Midnight Madness returns to Cameron, this time without TV

Midnight Madness is coming back to Duke.

Sports information director Mike Cragg told The Chronicle Thursday that the men's basketball team will host another Midnight Madness to kick off the first practice of the year Saturday Oct. 16. The practice will not be televised but proceeds will benefit the Coaches vs. Cancer Foundation.

"We are planning on having [a midnight practice]," Cragg said. "We don't have all the details by far, but the midnight practice is really going to be focused around tryouts. We're not prepared to give all the details yet, but there's definitely going to be a walk-on tryout at night."

Midnight Madness coincides with the first day that the NCAA allows basketball practice to begin. Coach Mike Krzyzewski never held a midnight practice until the 1997-98 season. That year the practice was televised on ESPN and was attended by Dick Vitale. Krzyzewski called that practice a one-time deal and did not hold a midnight practice last year. Cragg said what Krzyzewski called a one-time deal was in reference to the televised part of the festivities.

One motivation to hold a midnight practice this year is to help the youthful squad adjust to the college basketball environment. Six freshmen are on the Blue Devil roster and Krzyzewski feels that playing in the Midnight Madness environment will help them develop more quickly.

"One of the reasons to do it is to get our kids in front of crowds early on," Cragg said. "Our season begins Nov. 11 and there's just a limited window of opportunity this year. Coach was looking at a lot of different ways; he thought about maybe having an open practice on East Campus. They're trying to do a lot of different things just to get these kids used to playing in front of friends and crowds and excitement and noise and that type of thing, just because we have so many freshmen."

Although the details are still not finalized, Cragg said the practice would include an introduction of the team, as well as cheerleaders and the band. Students will be let into the bleacher sections of Cameron while seats in the upper level will be sold to the public. All profits from ticket sales will benefit Coaches vs. Cancer, a foundation created in the honor of Krzyzewski's friend and former N.C. State coach, Jim Valvano.

Notes: After originally deciding to leave the team, J.D. Simpson is back on the Blue Devils' roster. According to Cragg, Simpson wanted to leave the team to focus his attentions on drama. But while spending the summer in London for drama school, Simpson changed his mind and now believes that he can develop his career in acting while still playing basketball.... Forwards Chris Carrawell and Shane Battier were listed on the preseason Top 25 checklist for the John Wooden Award given to the National Player of the Year in 2000. The top 25 candidates have been selected by a select committee of former winners, coaches and media members.