Duke’s “big three” has accounted for more than 65 percent of its points and just about 100 percent of its individual accolades this season.
But with their hustle plays and refuse-to-lose attitude against top opponents, the Blue Devils’ seven role players have carried the team through many tough moments.
It will take another determined effort from Duke’s stars and role players for the No. 6 Blue Devils to win their next game, against No. 2 North Carolina at 4 p.m. Sunday in Chapel Hill.
Each team features plenty of starpower: The Blue Devils’ have their “big three” of Daniel Ewing, J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams, and the Tar Heels counter with Raymond Felton, Sean May and Rashad McCants. But in the teams’ last meeting Feb. 9, less heralded players shined the brightest.
“A lot of times, in games like this, really good players cancel out one another because they're playing so hard,” Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said after that game. “Somebody else steps up.”
The last time the teams played, it was DeMarcus Nelson. Despite guarding taller players all night, including 6-foot-9 Jawad Williams for a stretch, Nelson contributed 16 points and four steals in 29 minutes. After the game, Krzyzewski said the freshman guard played “at a level, or even a couple levels higher, than he has played.”
More likely than not, a similar type of player—a guy that usually blends into the background—will take a starring role in the teams’ second matchup.
And with each team potentially missing a regular starter, role players could mean even more. Duke’s Sean Dockery will miss the game as he continues to recover from a medial collateral ligament tear suffered Feb. 23. McCants, UNC’s top scorer, has missed the team’s last three contests with an intestinal disorder. No timetable has been set for McCants’ return, and he may not play against the Blue Devils.
The Tar Heels (25-3, 13-2 in the ACC) have not suffered in the junior guard’s absence, winning their games against N.C. State, Maryland and Florida State and topping 80 points each time. Duke (22-4, 11-4) is 2-0 in Dockery’s absence, recording wins over St. John’s and Miami.
Dockery’s absence has given Nelson and forward Lee Melchionni even more room to shine; the two have combined to average 21.5 points over Duke’s past two games. For the deep Tar Heels, who often give as many as 10 players meaningful minutes, several role players have stepped forward in McCants’ absence, including seniors Jawad Williams and Melvin Scott.
The Blue Devils, who claim the ACC’s top scoring defense, successfully contained the Tar Heels’ NCAA-best offense the last time the teams met by slowing the tempo of the game to a crawl. Only one fast break basket was scored in the game, and the Tar Heels’ 70-point output was their lowest of the season.
Both teams cited the Blue Devils’ defensive effort as the key to the game. Duke was especially successful in its endeavors to prevent North Carolina from pushing the ball up court for easy baskets.
“The main thing for us was just getting back on defense,” Redick said after the game. “They only had a few fast break opportunities, and that’s because we hustled back.”
The Blue Devils will have to do more of the same if they hope to win Sunday because North Carolina is at its best when it gets out in transition. Point guard Felton is one of the quickest players in the country, and the Tar Heels have plenty of players athletic enough to finish around the rim. Even May, who is chided often by opposing fans for being overweight, has been able to run the floor and score.
The junior center is also one of the Tar Heels’ best half-court scoring options, especially if McCants is unable to play. He is virtually unstoppable when he catches the ball near enough to the basket and registered a game-high 23 points and 18 rebounds in the teams’ last matchup.
\With a win, the Tar Heels would clinch their first outright ACC regular season championship since 1992-1993. But if the past is any indicator, they are going to have to fight through a determined Blue Devil defense to do it.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.