Durham, N.C. - The BDN Locker Room Report continues with audio from Duke star Jon Scheyer who talks of Duke's win over Georgia Tech and the play of Kyle Singler.
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And here is what Nolan Smith had to say -
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Durham, N.C. - The Duke Blue Devils swatted the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets by a score of 86-67 and in the process moved to the top of the ACC with a 6-2 record, 18-4 overall.
Kyle Singler led the way for the Blue Devils with a season high 30 points, and 24 of those came from behind the three point stripe where the pre-season pick for ACC Player of the Year hit 8 of 10.
"Thirty points in this game or any game is big," said Krzyzewski. He continued, "The motion is something we used to get Kyle moving better."
Kryzewski showed more of the traditional motion offense this evening and Duke flourished by hitting 12 three point shots.
Lance Thomas earned praise from Krzyewski after his effort led to a team high 11 rebounds to go with 2 steals and 6 points.
"Lance Thomas played a great game and was outstanding defensively," said Krzyzewski.
He was talking in part of Thomas' defense on Zachery Peacock, who opened the game with 11 quick points and went scoreless the rest of the way.
Duke forced 15 Yellow Jacket turnovers and, in the process, outscored their opponent 17-1 off them.
"I thought we were playing well on both sides of the court. We wouldn't be 18-4 unless we played really well," said Krzyzewski when asked of his team's effort.
Jon Scheyer chipped in 21 points and Nolan Smith added 14. Other than the big three, Duke players scored just 6 field goals, but contributed in other areas to carry Duke to the win.
The Blue Devils now face a quick turnaround as they head to Boston tomorrow for a 2:00 start on Saturday against the Eagles.
Stay tuned to BDN for more on the win and check out the post-game audio from Kryzyzewski and Singler. More audio is on the way for premium subscribers.
Durham, N.C. - The Duke Blue Devils defeated the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 86-67 in Cameron Indoor Stadium to go atop the ACC at 6-2. A tired but elated Coach K addressed the media after the game and here are comments in their entirety.
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BDN caught up with Kyle Singler as well after his 30 point performance where he went 8 of 10 from the three point stripe. Premium members have Nolan Smith and Jon Scheyer audio on the way, so join BDN Premium for full site access.
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- If you ask nine out of ten people who follow ACC Basketball, they'll tell you that Georgia Tech is the most talented team in the conference. Then why have they opened up as a 12 point underdog in Cameron Indoor Stadium this evening?
- Just as important as recruiting is the fact that David Cutcliffe managed to keep all but one of his staff members at Duke. After flirting with one of his two dream jobs, Cutcliffe seems entrenched in Durham for the remainder of his career.
- Of course the aforementioned helps with recruiting for Duke signed all 19 players during yesterdays signing day not including a talented JUCO transfer.
- The Duke Football staff is known for their friendliness and family like atmosphere on the recruiting trail and each coach is assigned specific duties Make no mistake though in that Marrion Hobby stood out from the bunch this season helping Duke to land kids at key positions.
- The crown jewel of Duke Football's recruiting class is Laken Tomlinson, a Super Prep All American lineman, but the kid which may have the most impact could be Josh Snead from Smithfield, North Carolina who brings more speed to the table for the Blue Devils
- The Duke Women are ranked 6th in the country and their rival UNC is coming to town next week. Don't you think it's time to get out and support Coach P's troops in this one?
- A trap awaits. Suppose Coach K's troops get by Georgia Tech tonight ... how hard is it to turn around and fly to Boston for a 2:00 start on Saturday?
- If you are in Cameron tonight, remind yourself that Jon Scheyer has just five more games in the hallowed venue.
- 24 days. Duke plays ACC rival UNC twice in 24 days, yet they will have already played Georgia Tech and Boston College twice before that happens.
Game 22
[10 AP/9 Coaches] Duke (17-4, 5-2 ACC) vs.
[21 AP/19 Coaches] Georgia Tech (16-5, 4-3 ACC)
Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010 • 7:00 p.m. • ESPN2
Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) • Durham, N.C.
The Opening Tip
Duke (17-4, 5-2 ACC), ranked 10th in the AP poll and ninth in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll, faces Georgia Tech (16-5, 4-3 ACC) at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Thursday, Feb. 4 at 7:00 p.m. The Yellow Jackets enter the contest ranked 21st in the AP poll and 19th in the Coaches’ Poll. The game will air on espn2 with Mike Patrick, Jay Bilas and Heather Cox calling the action.
The Last Time Out
Duke lost 89-77 to No. 7 Georgetown on Saturday, Jan. 30. The Hoyas shot 71.7 percent (33-of-46) from the field in the contest, setting a new opponent record against the Blue Devils.
Nolan Smith led Duke’s offensive attack with 19 points, while Kyle Singler added 18 points and a game-high six rebounds. Senior Jon Scheyer finished with 17 points, four rebounds, five assists and a career-best five steals.
Georgia Tech 71, Duke 67 - Jan. 9, 2010
Duke fell, 71-67, to Georgia Tech earlier this year in Atlanta. Jon Scheyer led the Blue Devils with 25 points and six assists, while freshman Mason Plumlee added 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting.
Duke shot just 21.4 percent (6-of-28) from three-point distance in the contest and was outscored 22-9 at the free throw line. The loss snapped a four-game win streak over Georgia Tech for the Blue Devils.
Numbers Game
Checking in on ...
#2 Nolan Smith - +9.8 ppg. increase from a year ago leads the ACC ... averaging 18.7 ppg. with three 20+ point games against ranked opponents
#3 Seth Curry - Sitting out the 2009-10 season due to NCAA transfer rules
#5 Mason Plumlee - Averaging 1.0 blocks per game
#12 Kyle Singler - Has led the team in rebounding 10 times and in scoring six times
#20 Andre Dawkins - Fourth on the team with 28 three-point field goals ... shooting 40.6 percent from three-point range
#21 Miles Plumlee - Leads the team with 26 dunks ... shooting 65.5 percent (19-of-29) from the field in league play
#30 Jon Scheyer - Has scored in double figures in 20 of 21 games with nine 20-point games ... has led the team in assists in all 21 games
#34 Ryan Kelly - 14 blocked shots ... one of five Blue Devils with 10+ blocks
#42 Lance Thomas - Shooting 80.5 percent (33-of-41) from the foul line ... leads the Blue Devils with 10 charges taken
#55 Brian Zoubek - Five or more rebounds in 14 of 21 games ... four or more offensive rebounds eight times
Big Three Pace Blue Devil Offense
Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith combine to average 53.0 points per game or 64.7 percent of Duke’s scoring.
Scheyer is second in the ACC in scoring at 18.7 ppg., while Smith (18.2 ppg.) and Singler (16.1 ppg.) rank tied for third and eighth, respectively.
Texas Southern, Nevada, Fairfield, TCU, Portland State and North Dakota State are the only other schools with three players ranked among the top 10 scorers in their respective leagues.
The trio of Scheyer, Smith and Singler is the highest scoring threesome in the NCAA this season and the fourth-highest at Duke under Mike Krzyzewski.
#10 Duke (17-4, 5-2) hosts #21 Georgia Tech (16-5, 4-3) on Thursday February 4, 2010 as the Blue Devils and Yellow Jackets face each other for the second time this season. Georgia Tech prevailed 71-67 in the first game, which was played at Alexander Memorial Coliseum, in Atlanta.
The Blue Devils will be looking to snap back strong after taking a pounding at the hands of the Georgetown Hoyas on Saturday afternoon. Duke has not lost two games in a row this season and has won previous games following a loss by an average of 14 points.
Three "keys to the game" were identified in the Blue Devil Nation preview prior to the first meeting. The same keys exist for this second meeting so let us revisit them one at a time taking a look at how they played out in Atlanta.
1. Defensive rebounding. Duke must keep Georgia Tech off the offensive glass and prevent second chance points.
Duke did an excellent job on the glass, during the first half, with 20 rebounds to the Yellow Jackets 12. Georgia Tech was limited to two offensive rebounds and two second chance points. Not surprisingly, Duke held a six point advantage, 35-29, at the half. In the second half, Georgia Tech dominated Duke on the boards 26-12, pulled in 11 offensive rebounds, and scored eight second chance points as they outscored the Blue Devils by ten points. The Yellow Jackets performance on the glass in the second half was the significant factor in securing the four point victory.
In the rematch at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke must do a better job of blocking out and beat Georgia Tech on the glass for a full 40 minutes. Staying out of foul trouble should be another objective for the Blue Devils as Lance Thomas fouled out of the first game with more than 10 minutes remaining.
2. Turnovers. With Georgia Tech’s suspect ball handling, look for Nolan Smith to apply pressure on the Yellow Jackets main ball handler. This is a game where Duke may look to trap the ball as it is brought across the half court line. Lance Thomas could be a key player if Duke opts to run a half court trap defense. The best way to neutralize Lawal and Favors down low is to prevent them from getting it down low.
Georgia Tech has suspect ball handling but in Atlanta they scored more points off turnovers (18) than Duke (15). While this key was not as significant to the Georgia Tech victory as their rebounding performance, it is important for Duke to do a better job in Durham if they expect to win the ball game.
3. Outside shooting. Georgia Tech’s strength is their inside play so look for Duke to try and open up the inside by knocking down the long ball. Duke is leading the ACC in 3 point field goal percentage at 42.6 percent and second in the league in 3 point field goals made with 8.6 per game.
Duke shot poorly in Atlanta going 6-28 on 3-point field goal attempts. In fact, Duke has shot poorly since ACC play began and they’ve fallen to third in the ACC in 3 point field goal percentage at 38.2 percent. Over the first seven ACC games, the Blue Devils are 34-119 or 28.6 percent on 3 point attempts.
The Blue Devils must rediscover their perimeter stroke in February and getting off to a great start against the Yellow Jackets tough defense would be timely. In Atlanta, Jon Scheyer scored 25 points; Mason Plumlee scored 10, Kyle Singler, and Nolan Smith contributed nine each, while Miles Plumlee added eight. This Thursday, Duke will need a similar strong performance from Scheyer and more scoring from Singler and Smith.
Additionally, Duke will need “points in the paint” so another 18 points and 11 rebounds performance from the Plumlee Brothers or similar numbers from seniors Lance Thomas and Brian Zoubek will be necessary to balance the offense.
Andre Dawkins is another offensive weapon Duke hopes to get back on track. Dawkins was providing 10 points a game off the bench in the early part of the season but has been in a shooting slump so far in 2010. Reviving Dawkins could not only assist Duke in winning the Georgia Tech game but could be a key to the remainder of the 2010 season.
Here is a look at Georgia Tech’s main players and their statistics:
Junior Gani Lawal (6′9″ 235) averages 14.5 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. He is 13th in the ACC is scoring and 3rd in rebounds. Lawal has the 5th best field goal percentage at 55.2 percent. He scored 21 points and grabbed 11 rebounds in the first game against Duke and proved to be the difference down the stretch.
Freshman Derrick Favors (6′10″ 245) averages 11.5 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Favors is 5th in the ACC in rebounds. In the first game, he contributed seven points and eight rebounds.
Sophomore Iman Shumpert (6′5″ 205) is back after missing six games with a knee injury. He averages 10.3 points and 4.1 assists per game, but also turns the ball over 3.3 times per contest. In the first game, Shumpert recorded eight points, three assists, and seven turnovers.
Freshman Mfon Udofia (6′2″ 185) and Senior D’Andre Bell (6’6” 220) are Georgia Tech’s fourth and fifth starters. Udofia averages 9 points, 2.7 assists, and 2.3 turnovers per game. Udofia scored 13 points and shot 50 percent (3-6) on 3 point field goal attempts in the first game. Bell averages 6.5 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.3 turnovers per game.
Senior Zachery Peacock (6′8″ 235) averages 9.6 points and 4.3 rebounds off the bench for the Yellow Jackets. Peacock has the ability to step out to the perimeter and knock down jump shots. He is making 44.8 percent of his 3-point attempts on the season. Peacock contributed 11 points and four rebounds in the first game.
This is an important game for both teams. For Duke, it is imperative the Blue Devils secure a win to cement their position as the top team in the ACC. A second loss to the Yellow Jackets could result in a team with shaken confidence during the middle of the ACC season, which is not a good situation. A win over the Yellow Jackets would keep the Blue Devils on top of the ACC standings and allow the team to put the Georgetown loss behind them and focus on moving on toward tough road games at Boston College and North Carolina.
For Georgia Tech, a loss to the Blue Devils would drop their conference record to 4-4 and place them solidly amongst the muddy middle of the ACC standings. A second win over the Blue Devils would keep the Yellow Jackets competitive for a slot in the upper tier of the ACC standings and a Thursday bye in the ACC Tournament come March.
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