Category Archives: Duke Basketball

Duke Basketball, Duke Basketball Recruiting News

Duke Hoops Making Offers

The Duke Men's Basketball staff has been busy during the break between games. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and his assistant coaches have been on the road to visit both commitments and prospects at various high school basketball events.

There is a lot to unpack here. The Blue Devils crew most recently visited the National High School Hoops Festival where they were taking a look at next years, incoming point guard, Jeremy Roach.

Roach had been sidelined since a season ago due to injury, so there were many wanting to see his first few games this season and how he'd respond. Well, the good news for Duke fans is he is showing off his high ranking and that he is back to being the type of player who gained a Duke offer.

What many did not expect to see was the stellar play of his Paul VI teammate, Trevor Keels. The 6-5 junior shooting guard from Fairfax, Virginia put on a show in front of Krzyzewski and that led to the latest Duke offer.

The Duke staff was also pleased with the play of IMG Academy's Mark Williams. The future Blue Devils big man showed off an improved game from this summer as he steadily gets better. Williams team, minus his teammate and fellow Duke commitment Jalen Johnson lost to Paul VI in a hotly contested game.

The improvement of Williams has drawn attention as he could now be a candidate for being one and done at the college level. And that had something to do with another recent Duke offer to Canadian junior, Charles Bediako.

Standing at 6-10, Bediako could possibly reclassify per some. But regardless of whether he enters the class of 2020 or remains a 2021 prospect, the Duke staff liked what they saw from the talented and potential laden Bediako. Duke has been determined to keep mining Canada for basketball prospects after their turn with RJ Barrett.

Duke has also offered another highly ranked junior in point guard Kennedy Chandler on Tuesday of this week. Chandler has a long list of suitors which includes their rival just down the road. Chandler led Mokan Elite to a solid season on the Nike EYBL circuit.

The Blue Devils also have standing offers to Patrick Baldwin and Max Christie and there are good relations with both of these top-end prospects. Duke is also heavily in the mix for Johnathan Kuminga. And, of course, the Blue Devils have a verbal commitment from highly rated AJ Griffin.

Duke is likely not finished with new offers, but they are quickly identifying players they want to be a part of their future core group. The staff will be on the road in December for more high school basketball tournaments.

This is also the time of year when the staff will work on both some unofficial and official visits and perhaps even setting up in-home visits. So, when the fanbase is taking this long break between games, as usual, Duke Basketball never stops.

This year's team returns to the court on December the 19th to take on Wofford. With Louisville, Maryland and Michigan all losing, Duke, ranked 5th in the coaches poll, is poised to ascend in the rankings.

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Carey, Jones Earn ACC Honors

DURHAM, N.C. – Duke sophomore Tre Jones was named the ACC Co-Player of the Week and freshman Vernon Carey Jr., was named the ACC Freshman of the Week after leading the Blue Devils to road victories over No. 11 Michigan State and Virginia Tech last week.

Jones played all but four minutes on the week, averaging 17.5 points and 8.0 assists, as Duke became the ACC's first team to win consecutive road games this season. The Apple Valley, Minn., native posted his second double-double in the win at Michigan State, scoring 20 points and matching his career high with 12 assists and three steals, while holding MSU's Cassius Winston to 4-of-14 shooting from the field. In Friday's ACC opener, he netted 15 points to go along with six rebounds and four assists (10-5-2 in the second half) as Duke rallied from 12 points down to win at Virginia Tech for the first time since 2015. Defensively, Jones helped limit VT's Landers Nolley (18.6 ppg) to a season-low seven points (zero in the second half), while holding the Hokies to a season-low 22 second-half points.

This marks the first ACC Player of the Week honor in Jones' career at Duke. The sophomore guard is ninth in the ACC in scoring and leads the league in both assists (7.1) and steals (2.1). Louisville's Jordan Nwora was named ACC Player of the Week, along with Jones.

Carey earned his second ACC Freshman of the Week nod this season after another strong week, leading Duke in scoring at 19.0 points. The center from Southwest Ranches, Fla., also logged his NCAA-leading seventh double-double in the win at Michigan State with 26 points and 11 rebounds in 25 minutes. The performance was his fifth 20-10 game this season, as he finished 8-of-16 from the field and went a career-best 9-of-12 at the free throw line. With 12 points in Friday's win at Virginia Tech, Carey has scored in double figures in every game this season. He continues to lead the ACC in field goal percentage (.598), is sixth in scoring (18.5) and third in rebounds (9.2).

With its second recognition of the season, Duke has now had an ACC Freshman of the Week in 57 of a possible 113 weeks over the last six-plus seasons. Fourteen different Blue Devils have won the award at least once in that time.

The No. 7 Blue Devils (9-1, 1-0 ACC) will be back in action on Thursday, December 19, when they host Wofford (5-4) at 7 p.m. ET at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The game can be seen live on ESPN2.

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Tidbits — Duke-Virginia Tech

Hokies tough at home

It may not seem like it but the Virginia Tech Hokies have defeated Duke the last three trips to Blacksburg. A wall of students in one endzone will bring their A-game as Duke plays their second true road game of the young season. And let's not forget that Duke won by a mere basket in last year's NCAA Tournament over their conference foe.

Get to Know Nolley

Lander Nolley II is a scoring guard which stands 6-7 and is averaging 20 ppg. He is a redshirt freshman, meaning he is an older player and destined for getting some votes for not only All ACC but is in the running for freshmen of the year.

Hokies are Guard Heavy

Virginia Tech shocked Michigan State and whipped Clemson in Littlejohn to open the season. What you will see in their team is a guard-heavy group of players who like to spread the court and relocate the ball quickly. They can also throw out a good press. Virginia Tech has a nine-player rotation and seven of the nine are guards.

Feed Carey

Vernon Carey Jr. has had a fabulous start to the season. Everyone should know he is a lottery pick by now in next year's NBA Draft. Duke should be able to post him up often against a team that boasts two frontcourt players which stand 6-5 P.J. Horne and 6-10 Jonathan Kabongo who is averaging just ten minutes per game, Vernon Carey is tied for the nation's lead with seven double-doubles to date.

Hokies Better Rested

In my humble opinion how these teams come out of the gate or at games start will dictate how this one goes. Virginia Tech has had a lot of time to prepare for Duke where they last played on November 27th. They will try to push the ball early on a Duke team coming off an emotional victory.

ACC Schedule is 20 Games This Season

A lot of fans are still unaware that the Atlantic Coast Conference has implemented a 20 game schedule this season. This means some interesting scheduling where Duke gets a single day off after their trip to UNC before taking on Florida State. There has never been a single day turnaround after the Duke-UNC regular-season series that I can remember. Duke has had little time to put the win over Michigan State to bed going into this game.

Final Thoughts

Duke has a nice long break after tonight's game where they return to the court on 12/19 against Wofford. Look for the Blue Devils to go all out knowing this. Cassius Stanley has not been ruled out of this game and seems to be ahead of schedule.

The Hokies are 6.5 underdogs per Vegas. A win for Duke tonight puts them in an eight-team tie for the ACC lead at 1-0. A loss puts them in a seven-way tie for last place.

Duke needs a win to keep its A.P. top ten rated streak alive. A victory would also push the team back towards the end of the top five in rankings which means very little in early December yet is still the desired result.

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Duke Silences East Lansing

As the Duke team entered the court at Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan it took little time in noticing the noise and the white out the Michigan State fans had prepared for them. Little did Spartans know, a youthful team with a spattering of veterans would in time silence them.

The Blue Devils entered the game a 6.5 underdog and very few people were showing confidence in a Duke win with this being the first true road game for the team.

After trading some opening blows, Duke had established a tough mindset on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, they knocked the home team back with their physical go right at you play.

On a night when many were frothing at the mouth to question Duke after another loss, the Blue Devils implemented their will and came away with a double-digit victory.

The beauty of all this for the Duke staff and their fanbase is that there were many contributors. On a night when starter Cassius Stanley was sidelined, the team showed up and played together.

Tre Jones had a marquee matchup with Cassius Winston and he outplayed his older opponent in a big way. And he did so in front of his brother, Tyus, and mom, Debbie.

Jones would tally 20 points to go with 11 assists and 3 steals while holding Winston 12 points and 7 assists. In short, he returned north and showed out on national television.

The other side of the two-headed monster for Duke as Vernon Carey Jr. He dominated the older Xavier Tillman on his way to another double-double of 26 points, 11 rebounds, and 3 rejected shots.

But as I said, Duke got more from its team. Matthew Hurt hit some big early buckets including two three-pointers while quietly collecting 3 blocked shots.

Joey Baker came off the bench for the second game in a row to aid on the scoring front where he had 11 points on 5-6 shooting in 17 minutes of play. Baker is starting to carve out a role with his offensive prowess.

Jack White was also very efficient. He tallied 7 points, 6 rebounds, 3 steals and 2 blocked shots showing why Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has confidence in playing him 32 minutes.,

And then there was Javin DeLaurier who added hustle and his best game since the loss to Michigan State a year ago. He had 10 points on perfect 5-5 shooting to go with 6 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 block. It was a game he can build on.

It was also clear that the staff had the team well prepared to go into a hostile environment in East Lansing where the team would silence the sold-out crowd and send them to the exits early.

Duke, which dropped to 10th in the latest A.P. poll in a year when there is a terrific balance, showed that ranking is too low, especially considering Kansas, a team they beat, is ranked #2.

In short, it was another Duke program win and there was some sweet revenge from a season ago when the Spartans upset another beloved Duke team. And the fact that Duke is 19-2 all time in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge is nothing short of a phenomenal accomplishment.

I had called Javin DeLaurier the X-factor in yesterday's update and he was. I also pointed to the fact that Duke would have a quick and brutal turnaround before facing a Virginia Tech team in Blacksburg.

You are only as good as your last game and Krzyzewski and company were sure to limit the celebration of a great win to last night. It is a shame that scheduling does not allow Duke to enjoy this win.

And this questionable scheduling will happen again later in the season when Duke travels to UNC and then less than two days take on Florida State in Cameron. It is mind-boggling that they will have so little time to prepare for another ACC game after the most marquee college basketball matchup in the land. And no, the Tar Heels do not have the same quick turnaround.

Anyhow, more on that later, but for now, Duke is back in the nation's spotlight after a convincing win over the Spartans. They played good defense, came together more as a team and with a win at Virginia Tech will ascend in the rankings again.

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Coach K Talks Duke Win over MSU

Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski addressed the media after the huge win over Michigan State last evening.

Opening statement

We played so hard and we needed to, to beat them. The crowd was great. Tom's teams are so good, and this team really advances the ball probably as fast as anyone in the country, and so overall, I thought we did a good job of getting back. Actually, we had a lot more fast break points than I could ever have imagined in this game and so much of that had to do with Tre (Jones) and how our big guys ran the court, especially Javin (DeLaurier). Javin had not played to the level he is capable until tonight. He was a difference maker for us. I thought our big guys did a very good job. Yeah, we won a tough game. On becoming a top five team… This is a huge win, but that doesn't mean you've arrived. We are placed in a very difficult situation, our conference put us in a situation where we will get back at 4 in the morning and literally, we are in the toughest week of our academic year, the week before exams. Two of our kids took tests last night here and now we got to go back and in the next day, Thursday, we fly to Blacksburg (Virginia). It is really not a good scheduling thing by our conference, and we will see how our guys react. Obviously, we are real pleased with a win and now we got to put that behind us very quickly.

On the veterans playing a big part in the game…

It is a good point and Joey has just worked every day. He comes to work everyday and every time he is put in the game, he's done well. In our last game against Winthrop, they are very good, they could be an NCAA team. Joey (Baker) and Jordan Goldwire were the difference and Jack (White) has been just solid. I think he had a couple blocks and three steals, and he had a big three, so everyone contributed. We needed to; they are a very deep team. The foul trouble that we had, especially in the first half, kind of can mess you up a little bit and they hit us with that run right away and I thought our kids really did a great job after the timeout of regaining poise and get control of the game.

On Vernon Carey…

He played a great game. Our guys look for him and the key for him is he is 9-for-12 from the free throw line and he missed a couple on the break. He could've had over 30 in this game and our guys look for him, but really for a freshman, especially for a big guy, to have that poise in the post is commendable. On Vernon Carey's big play in blocking shot after screen… Then I had to sub him because he was gassed. He is not just a big guy, he's a basketball player. He has really good lateral movement but playing at this pace, you get tired so the subbing that we did were for all of our big because Jack was on the perimeter and big. It helped a lot.

On what he saw from his team defensively…

We had blocked shots and got some turnovers. We didn't go into the game thinking we're going to block as many shots or get the steals. Our guys were really tough in making an extra play. Like you were beaten, the team was beaten, but then we weren't. We had probably about eight plays like that where there could've been scores for them and our kids just made that extra play. That was superb. That's not coaching; that's what I mean, the competitiveness that they had. They got beat and then they still recovered, which saved the game for us. Saved the game for us, no question.

On his message to the team before big games like this…

I just tell them, if you want to sing your song, you want to sing it in front of a big audience. You not only come into our program, but you're coming to Michigan State's program wanting to play in these type of environments. I didn't know how our kids would respond. You can want and then all of a sudden you get and it can go sideways, but tonight, they wanted, they got and they responded. Cool thing; I'm proud of them for doing that.

On the friendship between him and Coach Izzo, and calling him a couple weeks ago…

I admire the heck out of him and Michigan State's program. We have two of the best programs in sport, not just in basketball. We have it because of the values and the standards, the principles that he evokes and we do too. And it started with Jud (Heathcote), too. I mean, Michigan State is the crème de la crème and we are too. There's not one. When you are that, you have ultimate respect for the guy leading the other group. I know he has that for me and I have that for him. Consistent excellence is not easily achieved and Michigan State has had consistent excellence because of Tom and his amazing staff. I mean, his staff has been together for a long time and the support. Their former players are like our former players. They feel like they are part of a family. And Tom – what is this, his 25th year? He's a young whipper-snapper (laughing). 40 (points to himself). When you have that continuity, then those players come back and there's family. Not many programs – hardly any programs have that. They do and we do; we're two of them. That's why we're very, very close

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Duke-MSU Thoughts

Revenge?

The loss to Michigan State which knocked Duke out of the Final Four a season ago still carries some hurtful residue in the hearts of many. But the reality is that Duke does not even closely resemble that squad. Tre Jones was certainly disappointed at games end and he will do his best in taking on the Cassius Winston challenge tonight. Duke is a 6.5 point underdog and will travel to one of the toughest places in the nation to play in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Detroit area press said this was the biggest game in the Breslin Center in decades.

Cassius Stanley Loss

Duke lost arguably its most athletic contributor in Cassius Stanley and that loss will be telling. The reason being that he is a stat stuffer where he was contributing in every phase of the game. Still no word on his return but I am the glass half full type and think it may be sooner than expected even if it is wishful thinking. But he has returned to some practice per source.

Who will step up?

I will pull no punches in answering that question, or, at least, who Duke would like to see rebound from the last game. All eyes will be on freshmen Wendell Moore who will take on a large role tonight with Stanley's absence and he is coming off a game where he barely contributed. Moore will be needed in this matchup not only on defense but the offensive end where he has been mildly inconsistent.

Who can maintain their momentum?

Two Duke players played their best games of the season against Winthrop. Those two guys are, of course, Matthew Hurt and Joey Baker. You can bet the Duke staff hopes they can build on their last outing tonight. Hurt will likely start and Baker will get a shot to show off his touch again. The key will be for these two guys to continue to grow in their roles in a consistent manner while not just scoring but playing well in all facets of the game.

Tre Jones Heads North

This is about as close to home as Tre Jones will get during the season and a nice effort is not only expected but a must. The bottom line is there is pressure on Jones in that he must face Cassius Winston in a hostile environment while properly handling his emotion from last season's upset loss. This is a big stage game for Duke but even more-so for the teams leader.

X-Factor

Javin DeLaurier had his best game of the season a year ago in the close loss to Michigan State. He played with a ton of heart and major minutes in that game and the staff would love to see a repeat performance.

Final Thoughts

Are you still wondering about the loss to Stephen F. Austin? Well, they were a 3 point favorite on the road to Arkansas State the next game and stomped them. Last evening, they beat Arlington Baptist 114-49 to go to 7-1.

Duke has defeated Michigan State four consecutive times in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

Bold comment - For Duke to win Vernon Carey will have to outplay Xavier Tillman.

Duke has a quick turnaround after a very late night tip off where they open ACC play at Virginia Tech. While the Spartans have five days before their next contest, Duke has less than three days to go home and then head to Blacksburg to face a team that beat the then top ranked Spartans.

Remember this is December basketball and Duke has a lot of youth which will develop. Should they lose, it is not time to hit the panic button and there is no time for the team to feel sorry with the ACC season at hand.