In the past few weeks, the men's basketball team has been trying to repair the damage it did with an 0-4 start in the Atlantic Coast Conference, and climb back into the top echelon of the conference standings. The Blue Devils can begin their ascent of the ladder if they can conquer Georgia Tech in an ACC road game tonight.
Duke (13-8 overall, 4-5 in the ACC) is currently tied for fifth in the ACC with Clemson, while Georgia Tech is tied for second with Wake Forest. While the win is crucial for Duke to pull away from the main pack in the conference, it will not be an easy step to take.
"They're a dangerous team," senior Chris Collins said. "If they're on top of their game, you're not going to beat them. That's a team that you have to consciously stop on defense."
The problem with playing the Yellow Jackets is knowing whether or not they are on top of their game. They will switch from game to game. Georgia Tech can lose to Mount Saint Mary's one week, and then beat North Carolina the next. They are the "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" of the ACC. Sometimes the switch will even occur during halftime. Witness the first meeting between Duke and Georgia Tech, when Duke was able to amass a 14-point first-half lead, only to lose by five after Georgia Tech took over in the second half. Currently, Tech is on a two-game losing streak after dropping consecutive contests to Clemson and Maryland.
"We're coming off a tough week on the road," Georgia Tech head coach Bobby Cremins said during Tuesday's ACC teleconference. "I thought we played well at Clemson, we had an opportunity [to win]. But Maryland really beat us up in the second half. We were only down one at halftime and then we had our worst half in ACC play.
"I was disappointed with the way we played, particularly the second half against Maryland. Obviously this is a another big game--Duke has been playing very well--but we've got to concentrate on getting back to the way we've been playing."
The main reason for Georgia Tech's comeback earlier this season against Duke was the ability of freshman phenom Stephon Marbury to take over a game. Sophomore Steve Wojciechowski was able to stop Marbury in the first half of the game, holding him to just four points, but Marbury bounced back to score 23 points in the second-half to lead Georgia Tech to the win.
While Duke will certainly key on stopping Marbury, it must be careful not to rile him up like the last time the two teams met.
"He's a little different type of player," Collins said. "A lot of times, [he wants you to put pressure him]. He wants guards to come up and challenge him.
"Sometimes he's a guy you don't want to get him fired up, and get him mad. You want him maybe not to come after you as hard as he would if you were up on him, talking to him and pressuring him. You really have to pick your spot with Stephon."
The other Georgia Tech player who came out big against Duke was sophomore Matt Harpring. Harpring finished the game with 23 points and eight rebounds. He has become one of the most consistent all-around players in the ACC this year, recording double-doubles in eight of his games this season.
"He is a youngster who makes plays, and he makes plays with and without the ball," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "He seems to always be in the right position. On offense he knows how to keep balance and be a threat while still giving Marbury and [Tech point guard Drew] Barry room to be a threat."
While the Yellow Jackets are clearly an offensive firepower--all five players on the floor possess the ability to score--Duke has picked up its defense in recent games. The Blue Devil guards have become more aggressive, shutting down both North Carolina's Dante Calabria and Clemson's Greg Buckner in the last week.
Inside, juniors Carmen Wallace and Greg Newton and freshman Taymon Domzalski have established a platoon system that has swatted away 21 shots in the past three contests. Against Georgia Tech earlier this year, Newton had one of his best games of the year, putting up 16 points and six rebounds.
"We're very positive," Newton said. "I think we're going to do very well against Georgia Tech. We did well against them the first time. Hopefully we can contain Stephon a little better and do the same job we did against everyone else and I think we'll come out on top.
"Georgia Tech was one of my better games, I'm looking for the same thing again."
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