March 8, 2014 • 9 p.m.
Durham, N.C. • Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314)
ESPN • Blue Devil IMG Sports Network
The Opening Tip
• In its final game of the regular season, Duke will host Tobacco Road rival North Carolina Saturday at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The game, a rematch of North Carolina’s 74-66 win in Chapel Hill on Feb. 20, will tip off at 9 p.m. and air on ESPN and the Blue Devil IMG Sports Network.
• Duke climbed back into the Associated Press top five this week, jumping from No. 6 to No. 4 following a 66-48 win over Virginia Tech. Duke, also ranked No. 4 in the USA Today Coaches’ Poll, is 56-13 all-time when playing as the No. 4 team in the AP poll.
• Duke is attempting to close out its 18th undefeated season at Cameron Indoor Stadium and second straight. Duke has won 32 consecutive games at home, the longest streak in the country.
• North Carolina will be the sixth ranked team Duke has faced. Duke is 3-3 against ranked teams in 2013-14 with wins over No. 1 Syracuse, No. 18 Pittsburgh and No. 22 Michigan.
The Last Time Out
• Tyler Cavanaugh scored 20 points and Travis McKie added 19 to lead Wake Forest past No. 4 Duke, 82-72, Wednesday in Joel Coliseum. Wake Forest had five players score in double figures, including Codi Miller-McIntyre, who finished with 13 points, eight assists and just two turnovers.
• Duke led 66-59 with 5:44 remaining, but the Deacons mounted a 17-0 run to stake a 77-66 lead. Wake Forest outscored Duke 23-6 over the final 5:20 of the game as the Blue Devils hit just 2-of-10 field goals during that stretch.
• Duke shot just .222 (6-of-27) from three-point range for the team’s second-lowest three-point percentage of the season. Duke hit just 2-of-12 treys in the first half and 4-of-15 in the second half.
• Jabari Parker logged his fifth straight double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead Duke in both categories. Rodney Hood scored 16 points and dished out four assists, while Rasheed Sulaimon added 14 points.
By The Numbers
• The Blue Devils have won 32 consecutive games in Cameron Indoor Stadium, tied for the longest active streak in the country. Duke is just one win away from completing its 18th undefeated season in Cameron, owning a 16-0 record on Coach K Court in 2013-14. Duke also went 16-0 in Cameron in 2012-13.
• Saturday’s game will serve as senior night for Duke’s class of Andre Dawkins, Josh Hairston, Tyler Thornton and Todd Zafirovski. Dawkins and Zafirovski were both part of Duke’s 2009-10 NCAA and ACC Championship team, while all four helped Duke capture the 2010-11 ACC Championship and posted a 112-25 record over the past four seasons.
• Duke has lost back-to-back games just once since the start of the 2009-10 season and is 25-1 following a loss during that span. Among Duke’s six previous victories following a loss this season are wins over No. 22 Michigan (79-69), Virginia (69-65) and No. 1 Syracuse (66-60).
• Duke owns an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.54:1, which would rank as the highest ratio since Duke began tracking turnovers in the 1970-71 season. The Blue Devils logged a school-record 1.51:1 assist-to-turnover ratio last season, bettering the previous school record of 1.32 set in 2000-01.
• Jabari Parker leads the ACC with 13 double-doubles and is one shy of tying Duke’s freshman record of 14 set by Gene Banks in 1977-78. Parker has nine double-doubles in his past 12 games and is averaging 16.9 points and 9.7 rebounds per game in conference play. He leads the ACC in rebounds per game, ranks second in points per game and third in field goal percentage (.483 – 199-of-412).
• Andre Dawkins needs just three points to become the 63rd Duke player to join the 1,000-point club. Dawkins is averaging a career-best 8.4 points per game this season.
• Marshall Plumlee is averaging 6.0 rebounds, 4.3 points and 1.8 blocks over his past four games. Plumlee has 3.5 offensive rebounds per game during that stretch.
• Rodney Hood has logged six of his nine 20-plus-point performances in Cameron Indoor Stadium, including a career-best 30-point outing against East Carolina on Nov. 19. Hood scored 21 against Virginia Tech in his last appearance in Cameron and averages 17.5 points per game on his home court. Only Jabari Parker has more 20-point games in Cameron this season (9).
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