Yearly Archives: 2014

Duke Basketball

Duke drops Wisconsin 80-70

Clemson v DukeThe Duke Blue Devils travelled to Madison, Wisconsin for the biggest early season college hoops match up to date.  And the result was to their liking, as they knocked off the nations second ranked team 80-70.

The Blue Devils moved to 8-0 on the young season by taking the crowd out of one of basketball's infamous venues, trailing just two times in the game.  Duke has dominated their opponents in the ACC vs Big Ten Challenge but most figured that the Badgers would be the favorite playing at home.

Duke was led by a sensational performance by Tyus Jones, their freshman point guard who was the games high scorer with 22 points.  That was also Jones career high at Duke, but he had plenty of help on this evening.

"My teammates and coach are very confident in me and they've been getting on me to be more aggressive on the offensive end," said Jones after the big Duke win.  Jones also added 4 assists and 6 rebounds to his stat line.

The Blue Devils only went eight deep with their rotation tonight, but it was the bench play which stood out.  Rasheed Sulaimon played his best game of the season, scoring 14 points.  Many of those came at key moments in the game when the Blue Devils were fending off an attempted Badger run.  Matt Jones and Marshall Plumlee also contributed by playing key minutes.

Jahlil Okafor was hampered a but by foul trouble, but was effective 13 points, including one of his more emphatic dunks of the season.  The Blue Devils leading scorer this season, senior captain Quinn Cook added 13 points as well and Amile Jeffrson and Justise Winslow tallied the remaining 11 points for Duke.

The Blue Devils stymied the Badgers with a solid defensive effort where they switched off their opponents with team play.   That coupled with shooting 65,2% from the floor was the recipe for victory.  And that victory came against one of the nations most experienced and disciple teams.

While in reality this is only a December win, it is one that will stand out big time when the NCAA Selection Committee seeds teams come March.

Duke improved to 25-13 against top-5 teams under coach Mike Krzyzewski. The Duke win snapped a  23-game non conference winning streak for the Badgers.

Duke used a 6-0 run to stretch the lead to 69-60 after Wisconsin close the gap late in the game.

The Blue Devils will not enjoy one of their longest breaks of the season.  The next game on the slate for the Blue Devils will be on December the 15th against Elon in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

 

Duke Basketball

Duke at Wisconsin By the Numbers

duke-wf rick c 001By the numbers

• Duke (7-0) travels to Madison to face Wisconsin (7-0) Wednesday, Dec. 1 at the Kohl Center in an ACC/Big Ten Challenge contest. Tipoff is set for 9:30 p.m. (EST) with ESPN televising the contest.

• Duke enters the game ranked No. 4 in the AP Poll and No. 2 in the USA Today Coaches Poll. The Blue Devils are 64-13 when ranked No. 4 in the AP Poll. Wisconsin is ranked No. 2 in the AP and No. 4 in the Coaches Poll.

• The Blue Devils are 30-14 against teams ranked in the top 25 of the AP Poll this decade (2009-10 season) with a 12-8 mark against top 10 teams.

• Wednesday’s game marks the 38th time under Mike Krzyzewski Duke has faced a team ranked in the top 5 of the AP Poll while also ranked in the top 5 of the poll. The Blue Devils are 24-13 under Coach K in matchups of top 5 teams.

• Duke is the winningest team in ACC/Big Ten Challenge history with a 13-2 (.867) record. The Blue Devils won their first 10 matchups in the event before Wisconsin snapped that streak Dec. 2, 2009.

• The Blue Devils are 3-2 overall in ACC/Big Ten Challenge road games but have lost their last two road contests in the event.

• Duke is coming off a 93-73 win over Army Sunday, Nov. 30. The Blue Devils dominated the interior, finishing with a +18 rebound margin, including a 17-6 edge on the offensive glass.

• The Blue Devils shot 65.9 percent (27-of-41) from inside the three-point arc and scored 50 points in the paint against the Black Knights. Duke is shooting 61.4 percent (162-of-264) on two-point field goals and averaging 42.3 points per game in the paint on the year.

• Jahlil Okafor scored a game-high 21 points in the win over Army, while Tyus Jones added 16 points, five rebounds and 10 assists.

By the numbers

• Duke has won each of the first seven games by 10-or-more points, marking the first time since the 2002-03 season it has accomplished that feat. The Blue Devils opened the 2002-03 campaign with nine straight double digit wins.

• The Blue Devils have trailed for just 48 seconds through the first seven games of the season. Duke has not trailed past the 16:46 mark in the first half with its largest deficit being two points.

• Eight different Blue Devils have scored in double figures this season with Quinn Cook and Jahlil Okafor reaching double figures in all seven contests.

• Freshmen Tyus Jones, Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow have started all seven games for the Blue Devils. Mike Krzyzewski has started three or more freshmen in a game 42 times at Duke, including 27 times during the 1982-83 season.

• Duke is averaging 25.7 points per game off opponent turnovers. The Blue Devils have scored 20-or-more points off turnovers in six of their seven games.

• Duke’s top-rated freshman class - Grayson Allen, Tyus Jones, Jahlil Okafor and Justise Winslow - combines to average 45.9 points per game while shooting an efficient 52.8 percent (113-of-214) from the field. The group has posted for 16 of Duke’s 29 double figure scoring games this season.

• Quinn Cook has scored in double figures in all seven games and ranks eighth in the ACC in scoring at 15.6 ppg. He leads the ACC in three-point field goals (3.0 3pg.), while also ranking among the conference leaders in three-point percentage (.429 - 8th), assists (4.0 apg. - T-9th) and assist-to-turnover ratio (4.67:1 - 3rd).

• Jahlil Okafor, a three-time ACC Freshman of the Week selection, ranks second in the ACC in scoring (17.7 ppg.) and field goal percentage (.636), while also ranking among the league leaders in rebounds (13th - 7.9 rpg.), offensive rebounds (T-4th - 4.0 orpg.) and blocks (T-9th - 1.57 bpg.). Okafor averaged 22.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game to claim last week’s award.

• Amile Jefferson continues to be active on the glass, averaging a team-high 8.9 rebounds per game (5th in the ACC). He has collected 29 of his 62 rebounds on the offensive end of the floor and is third in the league in offensive rebounds (4.14 orpg.).

• Duke’s backcourt tandem of Quinn Cook and Tyus Jones has combined for 70 assists with just 13 turnovers (5.39:1 assist-to-turnover ratio) through seven games. Both players rank in the top 10 of the ACC in assists and assist-to-turnover ratio.

• Matt Jones is averaging 7.6 points per game, while shooting 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from three-point range. As a freshman, Jones was just 3-of-21 (.143) from behind the arc and averaged 1.8 ppg.

• Jahlil Okafor has grabbed four or more offensive rebounds in four straight games and is averaging 5.8 offensive rebounds per game in that span.

• Tyus Jones recorded 10 assists with no turnovers in the win over Army to become the second player in Duke history to post 10-or-more assists in a game without a turnover. He currently leads the ACC and is tied for fifth nationally with a 6.00:1 assist-to-turnover ratio (minimum 4.0 apg.).

• Duke’s post rotation of Amile Jefferson, Jahlil Okafor and Marshall Plumlee combines to average 30.6 points and 19.9 rebounds per game while shooting 66.4 percent (89-of-134) from the field

Duke Football

Blue Devils Place Nine on All ACC Teams

DSC_0303DURHAM, N.C. – Led by first team selections Jamison Crowder, David Helton and Laken Tomlinson, Duke placed nine players on the 2014 All-ACC football team, as announced Monday by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association (ACSMA).

A senior, Crowder earned first team all-league honors at both wide receiver and return specialist while Helton, a senior linebacker, and Tomlinson, a redshirt senior offensive guard, both received the second-most votes at their respective positions. Redshirt sophomore DeVon Edwards joined Crowder with two citations, garnering third team honors as a return specialist and honorable mention accolades as a safety. Other Blue Devils earning recognition included redshirt junior safety Jeremy Cash (2nd team), redshirt senior offensive tackle Takoby Cofield (3rd team), junior kicker Ross Martin (3rd team), redshirt junior center Matt Skura (3rd team) and redshirt junior punter Will Monday (honorable mention).

Cash, a 6-2, 205-pound native of Miami, Fla., is the only defensive back in the nation to have amassed at least 100 tackles, 10-plus hits for lost yardage and five-plus sacks this season. He paces the Blue Devils with 10.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks while his 103 stops are good for the third most on the squad. In addition, his four forced fumbles are tied for the fifth-highest single-season total in program history. Cash has tallied seven or more tackles in 10 of 12 regular season games and ranks 13th among all active FBS players with 8.62 stops per game. He was one of 15 Thorpe Award semifinalists and was twice honored as the ACC Defensive Back of the Week this season (Oct. 13 and Sept. 29).

Cofield, a 6-4, 310-pound native of Tarboro, N.C., has helped Duke’s offensive line rank 11th nationally with 1.08 sacks allowed per game and third with just 3.33 tackles for loss allowed a contest. The strong line play has opened holes for the Blue Devils’ 390 points this year, the third most in a year in program history. The squad owns 24 rushing touchdowns and has surpassed 20 ground scores in consecutive years for the first time since 1994-95. Cofield was named the ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week on Sept. 22.

Crowder, a 5-9, 175-pound native of Monroe, N.C., ranks second in the ACC in receptions per game (6.5), third in receiving yards per game (78.5) and seventh in all-purpose yards per game (98.8) this season. In ACC history, he stands second in career receptions (268), tied for second in 100-yard games (15), third in receiving yards (3,539) and sixth in all-purpose yards (5,372). He paces Duke this year with 78 receptions for 942 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 12.08 yards per catch.

As a returner, Crowder ranks third in the ACC in punt return average (10.1). He ran back a punt 52 yards in the fourth quarter for the game-deciding touchdown at Syracuse. Crowder owns three punt returns of at least 20 yards this season, including two in the last four weeks. He was selected to participate in the Reese’s Senior Bowl and was named the ACC Specialist of the Week following the win over Syracuse on Nov. 10. Crowder has now earned All-ACC honors in each of the past three seasons.

Edwards, a 5-9, 175-pound native of Covington, Ga., earns All-ACC honors for the second straight year after being a third team return specialist pick a year ago. Edwards ranks second on the squad with 119 tackles and leads the way with 71 solo stops, nine pass breakups and four forced fumbles. He is tied for second among the Blue Devils with 6.5 tackles for lost yardage and 3.5 sacks. Edwards ranks third in the ACC and 15th nationally with 9.92 tackles per game and has tallied seven or more in every game this season. Edwards’ four forced fumbles this season are tied for the fifth most in a year in program history as he matched the Duke single-game record with two forced fumbles at Troy on Sept. 6. He is one of only two players, joining teammate Jeremy Cash, to rank in the ACC’s top 13 in fumbles forced per game (2nd), tackles per game (3rd) and passes defended per game (10th).

On kickoff returns, Edwards ranks second in the ACC and 23rd nationally with 25.42 yards per kickoff return. He was named the ACC Specialist of the Week after his 99-yard touchdown at Pittsburgh. He has returned two kickoffs 60 or more yards, tied for the third most among FBS players this season. Edwards owns three kickoff returns for touchdowns in his career, tied with Randy Jones (1990-93) for the most in Duke history.

Helton, a 6-4, 240-pound native of Chattanooga, Tenn., leads the ACC and ranks 15th nationally in tackles per game (10.42). In total tackles, he tops the league (125) and stands 11th nationally. He owns six games with double figure tackles in 2014 and is a semifinalist for the Lott IMPACT Trophy. In Duke history, Helton ranks tied for 10th with 338 career tackles. He is a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athlete selection, making him a finalist for the Campbell Trophy, and earned first team CoSIDA Academic All-District honors.

Martin, a 5-9, 185-pound native of Solon, Ohio, is Duke’s career record holder in points (303), points after touchdowns (150) and consecutive PATs made (106). In ACC history, he ranks ninth in career extra points. This year, Martin leads Duke with 100 points and has converted all 46 PAT attempts. Martin is 18-for-20 in field goals and was a Lou Groza Award semifinalist. It is the third consecutive All-ACC selection for Martin as he was an honorable mention selection in 2012 and 2013.

Monday, a 6-4, 210-pound native of Flowery Branch, Ga., has averaged 43.4 yards per punt with 17 of his 56 punts downed inside the opponent 20-yard line and 12 traveling 50 yards or more. He ranks ninth in ACC history in punting average at 43.56 yards per boot. Monday was a Ray Guy Award candidate and the Ray Guy Award Player of the Week (Nov. 12). It is Monday’s third consecutive All-ACC honor as he was a first team choice in 2012 and a third team selection in 2013.

Skura, a 6-4, 305-pound native of Columbus, Ohio, has been the anchor of Duke’s offensive line for the last two years. This season, the offensive line ranks 11th among FBS programs with 1.08 sacks allowed per game and stands third with just 3.33 tackles for loss allowed a contest. Skura earned ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week honors following Duke’s win over Virginia.

Tomlinson, a 6-3, 330-pound native of Chicago, Ill., has started 51 consecutive games for the Blue Devils, matching the longest active streak in the country. Also a first team All-ACC pick in 2013, Tomlinson was selected to participate in the Reese’s Senior Bowl and was a CBSSports.com and Phil Steele Midseason All-American second team selection. He was also an Orange Bowl-FWAA Courage Award nominee and one of 11 student-athletes named to the FBS Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.