Last time the Blue Devils traveled to the state of Virginia, they lost freshman forward Dariq Whitehead to injury, a sprain in his lower left leg.
Now, ahead of a Saturday showdown at No. 8 Virginia, Duke is getting Whitehead back in its lineup.
Whitehead is available to return against the Cavaliers after missing the team's last four games, per a team release Saturday morning. Head coach Jon Scheyer indicated in a Thursday media availability that a return to the lineup for the five-star freshman was possible.
"He's really progressed well," Scheyer said Thursday. "We didn't have contact yesterday, he was able to do everything. But today's the next step of being able to go through the entire practice, and then we'll evaluate and talk afterwards today. So he's right there. I don't want to say whether it's going to happen or not. I want him to feel comfortable and we need to huddle up with him and our staff and our medical team today and tomorrow to get a better feel."
Whitehead's injury occurred in the second half of Duke's Jan. 23 loss at Virginia Tech. The freshman was in the midst of one of his best performances with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting, and although his injury seemed season-threatening initially, an MRI revealed no structural damage, opening the door for the Montverde Academy to return to the floor in the regular season.
After undergoing surgery to repair a right foot fracture in August 2022, Whitehead debuted for the Blue Devils in a Nov. 18 win against Delaware. He is fifth on the team in scoring at 8.4 points per game and had started five games in a row at the time of his injury.
Whitehead's return comes at a key time for the Blue Devils, who head into their 4 p.m. matchup at the Cavaliers as 5.5-point underdogs. Virginia is tied for the ACC lead at 10-3.
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Jonathan Levitan is a Trinity senior and was previously sports editor of The Chronicle's 118th volume.