Coming off a statement win against Tobacco Road rival North Carolina, Duke will face Clemson at Cameron Indoor Stadium Saturday at 1 p.m. with a short turnaround. The Blue Devils are looking to extend their winning streak to five to keep the momentum going in what has been a season full of setbacks. The Blue Zone takes a look at a player from each team who could be the difference-maker in the game:
Duke: Guard Grayson Allen
The preseason ACC Player of the Year has had an underwhelming junior campaign thus far, seeing a regression in statistics from his All-American season a year ago. The 6-foot-5 guard played through a toe injury through much of the first part of the season, but Allen has been playing like his former self in recent weeks.
The junior has scored at least 19 points in his last four outings, including a 25-point outburst against North Carolina on 7-of-12 shooting from 3-point range to help carry the Blue Devils to one of their biggest wins of the season.
Allen’s improvement comes at a good time for Duke, which has dealt with a slew of injuries and head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s month-long absence, as the Blue Devils head into the final stretch of the regular season and prepare for the postseason. If Allen can maintain his production against Clemson and beyond, Duke will continue to look more like the team that was chosen as the preseason No. 1 in the AP poll.
Clemson: Forward Jaron Blossomgame
The redshirt senior has been doing it all for Clemson, leading the team in scoring at 17.8 points and pulling down 5.5 boards per contest, good for second best on the team. But the Tigers are just 3-8 in the ACC and 13-10 overall, and Blossomgame’s efforts have often gone unnoticed.
Going against an upward-trending Duke team, it would take an extraordinary effort from the 6-foot-7 redshirt senior to contribute enough points to match the depth of the Blue Devil offense. But if Blossomgame is able to score without much resistance inside the arc and can dominate the glass, he may end up being a difference-maker for a struggling Clemson squad.
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