COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Wednesday night’s game was the final act of Duke and Maryland’s season-long war for control of the ACC. But within the larger contest lay a mini-battle between two of the conference’s premier guards for one of the most coveted awards any college basketball could ever dream of-ACC Player of the Year.
With a 20-point, four-rebound, five-assist performance, including a game-clinching basket with 37 seconds left in the game, Greivis Vasquez definitely proved he was worthy of the honor on a Senior Night that was mostly a celebration of the Venezuelan guard.
His counterpart in battle, Jon Scheyer, did not. The senior appeared rattled the entire game—he was the victim of cascades of boos and vulgar cheers from the pregame warm-ups to the final buzzer. “[Expletive] you, Scheyer,” was the chant of choice for most of the contest, and while the guard assured the media it didn’t affect him—“At this point, I don’t even hear anything, to be honest,” he said—his performance told a different story.
Scheyer scored 19 points, his season average, and had five rebounds. But it took 21 shots for Scheyer to get his points, and he had four turnovers to only two assists, a stark contrast from his 2.9-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Perhaps more importantly, he struggled on the defensive end as well. In a unique situation, the two players gunning for Player of the Year in the ACC guarded each other for most of the game.
It was a matchup nightmare for any guard, but especially for Scheyer, who couldn’t keep up with the stronger, quicker Vasquez. Maryland’s star scored at will many times, but more importantly, scored efficiently, even hitting a couple of 3-pointers when left open. The same could not be said for Scheyer and Duke.
“I thought we took good shots for the most part. We just didn’t hit them,” Scheyer said. “That’s all you can say. We’ll keep taking them, though, because we’re confident in that shot.”
Scheyer did make an inspired effort to try to pull Duke ahead as the second half drew to a close. With two sets of hands in his face, he hit a three with 5:37 left. Then after Vasquez answered with another trey, Scheyer made a tough layup to put Duke ahead, 65-63.
When it mattered most, though, Vasquez got the better of Scheyer and the Blue Devils. And the difference between the two guards, and the difference a year makes for their respective fortunes, was never shown to be greater. Scheyer hit a 3-pointer in the final two minutes to ice Maryland during last year’s contest at the raucous Comcast Center. Wednesday, Vasquez got his revenge on the final possession.
Vasquez stood at the top of the key, guarded by Scheyer. Duke had abandoned the zone defense it had utilized for part of the game to try to slow the quick Maryland guards, so Scheyer was forced to defend Vasquez alone.
Vasquez drove right, stopped about 10 feet away from the basket, and then, while closely guarded by Scheyer, threw up with one hand what appeared to be a combination of a jump hook and a shotput toss. In keeping with the theme of the night between the two guards, he got to watch it fall in while Scheyer could only helplessly look on. Some would say the shot was lucky, or perhaps an act of desperation. Not Vasquez.
“I work on those shots,” he said. “It was an unbelievable shot and it went in. I was always going to go for it. I was going to take that risk.”
His confidence, loved by Maryland fans and loathed by the rest of America, stood in stark contrast to the dour scene in the Duke locker room. In it, Scheyer sat and listlessly answered questions about the game.
“He’s a good player and he plays with a lot of emotion,” Scheyer said. “He’s the guy for their team.”
And on one Wednesday night, in front of a rowdy crowd—so rowdy, in fact, that there were several arrests and fires in a postgame celebration—“the guy” had good reason to be cocky.
“I love Duke,” Vasquez said after the game with a smile.
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