More than 15,000 fans erupted at Virginia's John Paul Jones Arena Feb. 1 when Sean Singletary-despite being double-teamed, parallel to the floor and using only one hand-had just done what Duke could not in the game's critical moments.
He made a basket.
Singletary's highlight-reel floater capped a 17-7 run over the final 8:42 and gave the Cavaliers a 68-66 overtime victory.
The loss became the turning point of the season for the Blue Devils-the end of a five-game winning streak and the beginning of a four-game slide and a 3-6 finish in ACC play.
But the nearly nine-minute field goal drought that cost Duke the game at Virginia was far from an isolated incident. Throughout the season, the Blue Devils have suffered from a propensity to have extended dry spells.
In 31 regular season games this year, Duke has endured 26 stretches of five minutes or more without a field goal. In their nine losses, the Blue Devils have suffered through nine such dry spells, including the fateful one at Virginia.
"It's a part of the game," junior DeMarcus Nelson said. "Every team in America has droughts throughout the course of a game....The only thing we can control is making sure we get a good shot every possession-that's what the coaches teach us."
The worst part about the droughts has not been how long they last but rather when they occur. Nearly every game Duke has lost this season has been decided by a Blue Devil field goal drought at a critical juncture.
Against Marquette Nov. 21, Duke went 5:30 without a made basket in the final minutes, allowing the Golden Eagles to go on a 14-2 run and stretch their lead from one to 13. The Blue Devils did not score in the final 4:50 of overtime against Virginia Tech, a two-point loss. Georgia Tech scored nine unanswered points during a 3:50 stretch in the second half of its 64-53 win in Atlanta. Droughts of 5:57 and 5:31 allowed Florida State and North Carolina, respectively, to come from behind to beat Duke in Cameron. Finally, a 5:15 dry spell at the Dean Dome Sunday led to an 11-0 Tar Heel run to put the game away in the second half.
"[We have droughts] when we just stand and watch and don't screen and don't help each other get open," freshman Jon Scheyer said. "We don't have a guy that's just going to get the ball and break a guy down and dunk on somebody or come in and hit a three. We need to work together to get shots, so when we're just standing and watching each other, we're not going to make things happen."
In order to create better consistency on the offensive end, the Blue Devils have instituted a dribble weave at the top of the key this season. The weave utilizes handoffs and quick screens to help free up Greg Paulus on the perimeter and take advantage of Josh McRoberts' passing skills.
"That's something that we've had in for a little bit of time," Nelson said. "We put it in, and we're starting to run it more and more. What it does, it just creates movement and puts the opposing team in a position where their bigs have to guard the pick-and-roll. We'll try to get some movement and force them into help-and-recovery situations."
The weave and other aspects of the Blue Devils' motion offense have attempted to mask Duke's lack of a premier scorer this year. Nelson leads the Blue Devils in scoring at 14.2 points per game but has not been Duke's high man in a game since the ACC opener against Virginia Tech Jan. 6. For the season, the Blue Devils have had a player score 20 or more points just 12 times, with Scheyer's 26-point performance against North Carolina the most prolific of the year.
"The biggest thing in the beginning and even now is we're learning to score together," sophomore Dave McClure said. "You need everybody else to help you score. You need to have the extra pass or someone to draw the defender or the strong screen-just being able to work together and learn to score as one rather than individually."
Such a strong focus on offensive cohesion was not necessary in 2006, when J.J. Redick became the school's all-time leading scorer by topping the 20-point mark 28 times in 36 games. Redick could always be counted on to hit the big shot when Duke needed it, and consequently the Blue Devils won 32 games and averaged 81.1 points per game.
But in 2007, Redick is in the NBA, and Duke has yet to find a way to halt its scoring droughts. After seeing his jersey unveiled in the rafters at Cameron Feb. 4, Redick was serenaded with chants of "One more shot" by the Crazies.
But Redick did not comply-this year's Blue Devils have to learn to score without him.
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