Duke vs Gonzaga at MSG – Official Game Notes

Duke Photo
Duke Photo

[7 AP/7 Coaches] Duke (8-1) vs. [15 AP/15 Coaches] Gonzaga (8-2)

Saturday, Dec. 19, 2009  •  4:00 p.m.  •  CBS

Madison Square Garden (19,763)  •  New York, N.Y.

The Opening Tip

Duke (8-1), ranked seventh in the AP poll and ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll, faces Gonzaga (8-2) at Madison Square Garden on Saturday, Dec. 19 at 4:00 p.m. Gonzaga enters the contests ranked 15th in both polls. Saturday’s game will air on CBS with Verne Lundquist and Clark Kellogg calling the action.

The Last Time Out

Senior Jon Scheyer posted a career-high 36 points on 11-of-13 shooting to lead Duke to a 113-68 win over Gardner-Webb on Tuesday. Scheyer also knocked down a career-best seven three-pointers and added eight rebounds and nine assists.

Andre Dawkins added 16 points, while Brian Zoubek and Miles Plumlee each scored 13 points in the contest. Juniors Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith netted 11 points apiece to give the Blue Devils six double-figure scorers.

The Blue Devils shot 65.2 percent (43-of-66) from the floor, including 57.9 percent (11-of-19) from three-point range, in the game. Duke shot nearly 70 percent from the field after halftime, unloading for 64 second half points to match the 10th-best scoring half in school history.

Blue Devils At Madison Square Garden

Duke is 25-14 all-time, including a 20-6 mark under Mike Krzyzewski, at Madison Square Garden. The Blue Devils have won five straight and 12 of their last 13 games at MSG. Duke posted wins over Arizona State and Connecticut at MSG in November en route to the 2009 NIT Season Tip-Off championship.

Numbers Game

l The Blue Devils are 158-26 in the month of December under Coach K. Duke is 50-4 in December since the 1999-2000 season.

l Duke is 8-1 all-time against teams currently in the West Coast Conference, including a 6-0 mark under Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils have won six straight against the WCC.

l The Blue Devils are 2-0 at Madison Square Garden this season with wins over Arizona State and Connecticut in the NIT Season Tip-Off. Duke has won its last five games at MSG.

l Senior Jon Scheyer leads the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio (6.4:1), while playing over 35 minutes per game. He has led Duke in assists in all nine games with five turnover-free games on the year.

l Senior Brian Zoubek leads the Blue Devils in rebounding at 7.8 boards per game. He is the only non-starter in the ACC to rank in the top 20 in rebounding. Zoubek is tied for for 12th in the league in rebounding, while also ranking third in offensive rebounds at 4.0 orpg.

l Jon Scheyer is averaging 25.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 7.5 assists per game in Duke’s last two contests. He is shooting 55.6 percent from the field, including 52.9 percent from three-point range, in that span.

l Freshman Andre Dawkins and senior Jon Scheyer are tied for second in the ACC  with 2.6 three-point field goals per game. Both players also rank in the top 10 in three-point percentage, shooting a combined 46.5 percent (46-of-99) from deep.

l Duke’s post tandem of Miles Plumlee and Brian Zoubek is combining to average 15.2 points and 14.7 rebounds per game, while shooting 61.3 percent (57-of-93) from the field.

l Junior Nolan Smith has scored 10 or more points in a career-best seven straight games. He is averaging 16.3 points per game, a 7.9 ppg. increase from a year ago for the third-highest scoring jump in the ACC.

l Duke is the only team in the ACC with more than one player ranked in the top 10 in scoring. Jon Scheyer is tied for second at 18.0 ppg., while Kyle Singler (16.4 ppg.) and Nolan Smith (16.3 ppg.) rank seventh and eighth respectively.

l The Blue Devils are 2-0 this season against teams ranked in the top 10 of the RPI.

Duke loses Defensive Coordinator Mike MacIntyre to San Jose State

Coach MacIntyre accepts the San Jose State head coaching position - BDN Photo
Coach MacIntyre accepts the San Jose State head coaching position - BDN Photo

Durham, N.C. - Duke Defensive Coordinator Mike MacIntyre has accepted the head coaching position at San Jose State.  The Blue Devil Nation hates to see his departure, but those are the breaks when you have a great staff.  SJS is getting a good one in Coach Mac for he is the total package on and off the field.  We are happy that a man of high moral character and great x's and o's has an opportunity

Conner Vernon named to TSN Freshman All American Team

Conner Vernon - BDN Photo
Conner Vernon - BDN Photo

DURHAM, N.C. – Duke wide receiver Conner Vernon has been named to the Freshman All-America team by Sporting News, announced on Wednesday by the national publication.

In addition, Vernon was joined by teammates Brian Moore and Desmond Scott on the Sporting News Freshman All-ACC squad.

A 6-2, 195-pound native of Miami, Fla., Vernon established school single-season records for pass receptions (55), receiving yards (746) and 100-yard receiving game (3) by a freshman in 2009.  In addition, his 13.5 yards per catch average ranks as the sixth-highest by a Duke rookie and his three touchdown receptions matched the school’s fourth-best single-season output for freshmen.  Vernon’s 1,041 all-purpose yards rank as the fourth-best single-season performance by a Duke freshman.

Moore, a 6-3, 275-pound offensive guard from Coral Gables, Fla., started all 12 games at right guard in 2009, helping the Blue Devils lead the ACC and rank ninth in the nation in passing offense (305.0 ypg).  Moore helped the Duke offensive line rank third in the conference in sacks allowed per passing attempt (17.89) behind only Florida State (20.65) and Clemson (19.79).

Scott, a 5-10, 185-pound running back from  Durham, N.C., earned a spot on the all-freshman unit as a specialist after returning 18 kickoffs for 452 yards, good for a 25.1 yards per return average that ranks fourth in the ACC and sits third on the school’s single-season chart for rookies.  In the season finale against Wake Forest, he returned seven kickoffs for 211 yards – the third-highest single-game total in Duke history – en route to setting a new school single-game record for all-purpose yards (259) by a freshman.

Vernon is the 10th Duke rookie to earn Freshman All-America honors from Sporting News since 2000, joining Ryan Fowler (LB/3rd team/2000), Jim Scharrer (LB/4th team/2001), Ben Patrick (TE/3rd team/2003), Chris Davis (KR/3rd team/2004), Michael Tauiliili (LB/1st team/2005), Zack Asack (QB/HM/2005), Vince Oghobaase (DT/HM/2006), Thaddeus Lewis (QB/HM/2006), Kevin Jones (P/HM/2007) and Kyle Hill (OG/2nd team/2008).

2009 SPORTING NEWS FRESHMAN ALL-AMERICA

OFFENSE
QB Andrew Luck, Stanford
RB Dion Lewis, Pitt
RB  Ryan Williams, Virginia Tech
WR Eric Page, Toledo
WR Conner Vernon, Duke
TE Orson Charles, Georgia
OL Tanner Hawkinson, Kansas
OL Barrett Jones, Alabama
OL Peter Konz, Wisconsin
OL David DeCastro, Stanford
OL Aaron Douglas, Tennessee
K Matt Hogan, Houston
KR  Warren Norman, Vanderbilt

DEFENSE
DE Aldon Smith, Missouri
DT Jerel Worthy, Michigan State
DT Larry Black, Indiana
DE Nick Perry, USC
LB Luke Kuechly, Boston College
LB Chris Borland, Wisconsin
LB Brian Wagner, Akron
CB Corey Broomfield, Mississippi State
CB Josh Robinson, UCF
S Rashard Hall, Clemson
S Gerald Moore, Ohio
P Tress Way, Oklahoma
PR Greg Reid, Florida State

National Freshman of the year: Dion Lewis, Pitt

--

2009 SPORTING NEWS FRESHMAN ALL-ACC

OFFENSE
QB Kyle Parker, Clemson
RB Ryan Williams, Virginia Tech
RB Montel Harris, Boston College
WR Conner Vernon, Duke
WR Erik Highsmith, North Carolina
TE Chris Pantale, Boston College
OL Brian Moore, Duke
OL Phil Smith, Georgia Tech
OL Jonathan Cooper, North Carolina
OL Dalton Freeman, Clemson
OL Michael Via, Virginia Tech
K Dustin Hopkins, Florida State
KR Desmond Scott, Duke

DEFENSE
DL Antoine Hopkins, Virginia Tech
DL Jacobbi McDaniel, Florida State
DL A.J. Francis, Maryland
DL T.J. Barnes, Georgia Tech
LB Kevin Reddick, North Carolina
LB Steve Greer, Virginia
LB Luke Kuechly, Boston College
DB Greg Reid, Florida State
DB Kenny Okoro, Wake Forest
DB Rashard Hall, Clemson
DB Brandan Bishop N.C. State
P Nick Ferrara, Maryland
PR Greg Reid, Florida State

ACC Freshman of the Year: Ryan Williams, Virginia Tech

Duke rolls past Gardner-Webb 113-68 behind Scheyers 36 point effort

Photo courtesy Lance King
Photo courtesy Lance King

Durham, N.C. - Despite coming off a ten day break, the Duke Blue Devils looked sharp in defeating Gardner-Webb 113-68.  The story of this game is did you see the Jon Scheyer show?  The senior captain had the game of a lifetime stuffing the stat sheet in a way where you can practically hand him the ACC Player of the Week Award after a single game.

Scheyer went 11 of 13 from the field, including hitting 7 of 9 three point shots to go with a perfect 7 of 7 from the free throw line which translated into his career high 36 points.  Scheyer also grabbed 8 rebounds which tied him with Brian Zoubek for tops on the team.  But wait, there is more!  Scheyer dished out 9 assists, one of which was a behind the back pass to Kyle Singler who connected on a three point play.

"In some games, the opportunities are there. I saw Kyle and hit him with the pass.  We have a lot of guys on our team you can pass the ball to and can really finish, so they make me look good," said Scheyer when questioned about the pass.

Kyle Singler warmed up in the second half after being held scoreless finishing the game with 11 points.  Brian Zoubek added a spark off the bench with 13 points and 8 rebounds and he helped get the Garner Webb bigs in foul trouble.  Miles Plumlee added 13 points and Nolan Smith 11.

If Scheyer was the lead story of the game, the Andre Dawkins was just behind him in that this was his first game after his sisters untimely death.  Dawkins was able to crack some smiles on his way to 16 points making him the second leading scorer on the team.  Check back with BDN for an interview with Dawkins.

""First of all, Andre has a beautiful family and we're a part of that family.  I think oer the last eight or nine days we've kind of all worked as a team to  to try and deal with the tradegy," said Krzyzewski in the post game press conference.

"I don't think it's tough to focus.  Once I get in here [Cameron] it's so intense, you have no choice but to focus.  I think it's a lot easier to focus on basketball rather than to be down in the dumps.  It felt great.  I couldn't wait to get back with my teammates," said Dawkins.

The Blue Devils pushed their record to 8-1 and they next travel to New York's Madison Square Garden to take on Gonzaga.

Team Notes:

  • Duke extended its home winning streak over non-conference opponents to 74 straight games. It is the longest streak in the country with the last loss coming against St. John’s on Feb. 26, 2000. The Blue Devils have won 34 straight home games against unranked opponents.
  • The Blue Devils have won 47 consecutive home games in the month of December dating back to a 62-61 loss to Michigan on Dec. 8, 1996. Under Coach K, Duke owns a 158-26 record in the month of December.
  • Duke is now 169-5 all-time when scoring at least 100 points in a game. The 113 points is a season-high and marks the third game this season the Blue Devils have scored 100 or more points. The 113 points are the most since the 2007-08 season opener when Duke had 121 points against N.C. Central.
  • The Blue Devils scored 64 points in the second half which ties for the 10th most in school history for a single half and tied for the fifth most in a second half. It is the most since Duke scored 67 against N.C. Central in the first half in 2007.
  • Duke made 43 field goals and shot 65.2 percent (43-of-66) in the game. The 43 field goals are the most since Duke had 46 field goals against Virginia on Jan. 10, 1999, and the last time the Blue Devils made at least 40 shots was Feb. 14, 2002, against N.C. State (42-of-67).
  • The last time the Blue Devils shot over 60 percent was Dec. 17, 2007, against Albany (.603, 38-of-63). The 65.2 percent was the highest since Duke shot .683 (28-of-41) at Miami on Jan. 14, 2007. It's the highest field goal percentage in Cameron Indoor Stadium since Duke shot 68.5 percent (37-of-54) against North Carolina A&T on Dec. 19, 1994, and is the 15th highest shooting percentage all-time at Cameron.
  • The 65.2 ranks 26th best in school history and is the 28th time Duke has shot 65 percent or higher from the field.
  • The Blue Devils made over 10 three-point field goals for the third time this season, also making 18 against Radford and 12 against Charlotte. Duke has shot over 50 percent from beyond the arc in all three of those contests. The 57.9 percent from deep is the highest percentage at home for the Blue Devils (making at least 10 treys) since Feb. 16, 2000 vs. Florida State (12-of-18, 67.7).
  • Duke also dished out a season-high 27 assists, the third game this year they have had at least 20 assists as a team. The 27 assists are the most since they had 28 assists against N.C. Central in 2007.
  • The nine blocks were a season-high for the Blue Devils as seven different players registered a blocked shot.
  • The Blue Devils forced a season-high 23 turnovers, the first time this season they have caused over 20 turnovers in a game. The previous high was 17 by Charlotte.

Player Notes: [courtesy GoDuke]

Andre Dawkins

  • Freshman Andre Dawkins scored 16 points off the bench for his fifth double figure scoring game this season.
  • Dawkins made three three-point field goals to give him seven games this season with at least two treys and four games with three or more. He leads the team with 23 made three-point field goals, an average of 2.6 per game.

Miles Plumlee

  • Sophomore Miles Plumlee scored 13 points to give him five double figure scoring games on the year.
  • Plumlee matched a career high with three blocks, the fifth time in his career he has tallied three blocks, including three games this season. He blocked a shot for the eighth time in nine games this season. He has two or more blocks in four games this season and seven career contests. He now leads the team with 15 blocks for the year.

Jon Scheyer

  • Senior Jon Scheyer set career highs with 36 points, 11 made field goals, seven made three-point field goals and nine assists.
  • Scheyer is the first player in school history with at least 1,500 points, 400 rebounds, 250 assists, 200 three-point field goals and 150 steals in a career. He became the 27th player at Duke to score at least 1,500 career points.
  • Scheyer became just the third player in school history with at least 30 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in a game, joining Danny Ferry and Jim Spanarkel. Ferry had 33 points, 9 rebounds and 9 assists vs. Wake Forest on Dec. 21, 1988 while Spanarkel had 31 points, eight rebounds and eight assists against East Carolina on Jan. 28, 1978. For the third time this season, Scheyer posted at least 15 points, five rebounds and five assists in a game.
  • The 36 points by Scheyer is tied for 29th most in Duke history for a single game. The last player to score at least 36 points was J.J. Redick against Florida State on Feb. 4, 2006. Scheyer is the first player in school history to score 35 or more points in 30 minutes or less. It's just the 11th time in Duke history a player has scored 36 or more points in less than 36 minutes played. Scheyer's 36 points on just 13 field goal attempts ranks tied for 7th best in school history.
  • Scheyer topped his previous high of 30 points against Wake Forest last season. He reached at least 20 points for the second time this season and 17th time in his career. He has scored in double figures in all nine games this year and in 85 career games.
  • Scheyer either scored or had an assist on nine of Duke’s first 10 made field goals. In the first nine minutes of the game, he made his first four attempts from the field, including three three-point field goals while dishing out five assists. Overall he connected on his first seven attempts from the floor, making his first five treys and 5-of-5 free throws for 24 first half points. The 24 points in a half were two more than Scheyer’s 22 points in the second half at Miami in 2008. The last Duke player with at least 24 points in a half was Redick, who had 24 points in the second half against Maryland on Feb. 11, 2006.
  • Scheyer now has five or more assists in seven of the nine games on the season after recording a career-high nine assists. He now has 51 assists compared to just eight turnovers in the nine games this season.
  • With a season-high eight rebounds, Scheyer has three games this season with at least five boards and 24 career games.
  • Scheyer was a perfect 7-of-7 from the free throw line and has made 21 consecutive free throw attempts. He is shooting .918 (45-of-49) from the foul line this season.

Kyle Singler

  • Junior Kyle Singler extended his consecutive starts streak to 36 games and has now started in 79 career contests.
  • Singler scored 11 points to give him eight double figure scoring games this season and 67 in his career.
  • Singler tallied at least one point, rebound, assist, blocked shot and steal for the fifth game this season and 36th career game.

Nolan Smith

  • Junior Nolan Smith has reached double figures in scoring in all seven games he has played in this season and in 30 career games.
  • Smith notched four assists and zero turnovers, his second straight game without a turnover.
  • The three steals matched a career high for Smith. It is the fifth time in his career he has tallied three steals in a game.

Brian Zoubek

  • Senior Brian Zoubek scored 13 points to give him 11 career games with 10 or more points and three games this season.
  • Zoubek had eight rebounds, including three offensive to give him four games off the bench this season with eight or more boards. He leads the team with 36 offensive rebounds.

Duke’s Vince Oghobaase earns TSN All American honors

VODURHAM, N.C. – Duke redshirt senior defensive tackle Vince Oghobaase has been named third team All-America by Sporting News, announced on Tuesday by the national publication.

A 6-5, 305-pound native of Houston, Texas, Oghobaase is Duke’s first defensive lineman to receive All-America honors in the modern era.  In addition, he becomes the 59th player in Blue Devil football history to earn All-America accolades.

While helping Duke to its highest win total since 1994, Oghobaase started eight games this year and recorded 37 tackles, 7.5 tackle for loss and 2.5 quarterback sacks despite missing four contests due to injury.  A two-time honorable mention All-ACC pick in 2008 and 2009, Oghobaase played in and started 44 games and finished his Duke career with 165 tackles, 36.5 tackles for loss and 14.0 sacks.  On Duke's career charts, he ranks fifth in sacks and sixth in tackles for loss.

Oghobaase was one of seven ACC players honored by Sporting News including Clemson’s C.J. Spiller (KR/1st team), Georgia Tech’s Derrick Morgan (DE/2nd team), Clemson’s Thomas Austin (OL/3rd team), DeAndre McDaniel (S/3rd team), Virginia Tech’s Ryan Williams (RB/3rd team) and Florida State’s Greg Reid (PR/3rd team).

2009 SPORTING NEWS ALL-AMERICA TEAMS

FIRST TEAM OFFENSE
QB Colt McCoy, Sr., Texas
RB Mark Ingram, Soph., Alabama
RB Toby Gerhart, Sr., Stanford
WR Golden Tate, Jr., Notre Dame
WR Jordan Shipley, Sr., Texas
TE Aaron Hernandez, Jr., Florida
OL Mike Johnson, Sr., Alabama
OL Charles Brown, Sr., USC
OL Bryan Bulaga, Sr., Iowa
OL Maurkice Pouncey, Jr., Florida
OL Russell Okung, Sr., Oklahoma State
K Kai Forbath, Jr., UCLA
KR C.J. Spiller, Sr., Clemson

FIRST TEAM DEFENSE
DE Jerry Hughes, Sr., TCU
DE Von Miller, Jr., Texas A&M
DT Gerald McCoy, Jr., Oklahoma
DT Ndamukong Suh, Sr., Nebraska
LB Brandon Spikes, Sr., Florida
LB Sergio Kindle, Sr., Texas
LB Rolando McClain, Jr., Alabama
CB Perrish Cox, Sr., Oklahoma State
CB Joe Haden, Jr., Florida
S Kurt Coleman, Sr., Ohio State
S Eric Berry, Jr., Tennessee
P Drew Butler, Soph., Georgia
PR Antonio Brown, Jr., Central Michigan

SECOND TEAM OFFENSE
QB Tim Tebow, Sr., Florida
RB Dion Lewis, Fr., Pittsburgh
RB Jacquizz Rodgers, Soph., Oregon State
WR Danario Alexander, Sr., Missouri
WR Mardy Gilyard, Sr., Cincinnati
TE Dorin Dickerson, Sr., Pittsburgh
OL Adam Ulatoski, Sr. Texas
OL Trent Williams, Sr., Oklahoma
OL Mike Iupati, Sr., Idaho
OL Jon Asamoah, Sr., Illinois
OL Chris Marinelli, Sr., Stanford
K Grant Ressel, Soph., Missouri
KR Chris Owusu, Soph., Stanford

SECOND TEAM DEFENSE
DE Brandon Graham, Sr., Michigan
DE Derrick Morgan, Jr., Georgia Tech
DT Terrence Cody, Sr., Alabama
DT Brian Price, Jr., UCLA
LB Navorro Bowman, Jr., Penn State
LB Daryl Washington, Sr., TCU
LB Sean Weatherspoon, Sr., Missouri
CB Javier Arenas, Sr., Alabama
CB Patrick Peterson, Soph., LSU
S Taylor Mays, Sr., USC
S Earl Thomas, Soph., Texas
P Matt Dodge, Sr., East Carolina
PR LaVon Brazill, Jr., Ohio

THIRD TEAM OFFENSE
QB Jimmy Clausen, Jr., Notre Dame
RB Ryan Williams, Fr., Virginia Tech
RB LaMichael James, Fr., Oregon
WR Freddie Barnes, Sr., Bowling Green
WR Dezmon Briscoe, Jr., Kansas
TE Dennis Pitta, Sr., BYU
OL Eric Olsen, Sr., Notre Dame
OL Zane Beadles, Sr., Utah
OL Anthony Davis, Jr., Rutgers
OL John Jerry, Sr., Ole Miss
OL Thomas Austin, Sr., Clemson
K Leigh Tiffin, Sr., Alabama
KR Brandon Banks, Sr., Kansas State

THIRD TEAM DEFENSE
DE Brandon Sharpe, Sr., Texas Tech
DE Greg Romeus, Jr., Pitt
DT Vince Oghobaase, Sr., Duke
DT Jared Odrick, Sr., Penn State
LB Andre Revels, Sr., Cincinnati
LB Greg Jones, Jr., Michigan State
LB Eric Norwood, Sr., South Carolina
CB Syd’Quan Thompson, Sr., California
CB Rafael Priest, Sr., TCU
S DeAndre McDaniel, Jr., Clemson
S Rahim Moore, Soph., UCLA
P Tress Way, Fr., Oklahoma
PR Greg Reid, Fr., Florida State