The Blue Devils will go under the familiar bright lights of Madison Square Garden in a huge matchup vs. No. 12 Texas Tech, one of nine unbeatens left in the country. The Blue Zone takes a look at a player from each team that could be a difference-maker in the game.
Duke: Forward Jack White
The Red Raider defense that this young Duke team will face has no real weaknesses on paper, similar to what the Blue Devils see in Virginia year in and year out. The Red Raiders give solid help defense and can switch on every ball screen, and what they have that a team like the Cavaliers lack is superb athleticism. That’s why it will be crucial for Jack White and the other Blue Devil complimentary shooters to be on their game from deep, especially when given open looks.
Texas Tech head coach Chris Beard’s squad currently leads the country in fewest points allowed per game, fueled by a 3-point defense which allows just a 25 percent clip from beyond the arc. The Australian junior and his fellow sharp shooter off the bench Alex O’Connell combined to go 4-of-6 on three pointers Tuesday against Princeton, most of them on open looks created by the two stars R.J. Barrett and Zion Williamson. Look for Barrett and Williamson to learn from their last test against Gonzaga and find open shooters when the defense collapses.
Head coach Mike Krzyzewski can count on the freshmen for around 65 points per game, but Duke will need a bigger spark outside of that against a team like Texas Tech, and no one has shown to be a more reliable offensive weapon than White who is shooting 35.7 percent on threes for the season.
Texas Tech: Guard Matt Mooney
If there’s been one key to stopping the Blue Devils this season, it’s been to limit their transition play, something Gonzaga was able to do for most of its win over Duke. No one holds more responsibility in controlling the ball than the point guard, and Matt Mooney is going to have to limit his turnovers for Texas Tech to have a chance.
The Red Raiders as a team have been solid in taking care of the ball, ranking 43rd in the country in turnovers per game, but Mooney hasn’t done his best for those numbers with a 1.33 assist to turnover ratio. With Tre Jones having a possible ACC defensive player of the year type season with his elite on-ball defense, Mooney may have trouble running his offense without coughing up the ball.
The redshirt-senior guard transferred in from South Dakota this fall but has failed to average less than 2.4 turnovers per game since serving as a backup his freshman year at Air Force. This won’t be the first time that Mooney has faced off against the Blue Devils, as he started for South Dakota in what was a 96-80 win for Duke as he posted five assists and four turnovers. Now, with better pieces around him and a more formidable Blue Devil defense, Mooney will have to post a solid game in his first primetime matchup for Texas Tech to keep that donut in its loss column.
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