With 7:12 remaining in No. 6 Duke’s clash with Virginia Tech, the Blue Devils were holding on to a thin 49-47 lead. The teams had been within four points of each other for nearly eight minutes, but neither squad could find the spark to pull away.
Enter Brian Zoubek.
As Nolan Smith’s jumper clanged off the rim, Zoubek corralled the loose ball and went right back up, banking in his first points of the night while being fouled by the Hokies’ Jeff Allen. Cameron Indoor Stadium erupted with approval, and after the ensuing media timeout, Zoubek nailed his free throw to complete the 3-point play and jump start an 11-2 run.
While these were Zoubek’s only three points of the game, the rebound on the play was number 14 on the night for Duke’s center. He finished with 16 boards—including eight on the offensive glass.
“He’s a mountain masquerading as a man,” Virginia Tech head coach Seth Greenberg said of Zoubek. “That guy is a huge human being... he creates space to rebound the ball and he’s not too far from the basket once he rebounds it.”
Zoubek spearheaded the Blue Devils’ tenacity on the offensive glass, as the team finished with 23 of its 47 total rebounds coming on the offensive end. By comparison, the Hokies managed only 23 defensive rebounds in the game and had no players in double digits on the glass. Kyle Singler joined Zoubek in double figures for Duke, grabbing 10 rebounds—among them three crucial offensive boards—of his own.
“Some of [Singler’s] offensive rebounds that turned into buckets were huge plays in this game,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “As you go through a game like this where buckets are hard to come by, all of the sudden him just getting an offensive board and willing it into the basket—Kyle is playing really well right now.”
The strong presence in the paint was a major factor in helping the Blue Devils overcome their shooting woes, especially early in the game. Duke shot only 23.3 percent from the field in the first half, going 7-for-30 as a team. But with 12 offensive rebounds in the period, the Blue Devils managed 13 second-chance points as they battled to a 35-30 halftime lead.
Even though Duke’s shooting improved to 34.4 percent in the second half, second-chance points became even more critical as Virginia Tech managed to stay in the game for the greater part of the period. The Blue Devils’ production on second and even third opportunities finally overwhelmed the Hokies, and Duke finished with 27 second-chance points while holding Virginia Tech to only nine.
“You’ve got to secure the basketball,” Greenberg said. “You can’t give your opponent that many extra possessions.”
Virginia Tech certainly couldn’t afford to give up the extra possessions as it had its own shooting woes. The Hokies shot 32.8 percent for the game, and star guard Malcolm Delaney was held to just 5-for-19 shooting from the field.
Krzyzewski added that this was a game about his team’s identity, and said that associate head coach Steve Wojciechowski made a point to stress this team’s identity—rebounding and defense—both before the game and at halftime.
No player embodied that identity better than Zoubek, who seemed to be around the ball every time it came off the glass. He also registered a block and a steal on the defensive end and was key in keeping Virginia Tech out of the paint in the second half.
“It’s my senior year. I have to put it all out there on the line,” Zoubek said. “We had a chance to create some serious separation in the league tonight.... I just want to go out there and get the win.”
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