After dispatching Michigan on its home floor in its best defensive performance of the season, the Blue Devils took a break from competition while the University had its exam period. No. 8 Duke return to the court against Gardner-Webb Monday at 7 p.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium looking to ride the momentum it built up nearly two weeks ago.
"One of the things you worry about is that finals can be draining mentally and emotionally," associate head coach Jeff Capel said. "We've had sharp practices.... We're excited to build on that and improve this team."
Following a narrow one-point home win against Vermont, the Blue Devils (7-2) have stepped up their defensive intensity in their past three games. In its last contest, Duke held Michigan's leading scorer, guard Nik Stauskas, without a field goal.
The Blue Devils have improved defensively as the team is finally starting to settle into its rotation. Senior captains Tyler Thornton and Josh Hairston have gotten starting nods in each of the past three games, bringing the leadership and defensive presence that the team lacked early in the season.
"For us it was trying to figure out roles," Capel said. "It's been an adjustment for everyone—coaches included.... We feel like we finally are starting to have guys understand their roles."
Although changes to the starting lineup were most significant, it is the Duke bench that has responded the most when settling into their roles. The Blue Devils got very productive minutes from their bench in their 79-69 win against Michigan as guards Matt Jones and Andre Dawkins, forward Amile Jefferson and center Marshall Plumlee all played some of their most efficient basketball of the season.
"Those guys made a huge difference," Capel said. "Against Michigan they all came in, played with energy, played their butts off and did a tremendous job. It's been a huge lift for us."
One player who has yet to find his role on this year's Duke squad is guard Rasheed Sulaimon, who did not see the floor in his team's victory against the Wolverines. After the contest, head coach Mike Krzyzewski said Sulaimon would return to the court when he can outplay Thornton, Jones and Dawkins in practice.
Capel lauded Sulaimon for his effort in practice the past two weeks and said he had seen improvement from the sophomore.
Freshman Tyrell Nelson has come on strong lately, leading Gardner-Webb with 15.3 points off the bench in his last four games. He came off the bench in three of those contests and is a post presence as one of the team's leading rebounders at just 6-foot-7.
The Runnin' Bulldogs are not a great shooting team, managing just 32.5 percent from beyond and arc and 67.4 percent from the free-throw line but have made up for that with opportunistic play on the defensive end. Gardner-Webb is forcing 15.5 turnovers per game on the season.
"They get out in transition. They want to push it," Capel said. "On defense, they can give you a couple of different looks defensively. It's a team that's playing really well right now."
Playing in front of the home crowd, Duke will look to push its nonconference home winning streak to 108 games. Monday night's game will mark the Blue Devils' first contest since redshirt sophomore Alex Murphy left the team to transfer.
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