The key three: Duke basketball vs. Drury

Though No. 4 Duke’s second exhibition game might seem like a pushover, don’t take Drury for your typical low-quality program. The Panthers face the Blue Devils Saturday at 1 pm at Cameron Indoor Stadium having come off a National Championship season in Division II College basketball. Here are three keys to the game.

Duke will need to start hitting shots from beyond the arc.

Duke shot 23.3 percent from beyond the arc during their first exhibition game of the season. Though the open looks were certainly there, the sharpshooting guards Andre Dawkins and Matt Jones failed to convert on multiple opportunities. The team hit merely seven of 30 attempts from three throughout the game. With a playing style that requires the Blue Devils to move the ball and find different players open especially from downtown, hitting these 3-pointers will be crucial for the team’s continued success. It may not be as large of a factor against Drury, but if they are hitting their 3-pointers at a much higher percentage the offense will be functioning well. Against Bowie State, those threes were not deciding factors, but against Kansas or Michigan later this season, they might be.

The Blue Devils need to perform with a rare height advantage.

Drury has two experienced forwards patrolling the paint in Ian Carter and Mael Amenyedzi. They are the Panthers primary big men. Though Duke will likely have very few matchups with teams that are of comparable or smaller size, this game will be an exception. The Blue Devils will need to adapt to utilize its height advantage and play a consistent post game. It will be interesting to see how Duke’s players responds to a height advantage and utilize the bigger Amile Jefferson and Jabari Parker in the paint. The size may, and probably will, play to Duke’s advantage, but seeing if they capitalize on that advantage will be important to observe.

On the defensive end, the Blue Devils must shut down the Panters' offense.

The simple question is whether Duke’s pressure defense does what it is supposed to do: cause turnovers; put pressure on the ball and limit opposing team’s scoring options. There are more important concerns than shutting down the reigning Division II National Champions for Duke right now as the team learns to play well together and give a full effort on defense. The Blue Devils gave up 67 points in the opening exhibition matchup, allowing Bowie State to shoot nearly 44 percent from the floor. Though Duke limited 3-point chances and had 12 steals, the Bulldogs managed to rack up nearly 70 points in the game. While the individual statistics certainly look promising, the final result of how many points Duke gives up defensively will be an important metric to observe against a lesser Drury.