NEW YORK—Jahlil Okafor, Justise Winslow, Tyus Jones.
Those are the names that have garnered headlines thus far this season for No. 4 Duke. And after Winslow and Okafor were named to the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic All-Tournament Team, those will be the names that continue to monopolize headlines. But Saturday night, as the Blue Devils topped Stanford 70-59 to claim the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic championship, it was Duke's two captains who shined brightest.
"Our guys followed the lead of Quinn [Cook]," head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "Quinn was a great leader for us. So was Amile [Jefferson]—Amile was a warrior."
The immense impact Cook and Jefferson had on Saturday's game started well before the 9:30 p.m. tip-off time. In the midst of a debilitating five games in nine nights stretch—which included travel to Indianapolis and New York—Duke was forced to change its regular routine this week. But with two steady pillars in place, the Blue Devils were able to stay focused and take home the November hardware.
"The one thing that me and Quinn are trying to stress is just talking to each other, making sure everyone has the right mindset going into each game," Jefferson said. "Making sure guys are getting rest. But we have a mature group, so it’s not really that hard. Its just about making sure guys’ minds are where they need to be to play such a grueling schedule."
Cook was the star Saturday night, and was rewarded handsomely with his second preseason tournament MVP trophy in three years, having claimed the Battle 4 Atlantis MVP honors his sophomore season. On a night when the freshman trio shot just 8-for-26, time and again Captain Cook rose to the occasion, burying momentous triples and making crisp passes en route to an 18-point, five-assist night.
But his offensive prowess wasn't the most impressive thing about Cook's performance at the Barclays Center this weekend. Although Cook dazzled with his shooting enough to make Krzyzewski admit he needed to get his point guard more shots, it was his defense that made the biggest impact.
Standing at just 6-foot-2, Cook has had to make an adjustment to playing next to Jones not just offensively, but defensively, where he now has to body up against bigger, stronger guards than he is used to. Friday night, Cook pestered 6-foot-5 Temple guard Quenton DeCosey into 5-of-16 shooting from the field. Then, Saturday night, Cook did a number on 6-foot-6 Stanford swingman Anthony Brown, who went just 4-for-12 and missed all of his 3-point attempts. This coming from a player who shot 45.3 percent from distance a year ago and starting this season at 75.0 percent clip.
"Tyler Thornton, I talk on the phone with him a lot," Cook said. "And Nolan Smith. Those guys always had to guard off the ball, bigger guys, so I’ve just been asking them little tricks and little things, because I’ve never guarded off the ball. It’s fun. I’m still learning, and I still need to get better."
Although Cook may gain some notoriety thanks to his shiny new MVP trophy, Jefferson will still lurk in the shadows, despite being a starter for a 5-0 team. Even though he played only 24 minutes due to Stanford's zone defense, the junior still managed to stuff the stat sheet. The Philadelphia native scored nine points on 3-of-6 shooting, grabbed seven rebounds—four offensive—and added two assists, two steals and a block. And that doesn't even mention the vital, unquantifiable role he plays as a vocal leader on the defensive end.
"It’s just about getting in wherever I can and making plays," Jefferson said. "Even if I can’t get the rebound, tipping it out, let somebody else get it, making sure the ball is in the air, we have a chance of making a play. And for me, it’s just being around. I’m confident in my abilities and I know I can help this team, so it’s just about making plays."
And so, with four days off before taking on Furman back in Durham and 11 days until Duke's next marquee game at No. 3 Wisconsin, the likes of Okafor, Winslow and Jones will continue to dominate the waves of headlines about the Blue Devils.
But residing just under the radar will be the captains Cook and Jefferson—the engines that make Duke run.
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