Beyond the Arc: Duke vs. Florida Southern

In their first real exhibition game of the season, the Blue Devils defeated Florida Southern 112-68 in a blowout victory. Friday was Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski's first opportunity to see his revamped roster perform in a real basketball game since the Blue-White scrimmage during Countdown to Craziness two weeks ago. Freshmen Brandon Ingram, Derryck Thornton, Luke Kennard and Chase Jeter combined for 59 points as the Blue Devils coasted to the victory.

Revisiting the three keys to the game:

• Take the game seriously: At first, it seemed like the Blue Devils came out ready to play. After a little more than four minutes of game time, Duke had a 15-2 lead against the defending Division II national champions. But towards the middle of the first half, the Moccasins found their range from outside and cut into the Blue Devils' early lead with an 18-9 run that trimmed the Blue Devil lead to four. From this point, Duke hit its stride and outscored Florida Southern 40-20 in the remainder of the first half. 
• Start fast: Duke needed to start fast, not only to gain momentum in the game but also to build confidence as a cohesive group in their first game together. And start fast they did. The Blue Devils came out running right after tip-off, with two 3-pointers by junior Matt Jones along with two jump-hooks from graduate student Marshall Plumlee. Good ball movement fueled Duke's quick start and helped the team score the game's first 10 points. 
• Win in the paint: With four Florida Southern starters listed at a height under 6-foot-6 and many smaller players coming off the bench, the Blue Devils needed to not only score in the paint, but defend the paint well. Duke big men attacked the paint all evening led by Plumlee and forwards Jeter and Amile Jefferson, with the trio scoring all 34 of their points in the paint or at the foul line. The Blue Devils also prevented the Moccasins from scoring near the hoop and allowed just 12 points in the paint. 

Three key plays:

• 10:20, first half: With Florida Southern on a run against the defending champs, guard Dylan Travis found Sheldon Zablonty open for a 3-pointer that cut the Blue Devil lead to four, and made Krzyzewski visibly displeased as his team came to the sideline. 
• 8:36, first half: After the Moccasins had come within five, Jefferson stole the ball from Jarel Spellman and took it the length of the court for a basket. This steal-and-score keyed Duke’s run to put the game out of reach.
• 00:12, first half: With 12 seconds left on the clock, Ingram patiently took the ball down the court, and found a lane to finish with a nifty layup on the Moccasin defense. This was the exclamation point on Duke’s 40-20 run and sent the Crazies into a frenzy. 

Three key stats:

• Duke outrebounds Florida Southern 55-29: It felt like the Blue Devils could have jumped over the Moccasin defenders all night long thanks to their huge height advantage. Duke started three players taller than 6-foot-9—Ingram, Jefferson and Plumlee.
• Florida Southern shoots 27.8 percent from the field: The Moccasins could not get any shots to in the paint in this one and hoisted up 36 3-pointers. Every shot the team took was contested by outstretched Blue Devil arms and Duke's length certainly affected the passing lanes for Florida Southern's guards. 
• The Blue Devils finish 11-of-28 from beyond the arc: As the season progresses and competition progresses, Duke will need to improve from long-range. With a plethora of lethal jump-shooters on the perimeter, the Blue Devils' ability to penetrate and kick out for open triples will be key all season long. Duke will especially need Kennard to find the range after he finished just 2-of-7 from deep Friday night.