After defeating Virginia Tech to close out their ACC schedule, the Blue Devils take on the first of two non-conference opponents to finish their regular season.
Duke puts its six-game home winning streak on the line tonight against Elon at 7 p.m., having not lost at Koskinen Stadium since Sept. 9.
The Phoenix (6-10-1) have been inconsistent this season, with their play even varying from half-to-half. Despite their middling record, they have outscored opponents in the first period of games this season 12-8. In the second half, however, they have been beaten 21-12.
The Blue Devils (9-6-1), who have shown the propensity to come out of the gate slowly in games this season, understand that the first half of play will be critical in avoiding an upset.
“We scored in the first six minutes of the game against Virginia Tech, which was good,” head coach John Kerr said. “And, we need to get off the mark strong [again]…. The key for us is to get off to a good start and get into the game early, and put the pressure on the other team right away.”
Duke and Elon have played five of the same teams this season—Clemson, Davidson, Furman, UNC-Greensboro and Wake Forest. The Blue Devils won four of those five games by a combined margin of 11-3, with their only loss a 3-2 early-season effort against the Spartans.
The Phoenix also lost to the Spartans, falling 1-0 to them in their most recent game, as well as against the Wildcats and Paladins. They are, however, undefeated against ACC foes with wins over both the Demon Deacons and the Tigers.
This week, facing two out-of-conference foes in Elon and Mercer is Duke’s one ACC bye week. Each team gets one week in conference play in which they do not face a conference opponent, and the Blue Devils’ just happens to be the last of the year.
“I guess in some ways it’s kind of nice to go into the final week and have two different opponents that don’t know you as well,” Kerr said. “It kind of gives it that playoff feel.”
With that added layer of excitement, the Blue Devils certainly understand that this is not the time to become complacent. Even though they have a few players who have played nearly every minute of every game this season, like forward Andrew Wenger, rest is not a part of the game plan.
“No, no, no—we cannot afford that luxury at this present time,” Kerr said. “So we’re going to be playing our full group and taking it from there.”
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