Renfree prepares for the spotlight
On the first passing attempt of his collegiate career, Sean Renfree rolled left out of the pocket and picked out tight end Brett Huffman for a 17-yard completion. Touchdown.
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On the first passing attempt of his collegiate career, Sean Renfree rolled left out of the pocket and picked out tight end Brett Huffman for a 17-yard completion. Touchdown.
The Blue Devils began their national championship defense in a dominant fashion this past weekend, bouncing back from last month’s disappointing early exit in the ACC Tournament.
Despite competing against 1,500 athletes from more than 50 schools, several Blue Devils found a way to distinguish themselves at the annual Duke Invitational Friday and Saturday at Wallace Wade Stadium.
When then-unranked Texas A&M routed then-No. 6 Duke 95-77 in the Blue Devils’ second game of the season, questions arose about the team’s ability to put together a dominant 2009-2010 campaign.
A No. 1 seed was not enough to get Duke through the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season. The Blue Devils hope home-court advantage will propel them to at least the Sweet 16 this time.
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Down by 12 points at halftime of Wednesday night’s game against Miami, Duke seemed destined for another road loss.
As strong as Duke looked in its first true road win of the season against Clemson Saturday, the Blue Devils seemed even more comfortable back on the hardwood of Coach K Court against Florida State, beating back multiple Seminole surges and never allowing them to establish an offensive rhythm.
For much of Duke’s matchup against Virginia Tech, neither team could hold onto the ball—and the 22-15 scoreline at halftime indicated as much. But ultimately the Blue Devils showed they wanted it more than the Hokies did and used their suffocating defense to put the game out of reach.
Jasmine Thomas may have stolen the show on offense Thursday night against Ohio State, but the Blue Devils’ defensive performance against Buckeye standout Jantel Lavender was equally important in Duke’s upset victory. The two-time defending Big Ten Player of the Year seemed primed for a big night after scoring 33 in a victory against California Sunday. Although she posted a team-high 20 points against the Blue Devils, Lavender never found a comfort zone under the basket because of Duke’s unrelenting defensive intensity. “She had 20 points, but I felt like she had to earn every single one of those points that she scored tonight,” junior center Krystal Thomas said. When one takes into account the fact that eight of those 20 points came as a result of foul shots and a 3-pointer in the game’s final seconds, the 6-foot-4 center’s numbers seem much less impressive. Thomas played an integral part in taking Lavender out of the game and made her look far from deserving of the All-American status she received in the preseason. Thomas blocked Lavender twice during the game and forced her into awkward shots from the opening tip. Lavender’s first basket was indicative of her performance as a whole. She scored the Buckeyes’ opening points of the game but did so on a short jumper that banked off the glass and rolled on the rim before finally dropping through the net. Lavender scored only six points in the paint on the night, whereas Duke racked up an impressive 46 as a team. The Blue Devils frequently double-teamed her when she received the ball down low, which often led to open 3-pointers for the Buckeyes. Ohio State made 7-of-14 deep balls in the second half, but Duke was willing to allow attempts from long range simply because the Blue Devils, especially Jasmine Thomas, always seemed to find an answer on the offensive end. The stifling man-to-man defense on Lavender was even more noteworthy given that senior forward Joy Cheek, the team’s most experienced post player, went down with an ankle injury about five minutes into the game and only returned for a brief period in the second half. “It was a little surprising—Joy’s not a person that gets hurt ever,” Jasmine Thomas said. “When she did come in [again in the second half] and she was a little bit unstable, I just knew that our post players were going to have to take it over.” Head coach Joanne P. McCallie also occasionally employed a zone to keep the Buckeyes guessing. And indeed, Lavender said she was surprised at how poorly her team reacted to the changes in Duke’s defensive schemes. Ohio State’s lack of awareness was compounded by the Blue Devils’ renewed commitment to staunch defense after giving up 95 points to Texas A&M in their only loss of the season. “After Texas A&M it was definitely a big lesson learned—how important defense is,” Krystal Thomas said. “It’s something that we’ve stressed ever since that game and that’s what won us the game tonight. I thought everyone worked very hard on their assignments. Everyone defended, everyone rebounded and it’s just been a mindset all throughout practice and it showed tonight.” Lavender shot 7-of-18 from the field on the night, well below the 55.6 percent shooting clip she had averaged in her first eight games. Even though she grabbed a season-high 18 rebounds, only three of them came on the offensive glass, further demonstrating Duke’s defensive dominance in the post. And in shutting down the best player on a national powerhouse, the Blue Devils learned another lesson: If they can limit the effectiveness of their opponent’s primary scorer, they can compete with any team in the country.
For Duke’s first two games, Nolan Smith could only sit and watch from the bench.
When Nolan Smith returned to the Washington, D.C. area for offseason training this past summer, he took his game to the outdoor courts of Barry Farms. But the junior guard wasn’t playing pickup against the neighborhood kids.
After Clemson dealt Duke its worst conference loss since 1984 last season, the Blue Devils will certainly be marking their calendars for Jan. 3, when the Tigers come to Cameron Indoor Stadium.
After a season in which the Blue Devils’ newest additions played an integral part in the team’s success, it was only fitting that a freshman led Duke to victory with a berth to the ACC tournament on the line.
The Blue Devils remain in the hunt for a second straight ACC championship after emerging victorious from a road trip over the weekend that tested their resilience and mental toughness.
When sophomore Miles Plumlee forced a steal at half court, took the ball the other way and finished at the rim with an emphatic one-handed slam—getting fouled in the process—he gave fans a glimpse of the versatility that Duke’s crop of big men hope to display throughout the season.
After getting back on track in the ACC with two consecutive shutout wins, the Blue Devils ran into a pothole when they faced conference bottom-dweller Virginia Thursday night.
The Bull City Gridiron Classic was a game of milestones—and not only because it was the first time in school history that Duke played Durham neighbor N.C. Central.
The Blue Devils contained the Tar Heels’ most potent offensive threats for more than 90 minutes, but the nation’s top-ranked team snuck away with a win thanks to a pair of timely rebounds.
Even though the shadow of top-ranked North Carolina looms on Duke’s schedule, the Blue Devils must wrestle with a pack of Tigers this weekend before they kick off their ACC slate.
Duke had a 31-2 shot advantage in 110 minutes of play Saturday but could not generate a lead in the only category that mattered—the final score.