If at times it seems like two similar teams are playing in Cameron Indoor Stadium tomorrow, it's probably not an illusion.
The top-ranked men's basketball team takes on Fairfield in its season opener, and that means the return of former Duke assistant Tim O'Toole, who is now the head coach at his alma mater, Fairfield.
O'Toole, who was an assistant at Seton Hall last year, has instilled the same type of in-your-face defense and up-tempo offense that he helped run with the Blue Devils from 1995-97.
"I think everyone wants to return to their alma mater at some point and help give back," O'Toole said. "My goal is to build this program into a contender for the MAAC title and the NCAA Tournament each and every year."
His quest begins this year with four returning starters on a veteran squad that finished 12-15 a year ago. In the Stags' 106-63 exhibition win over Canada's Ryerson Rams last week, Darren Phillip scored 19 points and Didier Boucard posted a double-double as Fairfield shot 55 percent from the field.
Fairfield had to rally from a 14-point deficit to defeat Team Fokus, 88-82, Tuesday. While that margin pales in comparison to Duke's 53-point win over the same team, former Rhode Island stars Cuttino Mobley and Tyson Wheeler missed Team Fokus' game with the Blue Devils but played against the Stags.
Against the No. 1 team in the country, things aren't likely to be too easy for Fairfield. The Blue Devils weren't tested too much in easy preseason wins over Team Fokus and Australia, but Duke still found plenty to improve on, particularly defensively.
"[Australia] hit some tough spots on our defense in the second half," forward Chris Carrawell said. "Coach [Krzyzewski] is always stressing defense. It's probably something we need to work on."
Duke will have ample time to work on defense and all other aspects of its game over the next few weeks. Tomorrow afternoon's contest marks the beginning of a three-game stretch during which the Blue Devils also face Davidson and South Carolina State.
After that, the schedule gets much more difficult with a trip to the Great Alaskan Shootout and the Blue Devils' showdown with No. 5 Michigan State in Chicago Dec. 2. For now, though, Duke is just looking forward to a real game.
"We're ready to start the season," guard Trajan Langdon said. "With two exhibition games down, we're ready.
"[O'Toole] has his own program now and I wish him the best of luck, but hopefully not [tomorrow]."
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