Even though they were playing each other in Saturday's annual Blue-White Scrimmage, the Blue Devils didn't skimp on intensity.
With three minutes left in the second period, senior Sean Dockery, the point guard for the trailing Blue team, squatted down and slapped the floor of Coach K court. Freshmen Jamal Boykin and Martynas Pocius immediately followed the senior's lead, slapping the floor at Cameron. And even Eric Boateng, who was guarding Shelden Williams under the basket, bent down to hit the floor-even if just with one hand.
"I thought all the kids were excited to play, and it's good to see, especially the freshmen, in front of a crowd," head coach Mike Krzyzewski said.
Saturday's game provided many of the Cameron Crazies and their families a first glimpse at the 2005-2006 men's basketball team, which was unanimously selected Sunday at the league's annual media luncheon as the favorite to win this season's ACC title.
Showcasing their veteran talent and youthful promise, the Blue Devils split into two squads-Duke's projected starters and everyone else-for the first of the two 15-minute periods.
A senior-heavy White team, consisting of Dockery, unanimous preseason All-ACC team members J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams, sophomore DeMarcus Nelson and freshman Josh McRoberts, took down the Blue Team 47-24 in a 15-minute contest.
Addressing the crowd at halftime, Krzyzewski said the teams would be mixed up and the score reset for the second scrimmage.
"It's my game. I can do what I want," Krzyzewski said jokingly.
The second-game White team, with Patrick Johnson, Lee Melchionni, Redick, Williams, Nelson and freshman Greg Paulus, won again 38-30.
The Blue Devil seniors, efficient with their minutes on the court, shined during the two short scrimmages. Dockery went 10-for-13, scoring 22 points, and newly-named captain Melchionni added 20. Other captains Redick and Williams scored 27 and 12 points, respectively.
Complementing the experienced upperclassmen, many of the freshmen will add fresh legs to Duke, which lacked depth last season. With strong players coming off the bench, the Blue Devils will be able to press more on defense and move the ball down the court quicker, Krzyzewski said.
The first Blue team, which included Melchionni, Boateng, Boykin, Paulus, Pocius and Johnson, scored first. Pocius found Melchionni inside for an easy layup, and then on the next possession, Paulus fired a pass to Pocius, who was fouled. He made the two free throws to give the Blue team the early 4-0 lead.
There were, however, plenty of misdirected passes that fell either out of bounds or into the hands of the other team. Paulus threw a blind, over-the-head pass in the general direction of the basket for one of his five turnovers. But Paulus was also one of the best passers on the court Saturday, finding open teammates from the point.
"He's got great vision," Krzyzewski said. "He'll do really well in the future. It's just a matter of getting comfortable."
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