After each Duke men's basketball game this season, check back here for the Player of the Game and more. Today, the Blue Zone breaks down Duke's dismantling of Delaware last night, 92-58:
One player: Tyrese Proctor
The 6-foot-5 guard recorded his first career double-double against the Blue Hens in a 13 point, 10 rebound performance to help seal No. 7 Duke’s win against Delaware. He also added four assists and a steal. Proctor looked comfortable from tipoff. After launching a precise lob to Derek Lively early in the game for a dominating slam dunk, the Australia native continued to showcase his five-star talent.
Proctor commanded the offense all night. He hit a beautiful step back 3-pointer, shaking his defender loose to put Duke up 10 in the first half. He shot 50% from the field and landed career highs in both points and rebounds on Friday night. He also demonstrated tricky ball handling skills in the paint, making him an even more powerful on-ball threat.
Proctor showed that he has the potential to lead this team from the point or just about anywhere else on the court. He’s an outside threat and a daunting inside attacker, and he can cause a ruckus on defense. If Duke continues to use him in all domains, the Blue Devils have a promising season ahead.
One word: Redemption
After a crushing 69-64 loss to Kansas on Tuesday night in Indianapolis, Duke returned to Cameron Indoor Stadium to show the Crazies that hope was not lost, that the Jayhawks’ win wasn’t going to slow it down. Led by freshman Kyle Filipowski with eight rebounds and a team-high 18 points, head coach Jon Scheyer's squad got back in the win column against Delaware Friday night.
The Blue Devils again proved they could dominate the boards, docking 16 offensive rebounds and 24 second-chance points as well, 18 of which came in the second half. Duke was able to recover from a persuasive first-half effort by the Blue Hens, who kept the contest too close for comfort for the highly favored Blue Devils. After only a six-point lead at the half, Duke was able to pull away in the second half due to disruptive defense by Procter, big threes from both sophomore Jaylen Blakes and graduate transfer Jacob Grandison off the bench and a compelling team effort for second-chance opportunities.
Not to mention, junior captain Jeremy Roach exhibited redemption and recovery after notably getting taken to the ground on two separate block attempts by Delaware during the second half. He later landed an and-one layup to continue the Blue Devil push.
One stat: 14 turnovers for Delaware
Duke forced 14 Delaware turnovers during the 40 minutes of play, leading to an additional 14 points off turnovers in the second half alone. The Blue Devils logged eight steals throughout the game, with Roach and freshman guard Dariq Whitehead leading the way with a pair each. The surplus of turnovers led to fast breaks down the stretch. During Duke’s game-sealing 38-7 run, Blakes secured a steal and took it home with a slam dunk on the other end to put the Blue Devils up 15 with just over 10 minutes to play. In addition to the turnovers, Duke was dominant on the defensive end, grabbing 31 defensive boards to Delaware’s 19.
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