Key three: Duke men's basketball needs a lion's heart to bounce back against Miami

Duke fans wanted to close their eyes while watching the Blue Devils' second straight loss.
Duke fans wanted to close their eyes while watching the Blue Devils' second straight loss.

Duke has fallen apart at the seams of late. A loss at Clemson last Tuesday was followed by a weekend upset by No. 11 Louisville. The third-ranked Blue Devils take on Miami Tuesday night, an opponent they beat by 33 points earlier this month. The Blue Zone looks at three keys to a redeeming win against the Hurricanes:

A lion's heart

The Blue Devils are now coming off of back-to-back losses, both in close games. It truly demoralizes a team to lose on the road to an unranked conference competitor and at home to a strong conference rival. The next step for Duke is mentally rebounding. As hard as it is for the team to reverse its fortune, the remainder of the season depends on it. A true national championship contender must bounce back from tough losses. Especially this season, with top-ranked teams dropping like flies, it is vital that the Blue Devils show their mental strength. Head coach Mike Krzyzewski must go face-to-face with his players and make them realize that this is the time to show strong they are, and that it’s okay to lose—as long as you bounce back better.

Neutralize turnovers

The turnover problem has killed the Blue Devils all season, but especially last game against Louisville. Duke gave up a total of 16 turnovers throughout the game, many of which happened in the first 10 minutes, causing the team to take an early deficit they could not recover from.

Despite a lot of sloppy play across the board last game, the Blue Devil defense once again showed signs of strength by forcing 17 Cardinal turnovers—although it allowed 79 points. Stout defense leading to transition offense has always been a big part of Duke basketball. It’s hard to stop a team in transition, though, so cleaning up on offense will help lock down on defense. 

Put the Hurt on Miami

Freshman forward Matthew Hurt shined for Duke last game, and it should look to get him involved again. He played a well-deserved 32 minutes and racked up 16 points, including a vicious putback dunk, on 55.6 percent shooting with no turnovers. A spark in the Blue Devil offense, Hurt hit some clutch threes and play efficiently on the ball—just what the team needed in the midst of an offensive breakdown. Against Miami, he can provide the team with the valuable ability to stretch the floor and find open looks, given he sees good minutes.

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