The loss of Shane Battier is still a large obstacle for this year's Duke team to overcome, even in a 42-point win over the overmatched Portland Pilots.
"I thought we played hard," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "But we weren't as cohesive as we should be. We're still trying to develop communication on the team.
"More than anything, what we lost from last year was the best communicator maybe to ever play college basketball, certainly at Duke, in Battier. That's just something that needs to be worked on continuously. We can't have silent movies; we gotta talk more."
The Pilots (1-2), picked in the preseason to finish seventh out of eight teams in the West Coast Conference, were down only 22-14 with under seven minutes left in the first half against the top-ranked Blue Devils (4-0), despite 10 turnovers and seven missed layups.
The reason? Duke's worst long-distance shooting of the season, combined with an inability to finish. The Blue Devils made 1-of-15 three-pointers before the break, en route to a 5-of-25 performance from behind the arc. Meanwhile Duke exploited a size advantage in the post to create numerous opportunities, but was unable to finish inside.
"Coming out, it probably should have been about 20-2," Krzyzewski said. "But we didn't finish real well, and that's been a problem for us. We missed
Still, the outcome was never in doubt. Portland coach Michael Holton used a timeout less than three minutes into the game, as Duke built an 8-0 lead by forcing four Pilot turnovers in four offensive possessions.
Portland was never able to lower the deficit below eight. Duke took a 15-7 run into intermission, giving the team a 37-21 halftime lead.
Duke continued the run in the second half. A three-pointer from Nick Horvath expanded the lead to 71-42 with 11:40 to go, giving Duke a 34-11 edge since the break. Despite Duke's offensive misfires, the Blue Devils were able to pressure the Pilots into more turnovers (32) than field goals (30) in the game. Duke converted these miscues for 34 points.
Sophomore guard Casey Frandsen led the Pilots with a career-high 28 points, 22 of which came after the break when the game was in hand.
For Duke, the scoring was more balanced, with six players scoring in double figures.
Carlos Boozer led the team with 20 points and 13 rebounds, the ninth double-double of the junior center's career, while Daniel Ewing played his most balanced game, gathering career highs with 15 points, seven rebounds, four assists and four steals in 28 minutes.
But the Blue Devils know that they will need to play
"We're not close to the team we were last year," Jason Williams said. "We're not as together as we need to be. We have an NBA team in terms of talent, with so many guys capable of doing so many things. It's going to be our ability to play together that we need to expand on. It happened quicker last year because we had a great leader, but it's a different year, different team.
"Even though we won by 42, we didn't play the way we should have played. If we won by 42 and guys are there to help each other out, it's a different win because we feel like we won together. Tonight we felt like we just won apart."
The coach echoed his point guard's sentiments.
"Obviously we have a much more talented basketball team," Krzyzewski said. "But we weren't as sharp as we were when we beat Ball State [last game]. If we're not sharp on Tuesday, we're going to be in a lot of trouble."
The Iowa game will complete a brutal stretch to start the season--five games in eight days, from Hawaii to Durham to Chicago. Still, Williams didn't think jet lag was a factor in the team's poor shooting.
"Sometimes shots don't fall," Williams said. "But that's just how the game goes, and you need to move on from there."
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