Thoughts on the AP Poll: Week 16
(02/18/14 12:17am)
Duke moves up to No. 5 this week, but will have a tough time hanging onto its spot.
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Duke moves up to No. 5 this week, but will have a tough time hanging onto its spot.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The year's first edition of Duke-North Carolina may have been postponed, but another Blue Devil rival will come calling for the last time this weekend.Duke and Maryland will face off for their final regular season meeting as ACC foes Saturday at 6 p.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium, putting a cap on what has been an unusual week of weather and game cancellations for the Blue Devils.By virtue of not playing Wednesday night in Chapel Hill, the No. 8 Blue Devils (19-5, 8-3 in the ACC) will have gone a full week since their last game, an 89-68 rout of Boston College. Duke had to put the gameplan for the Tar Heels on hold in order to gear up for Maryland, but the team didn't use the sudden void in the game schedule Wednesday night to get a head start on preparing for the Terrapins."I'm sure there was some disappointment [for the players] because we were ready to play," Duke associated head coach Jeff Capel said. "Everyone is excited for that game.... Once we found out what the final decision was, we just got everyone out. We wanted everybody home and not traveling."The extended rest for the Blue Devils was the last they will be getting for a while. Saturday's game against Maryland kickstarts an eight-day span in which Duke will play four times. The Blue Devils must handle the emotions of Maryland's farewell tour in Cameron, the rescheduled rivalry game in Chapel Hill Feb. 20 and the much-anticipated rematch with No. 1 Syracuse Feb. 22, in addition to a potential trap game Tuesday night in Atlanta against Georgia Tech.Maryland and Duke have played 176 times overall, with the Blue Devils enjoying a 113-63 edge. Often overshadowed by the proximity of the Duke-North Carolina rivalry, Duke-Maryland is steeped in tradition of its own. Capel reflected on the long list of Terrapin greats, from Len Bias to head coach Gary Williams, the Miracle Minute of 2000-01, and more recently on the battles between Greivis Vasquez and current Blue Devil assistant Jon Scheyer."It's been a great matchup—you're talking about one of the original members of the ACC members in Maryland," Capel said. "So this Duke-Maryland game goes way, way back. They've had some amazing teams and players which have led to some great games over the years.... It's sad that you're not going to see it anymore with them leaving the conference, but it is what it is."This year's matchup will pit a Duke team starting to fire on all cylinders against a Maryland squad desperate for a quality win. In keeping with what has seemingly become recent tradition, the Terrapins (14-11, 6-6) find themselves fighting for their postseason lives down the stretch of ACC play. Mark Turgeon's team is still looking for its first victory against a ranked opponent this season, meaning Saturday's game is crucial to its hopes of getting on the right side of the bubble for the Big Dance."You're going to get everyone's best shot, that's one of the things that happens when you come to Duke," Capel said. "That's a good thing—it keeps you on your toes and keeps you sharp. I'm sure there will be a lot of motivation for Maryland with it being their last game in Cameron but also with what they're fighting for. But we're fighting for something too."Four Terrapins average double-figure points per game, led by hybrid guard-forward Dez Wells at 15.0 per contest. At 6-foot-5, 215 pounds, Wells creates matchup problems for many opponents, able to use his speed and ball-handling to get around bigger players and his tank-like body to feast on smaller defenders. A season ago, Wells poured in 30 points to lead the Terrapins to an upset of top-seeded Duke in the ACC tournament quarterfinals."He's really strong, really explosive, very fast. He attacks you in transition and puts a lot of pressure on your defense with his ability to drive and play through contact," Capel said. "He's gotten better at making plays off the bounce. They post him, and he's able to make shots from beyond the arc. You add up all those things, and you talk about a kid that's hungry, that's what makes him so difficult to defend."The Terrapins are also getting solid production from Evan Smotrycz in his first season of eligibility in College Park. The Michigan transfer is scoring at an 11.2 points-per-game clip and ranks second on the team in rebounding. Capel noted the ability of both Smotrycz and sophomore Jake Layman to spread the floor and draw out defenses to guard them behind the 3-point line.Point guard Seth Allen missed the team's first 12 games recovering from a fracture in his foot suffered just before the start of the season. In 13 games back, the sophomore has averaged 12.5 points per game—including a 32-point outburst against Florida State Feb. 8—and a team-best 3.3 assists."[Allen] has rounded back into playing shape. He wasn't in game shape when he first came back, and you don't expect that," Capel said. "He's playing very, very well in his last four games."
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>No. 11 Duke nursed just a four-point edge against Boston College heading into the locker room Saturday night, but used an inspired second-half performance on both ends of the floor to take command of the game. Behind 29 points and 16 rebounds from Jabari Parker, the Blue Devils rolled to an 89-68 victory in Chestnut Hill.Revisiting the three keys to the game:
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>The defense of the national championship begins for Duke.After a whirlwind 2013 season in which they started 2-4 only to win 14 of their final 15 games en route to their second title in four seasons, the No. 1 Blue Devils will get back on the field for the first time Saturday at Koskinen Stadium. Duke and Jacksonville will meet for the fifth time in as many years in the season opener for both teams. The Blue Devils have won each of the four previous meetings, including a lopsided 21-9 affair last February."The script doesn't change for anybody here," head coach John Danowski said of his team's offseason preparations after winning the national title. "The guys know what our culture is. It's built on a strong work ethic, on teamwork, on accountability."Reigning NCAA tournament Most Outstanding Player Brendan Fowler participated in offseason workouts with the team for the first time this year. A midfielder whose prowess at the faceoff X was crucial to Duke's title run, Fowler had spent three years as a walk-on linebacker on the Duke football team but did not suit up for the Blue Devils this season, freeing him up to participate in fall lacrosse workouts."I really challenged Brendan on not playing [football] this year, but the hope is that he'll play again next year," Danowski said. "I wanted him to see it through, especially because they had such a spectacular year in the fall. But I think Brendan would have liked to have been captain, his younger brother [goalie Danny Fowler] is here now as a freshman, and he wanted to be a leader on this team." Having his faceoff man with the team for offseason workouts for the first time, Danowski employed an interesting coaching tactic for Fowler—the senior was not allowed to take any faceoffs."He hadn't taken faceoffs in the three previous falls and he takes so many during the season that we didn't want to beat him up," Danowski said. "He was able to be a lacrosse player during the fall, and that should help him offensively, defensively, all over the field."The Dolphins, members of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, finished last season 8-5, with the season-opening defeat at Duke their lone road blemish. Jacksonville returns its second-leading goal-scorer from a season ago in junior attack Ari Waffle, who posted 18 goals and 12 assists in 2013. Senior goalie Pete DeLuca will be tasked with limiting a Blue Devil offense that averaged 15.5 goals per game in its final 14 contests.DeLuca did not see action against the Blue Devils in last year's contest, but did face Duke in his freshman and sophomore seasons. As a freshman, he tallied 20 saves in a 10-6 loss."They're going to be much improved. They've got a lot of players back and three or four transfers from Rutgers and Denver, so they've got some new people that they're looking at," Danowski said of the Dolphins. "The two goalies that did play against us did not play another second the rest of the season.... We know [DeLuca's] capable of having a great day."Some of the most potent weapons on that prolific Duke offense have already heard their names called at the professional level. A program-record six Blue Devils were selected in the 2014 Major League Lacrosse Draft, including No. 2 overall pick and three-time All-ACC selection Jordan Wolf. The senior enters his final year in Durham with 120 goals and 81 assists and is coming off the best season of his career, amassing 58 tallies and 28 helpers. Josh Dionne, who finished second on the team with 45 goals last season, was one of four Blue Devils drafted by the Charlotte Hounds."The MLL is for other people to judge, and it's kind of meaningless to us," Danowski said. "I hope they do play if they choose to, but that's not something we use as an indicator of what we could become [this season]."Saturday's game marks the beginning of a long homestand for the Blue Devils, who don't play their first road game of the season until March 1. As part of the four-game stretch, Duke will have the opportunity to avenge two of last year's early-season losses against Denver and Penn.In preparing to face Jacksonville, Danowski echoed a sentiment long articulated by Duke head basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski—people like to beat Duke. As reigning NCAA champions, the target on the Blue Devils' backs will be even larger this season."We're going to get everybody's best effort," Danowski said. "We know the Jacksonville kids have had all preseason to focus on this game.... They've had all preseason to prepare for us, and they're going to give us their best shot."
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>No. 11 Duke looks to rebound from Saturday's overtime loss at the Carrier Dome as the Blue Devils welcome Wake Forest to Cameron Indoor Stadium at 9 p.m. Tuesday. Here are tonight's keys to the game:Duplicate Saturday's energy and effortThe hype around Saturday's meeting with Syracuse was tremendous, and the Blue Devils rose to the occasion, putting forth a herculean effort even in defeat. The Demon Deacons aren't the top-ranked team in the nation, but they're no slouch either, something Duke could find out in a hurry if it doesn't come out with the same energy and aggressiveness that it displayed for the full 45 minutes at Syracuse. Leading scorer Codi Miller-McIntyre may or may not suit up for the Demon Deacons, but Devin Thomas and Travies McKie are potent weapons in their own rights that must be contained for Duke to secure a victory.Get Quinn Cooking AgainThe Blue Devil point guard has stepped up his offensive game this season in the shadows of Jabari Parker and Rodney Hood, but Cook struggled from the floor last week. In road games at Pittsburgh and Syracuse, the junior was a combined 2-for-11 from beyond the arc, but still dished out 11 helpers. Cook will need to continue to shoot with confidence against Wake Forest to keep the defense honest—if he can start knocking down shots like he has for most of the season, the Blue Devils will be hard to beat.Get StopsOffensively, Duke put up 89 points against Syracuse's 2-3 zone, one of the best defenses in the country. The problem was on the other end of the floor, where Duke couldn't secure enough stops and defensive rebounds to try to extend momentum and a lead. Playing in front of their home crowd, the Blue Devils need to come out committed to defending a Wake Forest team that has topped 70 points just twice in ACC play. As has been the case throughout Duke's stretch of vastly improved play, the rebounding of Amile Jefferson and Marshall Plumlee will be crucial to creating extended scoring droughts for the Demon Deacons.
Syracuse is the first unanimous No. 1 since Duke back in the 2010-2011 season.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>No. 17 Duke travels to the Carrier Dome to take on undefeated No. 2 Syracuse Saturday evening in their first-ever meeting as ACC rivals. It's just the third head-to-head meeting between legends Mike Krzyzewski and Jim Boeheim, the only two coaches in men's college basketball history with 900 wins at one school. Facing Syracuse means facing the famous Orange 2-3 zone. Today's keys to the games will all revolve around figuring out a way to solve that long, athletic defense:Penetrate the GapsThe best way to beat a zone is to move the ball quickly, get the ball inside to the high post for kick-outs, and drive the gaps in the zone that appear after a few ball rotations. The Blue Devils struggled against the zone early in the season but has more success recently when teams have zoned them, which hasn't been often. The penetration of Quinn Cook and Rasheed Sulaimon and the high post passing of Amile Jefferson will be crucial for creating open looks for teammates.Shoot Over the TopA strength of a zone defense is that it takes away a lot of a team's interior game, forcing the offense into long, contested jumpers. Duke went 13-for-25 from behind the 3-point line at Pittsburgh on Monday, so this could potentially play right into the Blue Devils' hands. Andre Dawkins will be a key factor in today's game—if he can replicate his hot shooting from Monday night, the zone will have to extend out to guard him, which will create more openings for other teammates.Crash the Offensive BoardsRebounding out of a zone defense is much more challenging than rebounding out of a man-to-man scheme, because each person doesn't have a set opposing player to box out. If Jefferson, Marshall Plumlee and Jabari Parker make a concerted effort to get on the glass early and often like they did against Florida State, they'll create second-chance opportunities for Duke. The Orange slow down the pace because of the stingy zone, so the more opportunities you can get against Syracuse's defense, the better.
In anticipation of this week's Duke-Syracuse matchup Krzyzewskiville's counterpart has sprung up in Syracuse, N.Y—they call it Boeheimburg
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>PITTSBURGH, Pa.—The weather outside the Petersen Events Center Monday night was frigid. Inside, Andre Dawkins had the hot hand.No. 17 Duke passed a huge test Monday night, defeating No. 18 Pittsburgh 80-65 in the programs' first meeting as ACC foes. Riding the sharp shooting of Dawkins, who hit six of his seven 3-point attempts en route to 20 points in just 15 minutes, the Blue Devils were able to pull away from the Panthers in the second half."We got some looks for him, and all of a sudden, boom we had a double-digit lead," head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "We played hard, they played hard, and I think Andre was the difference."In the first half, it was freshman Jabari Parker who powered the Blue Devils. His 16 first-half points came in a variety of ways, displaying his arsenal of post play and a pair of 3-pointers. Duke (17-4, 6-2 in the ACC) headed to the locker room ahead 34-32 thanks in large part to six triples - two apiece from Parker, Dawkins and Rodney Hood.Pittsburgh's go-to scorer, swingman Lamar Patterson, struggled in the first half, scoring just four points while committing as many turnovers. Hood drew the defensive assignment on the Panther star, and was able to frustrate him and contest his shots."He's one of the premier players in the country, [but] Rodney's a heck of a player too," Krzyzewski said. "Basically you had a wash there in Rodney and Lamar. They're kind of equal players.... Both those kids have to be exhausted. Thank goodness we have a player of Rodney's caliber to guard him."Despite Patterson's initial struggles, the Panthers (18-3, 6-2) stayed neck and neck with the Blue Devils throughout the first half, compensating by attacking Duke's interior and getting to the charity stripe, where they converted nine of their twelve free throw opportunities.Hood notched six first-half points, but all four of his first-half field goal attempts were launched from behind the arc. The redshirt sophomore made an adjustment after halftime, driving to the hoop relentlessly, pouring in seven points early in the final stanza and finishing with 13 points.Neither team was able to create any breathing room until Quinn Cook hit a 3-pointer from the baseline with 8:50 remaining to give Duke a 57-51 advantage. Cook, who came off the bench for the first time this season after rolling both ankles in practice, finished with nine points, none bigger than that triple, the second bucket of what became a 12-0 Duke run. A few moments later, Dawkins followed with his third triple of the game to extend the Blue Devil lead to nine.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>It's a frigid night here in Pittsburgh, but the Blue Devils are waging a fiery battle against the Panthers inside the Petersen Events Center. Duke heads to the locker room with a 34-32 edge. Jabari Parker leads the way for the Blue Devils with 16 points and five rebounds on 6-of-13 shooting.Here are some observations from the first half:
Syracuse received a scare from Miami but remains undefeated with Duke coming up next weekend.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski lit a fire under his team when he removed his jacket during Saturday's game against Florida State.Removing a suit jacket may not be uncommon for head coaches, but is a rarity for Krzyzewski. After slogging through the opening 10 minutes of the game, the Blue Devils responded to Krzyzewski's fashion statement—reeling off a 12-2 run to create some breathing room between themselves and the Seminoles."He's always like that," point guard Quinn Cook, a junior, said of Krzyzewski's sideline intensity. "He wants the best for his team, and he was coaching his butt off. I think the guys will respond to it."Respond they did. Duke closed the half on a 20-9 run in the final 7:30 to head into the locker room with a comfortable 43-25 advantage. The energy and aggressiveness that fueled Duke's first-half spurt never wavered in the second half, as the Blue Devils used a dominant rebounding performance and consistent free-throw shooting to dispatch Florida State 78-56, earning Krzyzewski his 900th career win at Duke.It was fitting that the milestone victory for men's college basketball's all-time winningest coach came the way so many others had before. The Blue Devils won not on the backs of a freshman phenom or a terrific transfer, but due to the play of its role players. Although Krzyzewski abandoned the hockey-style line changes that he had featured during the past three games, the head coach still substituted liberally. Eight Blue Devils played at least 11 minutes."I'm proud of my guys. We beat a really good team," Krzyzewski said. "Our bench really came through.... I thought Marshall [Plumlee] played an outstanding game. Tyler [Thornton], we didn't know if he was going to play today. He's had the flu but he said he would give it a try and he played well. Rasheed [Sulaimon], obviously, can really penetrate and got us to the line. He handles the ball so well in those situations."It was a convincing win for the No. 18 Blue Devils, who have now won four straight ACC games, but it wasn't always pretty. After Andre Dawkins knocked down two straight 3-pointers in a spot-start for Rodney Hood to open the game, Duke struggled mightily from the floor, posting its worst shooting performance of the season by going just 18-for-59.A product of all the misses, though, was the ample opportunity for offensive rebounds. The Blue Devils had a field day, racking up 27 offensive boards en route to a 47-24 dismantling of the larger Seminoles on the glass, coming up with 29 second-chance points in the process."They're one of the biggest, if not the biggest team in the ACC, so as a team we knew we had to come ready and play with a lot of discipline," Plumlee said.Jabari Parker posted his second straight double-double for the Blue Devils, hauling in 14 rebounds—10 of them offensive—to go with his 14 points. Duke also got a major shot in the arm from Plumlee, who set career highs with seven points and seven offensive rebounds of his own in just 12 minutes.Rounding back into prime basketball shape after offseason surgery, the redshirt sophomore got his afternoon started with a thunderous putback dunk late in the first half, which ignited the Blue Devils' most dominant stretch of the game. On Duke's next possession, Plumlee grabbed an offensive rebound, leading to a 3-pointer by Cook. A Seminole turnover led to a dunk by Parker, and then Sulaimon fed Plumlee for a fast-break layup, turning a 34-21 lead into a 41-21 advantage in less than 90 seconds."It's so exciting to be out there when your teammates are excited and when Cameron is excited," Plumlee said. "It's easy to come off the bench when you're seeing Jabari, Rodney, Amile [Jefferson] and Josh [Hairston] set a good example of how to play hard and how to play together. I'm just following their lead."Plumlee also did something he'd never done before in a Duke uniform—make a free throw. He entered the game 0-for-15 during his two-year career, but looked comfortable at the line Saturday, sinking three of his four attempts. The game got a bit chippy in the second half as Florida State was called for three flagrant fouls. Afterwards, Plumlee was asked whether he should be taking those free throws from now on."I'm a long ways to go from that, but just one step at a time," Plumlee said. "Free-throw shooting is frustrating because I know I'm a capable free throw shooter, but it was nice to see them go in."Plumlee wasn't the only Blue Devil to have success at the charity stripe Saturday. As a team, Duke made 34 of its 43 attempts, both season-highs. Parker went 8-of-9 from the line, Hood went 9-of-11, and Sulaimon was a perfect 8-of-8. Krzyzewski credited his team's aggressiveness for getting Florida State in foul trouble."They protect the basket well, but with our driving we got them into foul trouble, got some second-chance points," Krzyzewski said. "Once we got them into that double bonus, we really wanted to drive the ball. The offensive rebounds led to our opportunities to shoot free throws, and that was really the story of the game."
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>Head coach Mike Krzyzewski will go for his 900th win at Duke at noon Saturday when his No. 18 Blue Devils welcome Florida State to Cameron Indoor Stadium. Here are the keys to what would be a landmark victory:Make Them Feel You Duke's current three-game winning streak has been sparked by aggressive play on the glass and off the dribble. The Blue Devils were competitive on the boards against Virginia—posting a minus-three margin—but outrebounded N.C. State by three before destroying Miami, 42-28 on Wednesday night. Against the Hurricanes, Jabari Parker pulled down a career-high 15 rebounds, and the Blue Devils scrapped for 15 offensive boards, creating extra opportunities. On the offensive end, Duke has been more aggressive in attacking the basket—Parker in particular—attempting 56 free throws over the past three games. Okaro White is a huge factor for the Seminoles on both sides of the ball—getting the forward in early foul trouble could be disastrous for Florida State.Emulate VirginiaWhy would the Blue Devils want to take a page from the Cavaliers' book after they beat Virginia last week? Nobody else in the ACC has had the antidote for beating Florida State. The Seminoles are 4-2 in conference, both defeats at the hands of the Cavaliers and both by 12 points. Virginia had great offensive balance in both contests, as four Cavaliers notched double-digit points in each game. Virginia also blitzed the Seminoles in the first half, heading into the locker room with double-digit leads in both games to give themselves breathing room for the second half, when Florida State played much better.Slam the Door ShutIt took Duke three second-half collapses to learn its lesson, but the Blue Devils are no longer letting their collective foot off the gas when they create a double-digit lead. After faltering against Notre Dame, Clemson and Virginia, Duke buried N.C. State and Miami in the second-half, squashing any thought of a comeback. The Blue Devils were able to do that in last year's 79-60 triumph in Tallahassee, and will need to replicate that no-mercy mentality against a scrappy Seminole squad Saturday.
Jabari Parker
Syracuse and Pittsburgh continue to reign supreme in their new conference.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>A resurgent performance by Jabari Parker and a balanced Blue Devil offensive attack propelled No. 23 Duke to a comfortable 95-60 victory against N.C. State Saturday afternoon at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Parker finished with 23 points and seven rebounds, and was joined in double-figures by teammates Rasheed Sulaimon, Andre Dawkins, Rodney Hood and Quinn Cook. Sulaimon poured in 13 points off the bench, Dawkins and Hood notched 11 apiece, and Cook finished with 10.Revisiting the keys to the game:
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>After grinding out a hard-fought, "must-win" victory against Virginia, Duke players and coaches did not attempt to hide their jubilation while leaving the court Monday night. A 1-3 start in the ACC had to be avoided at all cost, and it was—barely."We needed to win, we needed to protect our home court, and we needed to play with a sense of urgency. That's how we prepared and that's how we played," Duke associate head coach Jeff Capel said. "Everybody stepped up and different guys contributed. We were excited by the fact that we won but most importantly as a coaching staff we were excited because we felt like everyone was in the fight together."Seeking to climb above .500 in conference play for the first time this season, Duke will again rely on that high intensity level when the Blue Devils tip off against N.C. State Saturday at 2 p.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium.Although sophomores Amile Jefferson and Rasheed Sulaimon carried the Blue Devils for much of the game—Jefferson pulled down 15 of Duke's 31 rebounds and Sulaimon scored 21 points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer in the final minute—Capel maintained that the Virginia game showcased his entire team. All 11 scholarship players saw the floor for the Blue Devils as head coach Mike Krzyzewski employed a sub-early, sub-often approach, switching out all five players every few minutes. As a result, players were better-rested down the stretch as Duke held off a furious comeback attempt from the Cavaliers."It was pretty noticeable as we watched that Clemson game, especially in the second half, that guys were playing tired, guys were pacing themselves. That's one of the things we talked about changing," Capel said. "I don't think we went into the game thinking we were going to do five-for-five, it's just something that happened. The second unit came in, they did a phenomenal job, they came in with energy, enthusiasm and rebounded and defended and ran our motion. At the end of the game we had guys that we thought were a little more fresh and that's why we were able to make some plays at the end of the game."Against N.C. State, Capel said the Blue Devils (13-4, 2-2 in the ACC) might not sub five at a time, but would continue to explore its depth as the game goes on.The Wolfpack (11-6, 1-3) will make the short trip from Raleigh looking to wipe a sour taste from their mouth. Following a 31-point shellacking at home against Virginia, N.C. State lost 70-69 Wednesday at Wake Forest, the decisive bucket coming on a coast-to-coast lay-up by Wake Forest's Codi Miller-McIntyre with 4.9 seconds remaining. Even with sophomore star T.J. Warren riddled with foul trouble and on the bench for the final play after fouling out, the Wolfpack had a chance to win their second ACC road game, but Miller-McIntyre benefitted from a defensive lapse on the part of freshman Anthony "Cat" Barber and an apparent travel to earn the Demon Deacons the win.The 2013-14 season was expected to be a rebuilding year for head coach Mark Gottfried after a mass exodus from his program following the end of last season. Richard Howell and Scott Wood graduated, C.J. Leslie and Lorenzo Brown decided to forego their senior seasons and Rodney Purvis opted to transfer to Connecticut. In their stead are six freshmen and two transfers eligible to play this season, with a third—Trevor Lacey of Alabama—sitting out until 2014-15.Warren and sophomore Tyler Lewis are the only returners who averaged double-digit minutes for Gottfried last season, and it is the former who will command Duke's complete attention Saturday."Warren is as good a scorer as there is in college basketball," Capel said. "He puts pressure on the defense constantly, because he can score in every way that a person can score. He's great in transition, really good in the mid-range, can shoot it from range, can play off the bounce or in the post, and he's a very very good offensive rebounder. He's a young man that's probably hungrier than anyone in our league to score the basketball."In this way, Warren —who leads the ACC by scoring 22.2 points per game and averages 7.4 rebounds per contest—resembles Clemson's K.J. McDaniels, a versatile scorer who can do it all for his team when necessary. But last Saturday, it was the Tiger role players who made the big difference in Clemson's 72-59 victory against Duke. The Wolfpack feature a similarly talented supporting cast capable of ending the Blue Devils' 26-game home winning streak.Junior college transfer Desmond Lee has been an aggressive slasher all season, averaging 10.2 points per game, and LSU transfer Ralston Turner is the team's best 3-point threat, posting a 41-percent clip from beyond the arc. Barber, a freshman, has supplanted Lewis as the Wolfpack's starting point guard and ranks second only to Warren in points and minutes per game.The young Wolfpack squad has not been intimidated by playing away from home this season—N.C. State knocked off Notre Dame in South Bend, 77-70, something the Blue Devils were unable to accomplish earlier this month. Capel said road success can provide a team with both confidence and chemistry moving forward in a season."When you go on the road sometimes it can bond you and make you closer, and it certainly looks like they had that kind of performance when they were at Notre Dame," Capel said. "[On Saturday] we expect them to run their stuff and play loose and free, play with confidence. We have to come in and be aggressive, defend, play with a sense of urgency, some of the same things we did against Virginia the other night."
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>After another road loss in the ACC, Duke returns home tonight to play Virginia at 7 p.m. The Cavaliers defeated the Blue Devils 73-68 last year in Charlottesville, led by a magnificent 36-point performance from Joe Harris. Virginia returns most of its key players from last year's team and is off to an impressive 3-0 start in conference play, with all three wins by double-digits. Here are tonight's keys to the game:Compete on the BoardsThe Blue Devils were out-toughed and out-muscled by their own admission against Clemson, and no stat better showcased that fact than the Tigers' 48-30 rebounding advantage. The Cavaliers pose another physical threat, and the Blue Devils will need to find and box-out Akil Mitchell and Mike Tobey to prevent second-chance points. Duke's three-guard rotation of Quinn Cook, Tyler Thornton and Rasheed Sulaimon pulled down just four rebounds against Clemson, a number that must improve Monday night.Play a Full 40 MinutesIt's been a while since the Blue Devils played a solid 40 minutes of basketball. They faltered down the stretch at Notre Dame and Clemson, and looked sluggish in the first half against Georgia Tech. Virginia just beat N.C. State by more than 30 points on Saturday, so Duke cannot afford to endure a five to 10 minute drought.Get to the Free Throw LineDuke went 11-for-15 from the charity stripe Saturday, but Clemson went 18-for-30, indicating that the Tigers were the aggressors, getting into the bonus and driving to the hoop looking for contact—although some of that is skewed by the intentional fouling at the end of the game. On the whole, Duke is a very good free throw shooting team, and getting to the line should be a priority to get easy points while putting some of Virginia's bigger bodies in foul trouble at the same time.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>There were plenty of changes in the AP top 25 this week after a full week of conference play pitted elite teams against once another. Here are some of the notable changes from this week's poll.Duke Takes Another TumbleWith its second ACC loss in three games, the Blue Devils saw their stock plummet once again in the rankings. Duke is now ranked No. 23, falling another seven spots in the polls after a 72-59 loss at Clemson. Jabari Parker, Rodney Hood and the rest of the Duke team will be playing to keep any sort of ranking at all this week, which gets off to a grueling start with a 7 p.m. home contest against Virginia Monday night.Established Programs Take a HitDuke was not the only big-name team to fall multiple spots this week. Ohio State entered play last week ranked third with an unblemished record, but after a narrow overtime loss at Michigan State and a home defeat to now-No. 14 Iowa, the Buckeyes found themselves at No. 11, outside the top 10 in the blink of an eye. Louisville was also punished for its home loss to Memphis, dropping six spots to No. 18. Baylor cracked the top 10 last week, but Tuesday's loss at Iowa State dropped the Bears down to No. 12. Meanwhile, the Cylcones suffered their first loss of the season Saturday at Oklahoma but still moved up a spot to No. 8, while non-power conference teams Wichita State (No. 5) and San Diego State (No. 10) continued their ascension.Familiar Names Return to the PollsA slew of upsets over the weekend cost several teams their spot in the top 25, including Oregon, Missouri and Gonzaga. Their replacements include a dangerous UCLA team at No. 25, Jamie Dixon's Pittsburgh squad at No. 22 and Doug McDermott and Creighton at No. 20. These programs have been consistently successful over the years, and will need to remain so to hold onto their spot in the polls.
____simple_html_dom__voku__html_wrapper____>CLEMSON, S.C.—Wojo's floor slaps. Battier's chase-down blocks. Grant Hill's emphatic dunks.These are the types of plays that have come to define Duke basketball—all of them predicated on toughness. But Saturday afternoon at Littlejohn Coliseum, that one intangible was noticeably absent.No. 16 Duke fell 72-59 to Clemson Saturday, the second consecutive road defeat for the Blue Devils to open ACC play. After leading for the first 30 minutes of the game, Duke went cold from the field and struggled to slow down a suddenly-prolific Clemson offense. The Tigers finished the game on an 18-5 run, holding Duke without a field goal over the final 6:23, an ending eerily similar to Duke's 79-77 loss to Notre Dame last weekend."We weren't tough enough," Duke captain Rodney Hood said. "Rebounds, loose balls, everything. They outplayed us."In the second half, Clemson scored 41 points and held Duke to just 22. The Tigers are among the nation's leaders in most defensive categories, and showed why Saturday with the game on the line, forcing the Blue Devils to take contested, off-balance shots, often late in the shot clock."They played great defense," point guard Quinn Cook said. "They made us make weak moves and weak shots. They did a good job. I thought we were tough in the first half, and after Rodney hit the three in the beginning [of the second half] we just didn't play Duke basketball, and we deserved [the loss]."In front of a sellout crowd, the Tigers played perhaps their best game of the season against their stiffest competition. But the added motivation of playing Duke is nothing head coach Mike Krzyzewski hasn't seen before."Guys play hard. Duke doesn't own the patent to play hard," Krzyzewski said. "Everybody's allowed to play hard and this team played very hard against us. We have to understand that whenever we play, we get that team's best shot. They didn't have pom-poms here on Thursday night [when Clemson hosted Florida State]. It wasn't a packed house."Toughness is a mindset problem the Blue Devils should be able to rectify by the time Virginia visits Cameron Indoor Stadium Monday night. But size is a different story.The Blue Devils were outrebounded 48-30 by the Tigers, one of the worst rebounding margins Duke has posted all season. Clemson center Landry Nnoko feasted on the undersized defenders trying to block him out, pulling down 13 rebounds to go with his 10 points. Six of those rebounds came on the offensive end, including two that turned into 3-point play opportunities on put-backs."In the first half I thought we did a great job of countering [Clemson's tenacity], but their physicality, their athleticism and their determination wore on us," Krzyzewski said. "You have a four- or five-point lead and if you get the defensive rebound, you've got a chance to go seven, eight. And instead they get a 3-point play off of an offensive rebound and it's a two-point game. That's how games change. They killed us on the boards." Playing out of position by guarding the center Nnoko, Jabari Parker struggled to move the big man out of the way, giving Nnoko and forward Jaron Blossomgame—who had 14 points and 14 rebounds, including two game-changing 3-pointers—multiple opportunities for lay-ups. Cook noted that the Blue Devil guards needed to do a better job helping the Duke bigs rebound collectively. Cook, Thornton, and Rasheed Sulaimon combined for just four rebounds.Still, Hood made no excuses for his team's inability to rebound against the bigger, stronger Tigers."We got to play them. At the end of the day, we can go say 'We don't have size, we don't have a rim protector, we don't have this.' We've got to get it done," Hood said. "We've got Virginia, another tough team, a mature team, and if we don't get it right.... I don't want to think about it."