The competition may be closely contested when it comes to college rankings, but the Blue Devils have utterly dominated their Ivy League counterparts on the court this decade.
Duke played eight games against Ivy League opponents throughout the 2010s, winning all eight against Pennsylvania, Princeton, Cornell and Yale.
The Blue Devils will try and replicate that Ivy League success as the decade comes to a close, matching up against Brown Saturday at 11:30 a.m. in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke will have played just one game over the previous 21 days heading into the matchup, an 86-57 win against Wofford Dec. 19. While that lack of action may cause the team to be a bit rusty in the early minutes against the Bears, the additional rest is much-needed for a Blue Devil squad that spent the first few months of the year criss-crossing the country.
“During the month of November and the first week of December, when we started our season, there were 17 academic days.… We missed seven days of school because of being on the road,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “And two of the days we came back at 3 or 4 o’clock in the morning. So the academic aspect of this takes on an even deeper level because you’re behind.… We have a great school, and it demands a lot academically.”
Duke is going to have to get right back to work this weekend, though, with the team receiving only one break longer than three days for the rest of the season. And with Brown, the Blue Devils are facing off against one of their most physical nonconference foes of the year.
The Bears rank sixth in the nation in offensive rebounds per game, grabbing 14.8 per contest. Junior Tamenang Choh—who led the Ivy League in rebounding last season en route to being named second team All-Ivy—leads the team in that department, coming down with 2.4 per game. His 8.3 total rebounds per game this year rank fourth in the conference.
Where Choh has really expanded his arsenal, however, is on the offensive end. The 6-foot-5 forward only attempted 32 shots from deep through his first two years in Rhode Island, hitting them at a 25 percent clip. But Choh has already attempted 26 shots from beyond the arc this season, sinking them at a 42.3 percent rate.
While Brown’s offense isn’t quite as as 3-point-centric as Duke’s previous two opponents, wins against Virginia Tech and Wofford—which rank seventh and fourth in 3-pointers per game, respectively—has prepared the Blue Devils well in defending beyond the arc.
“I think [Virginia Tech] was the first team we played with that unconventional style of play,” center Vernon Carey Jr. said following the Blue Devils’ victory against Wofford. “So just having the preparation for a good week helped me and helped the team.”
Choh isn’t the only offensive weapon Duke has to worry about, though. Two seasons ago, Brandon Anderson tied for third in the Ivy League with 17.3 points per game. Last season, however, the New Jersey native was relegated to a bench role for the Bears, posting 9.2 points on just over 20 minutes a night.
But now the 6-foot-2 guard is back in the starting lineup, averaging 21 points per contest—second in the conference—on a league-leading 37.6 minutes per game. With Anderson averaging 38.5 minutes over his last six appearances, Tre Jones—who is expected to return after sitting out the Wofford contest—should expect to see a lot of the senior point guard Saturday afternoon.
In terms of Duke’s offense, one of the team’s biggest developments has been Krzyzewski’s utilization of the bench. The Blue Devils scored 43 points off the bench against the Terriers, their most bench points in a game since the team’s win over Stetson last year.
Meanwhile, Joey Baker’s career-high 22 points were the most by a Duke player off the bench since then-sophomore Luke Kennard dropped 26 in February 2016. Baker also became the fifth different Blue Devil to score at least 20 points in a game this season, already surpassing last year’s mark of four different athletes breaking the 20-point barrier.
“It just shows how versatile we are, and how many good players we have,” Baker said. “So anybody can go off on any night, and that’s we need—a well-rounded, balanced team.”
After Brown, the Blue Devils will kick off the regular portion of their ACC schedule Dec. 31 against Boston College. But first, the team has to ensure it makes it there without its second shocking upset defeat of the season.
“I’m happy we won,” Baker said after the Wofford win. “Right before break these games can be so-called trap games. So it’s a good feeling to get the win.”
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