Monthly Archives: December 2008

Duke Basketball

Duke – Purdue Game Notes

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Game 8  •  ACC/Big Ten Challenge

[7 AP/5 Coaches] Duke (7-0) vs. [10 AP/9 Coaches] Purdue (5-1)

Tuesday, December 2, 2008  •  9:05 PM ET  •  ESPN

Mackey Arena (14,123)  •  West Lafayette, Ind.

Game Quick Facts

TV: ESPN; Dan Shulman (play-by-play), Dick Vitale (analyst), Doris Burke (sideline).

Radio: Duke Radio Network (flagship WDNC 620 AM in Durham); Bob Harris (play-by-play), John Roth (analyst) and Matthew Laurance (sideline).

All-time Series: Duke trails the all-time series 4-1. The two teams have met twice in the regular season and three times in

Henderson takes aim/copyright BDNP
Henderson takes aim/copyright BDNP

postseason play. Purdue posted a 78-68 win over Duke in the finals of the 2003 Great Alaska Shootout in the last meeting between the two schools.

Coaches:

Mike Krzyzewski

Overall Record: 810-267 (34th year)

Duke Record: 737-208 (29th year)

vs. Purdue: 1-2

Matt Painter

Overall Record: 86-46 (fourth year)

Purdue Record: 61-41 (third year)

Blue Devil Bits

l Duke is 7-0 on the year, marking the 22nd time in school history and 15th time under Mike Krzyzewski it has opened the season with seven straight wins. The Blue Devils have started the season with at least seven straight wins in seven of the last nine years.

l The Blue Devils are ranked 7th in the AP poll and fifth in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll.

l Purdue, ranked 10th in the AP poll and ninth the coaches poll, is Duke’s first ranked opponent of the season. The Blue Devils are 159-111 under Coach K against ranked teams.

l Duke is coming off a 95-72 win over Duquesne on Friday, Nov. 29. The Blue Devils shot a season-best 54.7 percent (35-of-64) from the field in the win.

l Lance Thomas had a career-high 21 points on 8-of-8 shooting from the field and 5-of-6 from the foul line against Duquesne.

l Sophomore Kyle Singler had 17 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three steals on Friday. He led the team in rebounds, assists and steals against the Dukes. Singler has now led the team in assists in five straight games.

l Duke made a season-high 10 three-pointers in its last outing, including three from senior Greg Paulus, who missed the Montana game with a right forearm contusion.

Numbers Game

l Duke is 9-0 all-time in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, including a 2-0 record in true road games. Boston College (2-0) is the only other team undefeated in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

l The ACC has won each of the first nine ACC/Big Ten Challenges. ACC teams have won 56 of the 86 games played in the challenge.

l Duke is 61-23 all-time against teams currently in the Big Ten. The Blue Devils have won six straight contests against Big Ten opponents (last loss was 78-68 versus Michigan State on March 25, 2005), including a 71-56 win over Michigan on Nov. 21 in the championship game of the 2008 2K Sports Classic. Duke is scheduled to play Michigan again on Dec. 6.

l Duke is 152-24 all-time in the month of December under Coach K. The Blue Devils are 44-2 in the month since 1999-2000.

l Duke is 268-52 this decade, more wins than any other team in the NCAA. The win total ranks as the ninth-most in any decade by a team in NCAA history.

l The Blue Devils are 8-6 all-time against teams ranked 10th in the AP poll.

l Kyle Singler leads the Blue Devils in scoring (16.7 ppg.), rebounding (6.9 rpg.) and assists (23). Danny Ferry was the last Blue Devil to lead the team in all three categories during the 1986-87 season. Singler also leads the team in three-point field goals (10) and is second in steals (12).

l Junior Lance Thomas is shooting a team-high 67.6 percent (23-of-34) from the field this season. He was a perfect 8-of-8 from the field against Duquesne, tied for the ninth most field goal attempts in a game without a miss in school history.

l Sophomore Nolan Smith is averaging 12.4 points per game, an increase of 6.5 ppg. from last season. Smith has scored in double figures in six of seven games and led the team in scoring in twice this season.

| Sophomore Kyle Singler is averaging 7.1 free throw attempts per game this season. He is 37-of-50 (.740) from the foul line. Last year, Singler averaged just 3.1 free throw attempts per game.

l Duke has four players averaging over 10.0 points per game. Kyle Singler leads the way at 16.7 ppg., while Nolan Smith (12.4), Jon Scheyer (12.0) and Gerald Henderson (11.4) are also averaging double figures in scoring. The Blue Devils have had at least four double figure scorers in five of seven games this season.

l The Blue Devils have recorded 14 steals in each of the past two games. Duke ranks third in the ACC with 10.9 steals per game. Junior Jon Scheyer is sixth in the ACC with 2.1 steals per game.

l Duke is second in the ACC in rebound margin at +10.1 rebounds per game. The Blue Devils have outrebounded five of their seven opponents and have grabbed 40+ rebounds in a game five times.

l Duke has outscored its opponents 276-170 in the paint this season. The Blue Devils scored 48 points in the paint in each of the past two games.

l The Blue Devils are shooting .546 (153-of-280) from inside the three-point arc this season. Duke is shooting .478 (193-of-404) from the field overall and .323 (40-of-123) from three-point distance.

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Duke Football

Loss to rival hurt, but Duke Football made strides

[private]Duke had an opportunity to tie UNC in the games closing minutes, but once again came up short.  It's becoming a bit painful for the Blue Devil faithful in that while Duke plays the Heels close, it's become a tradition that they fall just short.

This is evidenced by the fact that UNC holds a dominating 17 of 18 edge in the series.  Still, Duke had their opportunities while playing true freshman in several key roles, especially on the offensive side of the ball with Johnny Williams, Donovan Varner and Jay Hollingsworth.

The bottom line is that UNC had more talent, size and speed but Duke had enough heart to make them sweat in Cutcliffe's first season.   Duke played a schedule which included 10 bowl teams and James Madison, the top ranked team in the country in Division I.  As good as that schedule was, Duke competed with all but two teams, Georgia Tech and Clemson.

Duke was forced to play more freshman than they wanted to this season, but several kids were able to redshirt - much more so than there has been in the past.  In short, Duke is building a football program, but patience is needed.

So, while the November losses sting, there was improvement both on and off the field.  With the new found support, Cutcliffe has already made sure his staff is on the recruiting trail.  There were over 100 high school prospects at Saturday's season finale, many of them from North Carolina, where Duke has struggled to recruit until recently.

If you think practice and conditioning is over, think again.  Duke was running this morning and lifting in the afternoon.  Cutcliffe hasn't lost his focus and he wants to make sure the team knows that it will take more hard work to build on four wins.

The Blue Devil Nation will be covering the first season in an overview in the coming days, but until then here are some kids we wan to recognize -

Michael Tauliliili - I can't remember a player having this good of a senior season.  His 20 tackle against UNC cemented him as an ACC DPOY candidate.  This kid worked hard and set forth a wonderful example of what it takes to be the best you can be.  He will be missed in a big way and is sure to make some All American teams.

Vinnie Rey - Tauliliili can thank Rey for making him a better player.  The duo was the best in the ACC and Rey will no doubt be the leader of the defense next season and an All American candidate.

Cameron Goldberg- This young man anchored the offensive line and became a selfless leader in his senior season.  There will be some big shoes to fill with his departure.

Eron Riley - Was a little know recruit who made him self and All ACC receiver.  Duke will need for a new go to wide out to step up in the off season.

The Seniors - They helped to develop a new work ethic in their final season.  Many of them played key roles in this seasons turnabout.  The BDN wished all of them the best of luck in their future endeavors.

There are many more, but those came to mind first.  Check back for more coverage on recruiting and what to expect next year.

(Our game story was lost due to computer malfunction)[/private]