune in to ESPNU Sunday at 6 p.m. when No. 2 Duke faces No. 9 California. Expect Brown's sweater choice to be meticulous, reflecting the nature of the man wearing it."I've already got that one in mind," Brown said with a wry smile. "I've got to kind of look it over and make sure it's okay, but I'm set for that one."
Analysis of this week's college football AP Poll.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>In their second and final exhibition game of the season, the Blue Devils again struggled on both ends of the court for much of the first half, but used strong second half defense and rebounding to defeat Drury 81-65 at Cameron Indoor Stadium, outscoring the Panthers by 20 points in the second half.Revisiting the three keys to the game:
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A week before their showdown at California to start the season, the Blue Devils will take on Division II Coker College in Cameron Indoor Stadium to wrap up exhibition play. Duke, consistently ranked in the top three in every national preseason poll, beat Glenville State 122-77 on Wednesday night in its first exhibition game, jumping out to a 13-0 lead to start the game and building a 32 point advantage midway through the first half. The Blue Devils will attempt to get off to a similar fast start Sunday at 2 pm against the Cobras.Against Glenville State, the Blue Devils also took the highest scoring team in Division II from last season out of its rhythm by forcing 30 turnovers. However, the 22 turnovers Duke committed themselves and the 25 offensive rebounds and 10 second half 3-pointers they surrendered still give the team something to strive to improve before the regular season opener."The lessons were profound," head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. "We need to grow as a team. We need to be more gritty and a little more blue collar in our attempt to play great defense and rebound and then enjoy the offense from there. Defensive leadership is a key for this team right now."Duke featured a balanced attack against the Lady Pioneers, with all five starters scoring in double figures led by two-time All-Americans senior guard Chelsea Gray and junior forward Elizabeth Williams. Gray, continuing her comeback from a dislocated knee, had 12 points, 14 assists and four steals in 22 minutes and Williams had 19 points, 15 rebounds, six blocks and five assists. Senior guard Richa Jackson also performed well against Glenville State, scoring 15 points in 16 minutes of action and going 7-of-8 from the field off the bench. Jackson tore her ACL late in her sophomore season and was still dealing with the effects of the injury when she returned to the court midway through last season, so her high level of activity against the Lady Panthers was a very encouraging sign for the Blue Devils. "I think Richa has been working really hard," McCallie said. "I feel great going to Richa as a sixth player for this team. The sixth player role might be more valuable than the starter role given her knowledge and experience. She's really worked her way into that spot. She's ready to do some very good things."Coker College is a small, liberal arts school in Hartsville, South Carolina. The Cobras are switching from the Carolinas Conference to the South Atlantic Conference this season. They went 18-11 a season ago, with a 14-8 record in conference play, before losing in the quarterfinals of the conference tournament to end the season.Coker's roster features six players who contributed a season ago, four freshmen and five transfers from other small Division II schools. Senior forward Jessica Cohen is returning after a knee injury kept her out all of last season--she averaged 15.2 points per game as a sophomore. After Sunday's contest, the Blue Devils will have a few days to prepare for their trip across the country to take on California as the first of many nonconference tests. Four of Duke's players, including Gray and senior guard Chloe Wells, will be returning to their home state in what is the team's first chance to show that they are ready to take the next step and compete for a National Championship after four straight Elite Eights. However, they will be looking to conclude the exhibition season on a positive note first."We've already started," McCallie said. "In my brain, that wasn't a victory [against Glenville State]. We're well into it. Things will be much better [when the regular season starts] because we'll have drilled and corrected, but I think we're on the go right now."
Duke will wrap up its exhibition season Saturday when the Blue Devils welcome the reigning Division II National Champions to Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Will Giles isn’t exactly what you would call an average Duke student. He prefers old rock and roll music to today’s hip hop, he prefers watching the New York Knicks of the 1970s to today’s Miami Heat and his favorite current NBA player is Kevin Love because he likes rebounders.