Michigan head coach Tommy Amaker is fortunate he wasn't in charge of the Wolverines the last time they came to Durham. That game, played two years ago in Cameron Indoor Stadium, saw the men's basketball team take a 59-18 halftime lead en route to 104-61 squashing of the Wolverines.
Back then, Brian Ellerbe was coaching Michigan and the program could still reminisce about the days of the Fab Five. Now, former Duke player and assistant, Amaker is at the reigns after a brief, rocky stint at Seton Hall, and the words "Chris Webber" have been erased from the media guide.
Amaker, who admits he really didn't think about having to coach against his alma mater when he took the job, only hopes to erase the memory of Duke's previous two drubbing from the minds of the Wolverine faithful when Duke hosts Michigan Saturday in Cameron at 3:30 p.m.
"Tommy was here for a long time," head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "There is nobody except me who has been here longer as a player and a coach. He gave such a great foundation for this program. He was a great point guard--the missing ingredient for the team--and then he was a fabulous assistant."
For the second year in row, Amaker is going to face a steep, uphill battle if he plans to wipe out the Blue Devils.
After wins in exhibition games, the Wolverines have started the season 0-5, falling to the likes St. Bonaventure, Virginia Tech and Kansas State in the Virgin Island Paradise Jam Tournament, and dropping home games to Western and Central Michigan. Amaker has also had to deal with off court problems that led to the eventual dismissal of two season floor general Avery Queen for a "violation of team policy." "Tommy didn't inherit the best situation [at Michigan]," associate head coach Johnny Dawkins said. "But he's a great guy and a great coach and he'll turn the program around."
Meanwhile, Duke is on a completely opposite trajectory, starting the year 4-0 and beating traditional powerhouses UCLA and Ohio State.
The biggest thing the Blue Devils will be focusing on if they want to win this weekend is foul trouble--a problem they faced against Davidson, UCLA and particularly Ohio State. After that game, Krzyzewski said his team had been fouling too much and that the continued fouling had prevented it from establishing a rhythm and slamming the door on the Buckeyes.
"The last two games we've been helping our opponents and fouling way too much," Krzyzewski said, attributing the aggressive play to the over-eagerness of his young team. "This is not a hidden signal, I'm not saying anything bad about the refs, the fact is, we've just been fouling too much."
Krzyzewski did not say which lineup he would start against the Wolverines. After utilizing and Chris Duhon, Daniel Ewing, Dahntay Jones, Shavlik Randolph and Shelden Williams in the first trio of games, the Blue Devils showed a Duhon, J.J. Redick, Jones, Nick Horvath and Casey Sanders lineup to Ohio State.
Regardless of what combination of players the Blue Devils throw at the Wolverines--and Krzyzewski has said several times he will not hesitate to use a wide variety this season--Michigan will have to try to contain the Duke threat, which had won going both inside and outside, with nine freshmen and sophomores.
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