After living up to expectations at Countdown to Craziness, the Blue Devils will finally take the court against a new opponent for the first time in more than seven months.
No. 4 Duke will welcome Livingstone to Cameron Indoor Stadium Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the first of two exhibition contests prior to the start of the regular season. The Blue Devils open the regular season Nov. 14 against Presbyterian as part of the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.
Tuesday’s tilt is far from the biggest game Duke will play this season, but the game will be the Blue Devils’ first chance this season to play against someone other than themselves. For many players, particularly the quartet of heralded freshmen, that thought alone was enough to produce an adrenaline rush.
“It’ll probably be hard for me to sleep the next couple of nights,” freshman center Jahlil Okafor said Saturday after Duke’s open practice. “Just to put on a Duke jersey and play against another opponent—I’m so excited.”
Okafor, the nation’s top-ranked recruit coming out of high school, hasn’t played a game yet, but the expectations for the Chicago native continue to grow. The 6-foot-11 center was named the Associated Press Preseason Player of the Year Monday afternoon after earning ACC Rookie of the Year honors last week.
After dominating the intrasquad scrimmage at Countdown to Craziness two weeks ago with 27 points and eight rebounds, Okafor seems ready to be the post-up offensive threat that the Blue Devils were missing last season. The freshman is also working hard to improve his performance on the defensive end, admitting that he didn’t have to work as hard there in high school.
“I feel very confident on the offensive end. I [have the mentality that] I can score at will and get my teammates open,” Okafor said. “The coaches have given me a lot of fundamental things for guarding the post and guarding ball-screens. I think that’s one thing I’ve really improved on.”
A program that prides itself on defense, Duke struggled mightily to protect the basket last season, allowing 67.4 points per game, which ranked 104th in the country. Having Okafor down low should be an immediate boost to the squad, and the loaded stable of athletic guards on the roster should allow head coach Mike Krzyzewski to apply more full-court pressure than in previous years. At both Countdown to Craziness and the open practice, the Blue Devils experimented with different looks defending the length of the floor, including some trapping defenses.
“[We want] to make teams work, put pressure on the ball,” senior captain Quinn Cook said. “We don’t want to pace ourselves, we don’t want to get tired. If somebody gets tired, somebody else can come in and fill the void.... We’ve got to use our depth.”
Livingstone returns eight members of last year’s team, which won its first Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association conference title in program history. But head coach James Stinson’s squad will make the trip from Salisbury, N.C., to Durham looking to replace its two leading scorers from last season in Mark Thomas and Jody Hill, who combined for 40.1 points per game.
The Blue Bears boast considerable height for a Division II team, with five players on the roster listed at 6-foot-7 or taller. Livingstone’s forwards should provide good preparation for the size and strength of the competition Okafor and the Duke big men will have to battle all season.
Although all eyes will be on the battle in the paint, Krzyzewski and his staff will also pay close attention to how the six Blue Devil perimeter players competing for playing time perform. Sophomore Matt Jones—lauded by Krzyzewski for his defensive tenacity—ran with the first unit in both the Countdown scrimmage and at Saturday’s open practice. The DeSoto, Texas, product has found himself—and his shooting stroke—after a difficult freshman campaign.
“I’m just more confident in my game and more in tune with who I am. I’m definitely in a better place than last year,” Jones said. “Coach tells me to be myself out there on the court [and] bring a lot of enthusiasm. I feel like I bring a lot of good things to the team. He just tells me to be myself and not try to be other people.”
Senior point guard Quinn Cook, freshman Tyus Jones and junior Rasheed Sulaimon will likely all see time handling the ball against the Blue Bears, with Matt Jones and freshmen Justise Winslow and Grayson Allen to be rotated in and out on the wing.
Jones said the Blue Devils have gelled well as a group, but noted that two areas that caused Duke problems late in games last season could still use improvement.
“We’re a close-knit group, but we find ourselves not talking as much on the court,” Jones said. “[There are] little things we need to improve upon: rebounding, box-outs, that kind of thing. We definitely have a lot to improve on before the season starts.”
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.