When Florida State tarnished Duke’s undefeated record with a 66-61 victory over the then-No. 1 team in the country Jan. 12, the Blue Devils did not look like a team that had won 25 straight games.
The Seminoles’ hard-nosed defense completely disrupted Duke’s offensive rhythm: The Blue Devils shot 31 percent from the field and relied too heavily on the 3-point shot as a result of ineffective post play. Perhaps intensifying the sting of the loss, Florida State had fallen to Auburn, which currently occupies last place in the Southeastern Conference, the previous week.
But just a little more than a month after the surprising defeat in Tallahassee, Duke now sits back on top of the college basketball world, jumping up four places to hold the No. 1 spot in both the AP and the USA Today/ESPN Coaches rankings. This leap to the head of the pack is the largest since 2003, when Kansas moved to the top spot from the No. 6 position. But the Blue Devils benefited from road losses by the previous top four teams—Kansas, Ohio State, Texas and Pittsburgh—and it would be difficult to argue conclusively that Duke is better than those squads, as all of them still received No. 1 votes in AP Poll this week.
Moreover, head coach Mike Krzyzewski won’t place too much stock in the Blue Devils’ top ranking, if his comments after Sunday night’s victory are any indication.
“After Kyrie [Irving] got hurt, we were just No. 1 for a long time because we didn’t lose,” Krzyzewski said. “That’s just the nature of the polls. I never felt we were the No. 1 team in the country after that. I did when [Kyrie] was with us. I think we’re a good team and we just have to keep winning.”
Nonetheless, the Blue Devils have come a long way from their first loss of the season, staying undefeated in the ACC, winning 10 of their last 11 games and reeling off six in a row since Jan. 30. Over that stretch, Seth Curry shot his way into the starting lineup, freshman Tyler Thornton proved he could take some of the pressure off Nolan Smith in the backcourt and Smith established himself as a legitimate contender for national player of the year honors.
Smith in particular has provided much-needed consistency for Duke, scoring 20 or more points in nine of the games after the Florida State defeat and never putting up less than 18 during the same span. He leads the ACC in both scoring and assists, showing his ability to adapt to the loss of Irving, the Blue Devils’ best distributor.
“He keeps getting better,” Krzyzewski said of Smith. “I don’t think anyone in the country has had that change [in ballhandling responsibility] and especially not the preseason and the first part of the season to prepare for your role. He just [said], ‘Ok I’ll be Spiderman. I’ll sing the lead. I’ll take all those.’ I think [he’s had] one of the best performances in a long time in our league, especially when you consider those things.”
Duke’s frontcourt has also improved its toughness since it was overmatched down low against the Seminoles on a night in which Kyle Singler said the Blue Devils “weren’t ready for how physical the game was.” Mason and Miles Plumlee, along with Ryan Kelly, have caused problems for some of the best post players in the ACC, holding Maryland’s Jordan Williams, N.C. State’s Tracy Smith and North Carolina’s John Henson to a combined 13-for-31 shooting performance from Feb. 2 to Feb. 9.
The continued development of the big men along with the sustained production from Smith and Curry have Duke primed to capture another regular-season conference championship, provided the Blue Devils can survive road contests at Virginia Tech and North Carolina.
Yet, the past week of college basketball has shown that none of the top teams, not even the No. 1 squad, are safe when they leave the familiar hardwood of their home arenas. But if Duke does lose away from Cameron Indoor Stadium, chances are it won’t be because the Blue Devils let the top spot get to their heads.
“It’s the time of the year where people are desperate,” Krzyzewski said Sunday. “The teams that are ranked high all get great shots from everyone. I do think that can make you better before going into the tournament. We shouldn’t worry about what it does in the polls. We want to finish well in the conference race.”
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