Tag Archives: Mason Plumlee

Duke Basketball

Nolan Smith drops 43 points at the N.C. Pro Am

Ryan Kelly continues to show improvement. Photo copyright Rick Crank special to BDN

DURHAM, N.C. - There were some solid individual efforts during Tuesday evenings N.C. Pro Am but it was Nolan Smith who stole the buzz.  Smith looked over to his Dreamwork's coach and  bench with 5 seconds on the first half clock of his game, he then turned and left three pairs of sneakers on the court as he weaved through the defense to score at the buzzer as the crowd showed their approval.

Smith would go on to score 43 points and his moves dazzled the crowd bringing them to their feet or drawing multiple reactions.  In short, there was nobody who could stop Smith from invoking his will.  Smith told BDN after the game that he had been working non stop to improve and touched on his preparation to go to New York to be with the U.S. Select team.

Smith had help from two Plumlee brothers, no, not Miles and Mason, but Mason and Marshall.  The youngest Plumlee a rising senior at Christ School Arden started the game by jumping center and scored 6 points to go to go with 2 blocks.  His brother Mason brought about some of the evenings loudest roars of approval with his emphatic dunks and ability to handle the ball in the open court.

Plumlee [Mason] finished with 15 points, grabbing 7 boards and his most impressive stat was his team high 5 assists.  BDN also got word that Mason and Miles were selected as counselors at the Adidas Nations event and they will head to Minnesota where their brother Marshall will play in the event.

All of the Blue Devils had their moments in the win which included Nolan putting it off the backboard for Mason to throw down a dunk.  Mason matched up most of the evening with Jawad Williams.

The next game featured four Blue Devils where the three freshman faced off with Ryan Kelly's team.  On this night Kyrie coasted along with 13 points but he had moments where he showed I can do what I want when I want.  He dished several assists and his teammate Tyler Thornton added 4 points.

Josh Hairston scored 12 points and is averaging 15.0 ppg in his last two outings.  One might think that these Dukies played on the winning team but it was a gallant effort by Ryan Kelly which enabled his depth shy D-One team to defeat Hendrick 79-75.

A late Irving bucket cut the lead to two in a sea saw affair, but that was as close as they would come for Kelly answered by finishing off an alley-oop dunk.  Kelly finished the game with 21 points.

"We just got out in transition and played confident.  I've been working hard all summer and being able to showcase that work is great.  It was just our night," said Kelly.

In the night cap Miles Plumlee took to the court where he was greeted by former Los Angeles Laker and current Atlanta Hawk Josh Powell.  The current NBA star coming off a championship scored a game high 27 points and at times taught Plumlee a lesson.  But the eldest Plumlee never backed down and got his shot off with a variety of moves on his way to 19 points.

Plumlee had to play the whole way in the middle where his team had to add two players due to no-shows.  The athletic Plumlee can only benefit from playing tough competition.

Andre Dawkins and Seth Curry attended the games but did not play.  The N.C. State guys are preparing to go to the Bahama's while the UNC guys were once again no-shows.  BDN learned from a good source that the Heels would be there for the play offs.  The games continue this coming Tuesday as the event starts to wrap up.

Be sure to sign up for BDN Twitter for the latest updates from the Pro Am and the recruiting trail.  And we have more on Nolan Smith coming your way in the morning.  BDn's stats differ a bit from the official stats but we assure you they are accurate.

 

Duke Basketball

Smith and Kelly net 67 points to lead their teams to wins

With our photographer MIA, we decided to dig in the archives and go old school for Nolan's pic. This is a shot I took in Cameron when he was with Oak Hill Academy and one thing that has not changed is his smile. BDN Photo -Mark Watson

DURHAM - Another sultry summer evening and BDN was on the scene checking out the action.  In the evenings first game, Ryan Kelly showed off his newly formed body while scoring a team high 31 points which translated into a 66-59 win for his D-One team

Kelly scored on dunks, jump shots and nailed three shots from beyond the stripe and shot a very productive 13 of 18 from the field.  We had him at 8 rebounds unofficially to go with a couple of blocks.  Kelly spent most of the summer in Durham where he played with Miles Plumlee and he made a quantum leap in production from his first nights effort.

Andre Dawkins, who switched teams, made it to the game at the start of the second half and ended the game with 6 points going 2 for 6 from the field.  Dawkins has yet to play in a full game during the tournament.

Miles Plumlee wowed the crowd with two early blocks but his team came up short in overtime where Johnny Thomas hit a three in overtime to steal the win.   Miles finished the game with 9 points, 7 rebounds, 4 blocked shots and a steal.  Plumlee was also sporting a thickening beard and seemed to be in great physical shape.

His teammate, Seth Curry, made his debut and after missing his first five three point shots settled in and lead a late charge after his team was down by 11.  Curry ended the game with 11 points to go with two steals.  Many of his shots were in and out and it is clear that he'll take the open shot when available.  He played good on ball defense and had two steals and a near third.  One steal and lay in late in the game cut what was a big lead to 2 and that helped his team get to the extra period.

Nolan Smith played in the night cap and due to the late start many of the fans had left.  They missed a show for Nolan dropped in 36 points as he was clearly the best guard on the court.  Smith found a variety of ways to score which included,  three point shots, pull ups, runners and buzzer shots.

Smith, never one not to entertain, heaved a ball toward the rim where he thought it was a buzzer shot late in the first half.  The shot missed badly which is not a big deal for a heave.  The problem is there were 19 ticks left on the clock.  Smith laughed it off and atoned for that with a true buzzer beating shot at the half.

Mason Plumlee let the game come to him and ended the game with 22 points and a bevy of rebounds.  Plumlee looked comfortable on the court and was in good shape after working in Chicago for the past month.  What was different?  His range.  Plumlee nailed a couple of three pointers and his outside stroke has improved.  His dunks were effortless and he helped Smith garner a sweet comeback victory where for three quarters they were outplayed as a team.  It was Mason's late slam dunk that gave his Dremworks team a 74-72 lead.  The bucket gave Plumlee two successive dunks down the stretch.

But it was Nolan's night for after he cut the lead to 79-78, he was fouled and hit two free throws while trading a few good spirited barbs and that clinched the 81-78 comeback win over Team Navy.  Smith's performance stole Kelly's thunder as the star of the night, but both players were impressive and that is a good thing for Duke fans.

Follow Blue Devil Nation on Twitter for live game updates.

Duke Basketball

Duke’s Mason Plumlee is preparing for the 2010-11 season

Mason throws one down against Wake Forest in Cameron where Duke was 17-0 during their magical run to the national championship. Mason played 14.1 MPG as a freshman averaging 3.7 ppg and 3.1 rpg. Photo courtesy of my pal, Lance King

DURHAM, N.C. - As the dog days of summer creep in, Duke must put their magical ride to the national championship in perspective by preparing for next season. Don't get me wrong in that the program will indeed bask in the light of their fourth title for that is worthy of continued celebration but Krzyzewski has already started to look ahead.

Replacing three sensational seniors is a daunting task especially down low where they lost the hard working Lance Thomas and the burly Brian Zoubek.  While one can justifiably argue that Jon Scheyer is perhaps the biggest loss in terms of stats Duke can replace him much easier in the backcourt in that they're a tad depth shy up front.  Enter the Plumlee brothers.

Mason and Miles Plumlee will get more than a few minutes this season and their development will be vital to the Blue Devils' efforts to repeat as national champions.  Both brothers are not only capable but expected to have breakout seasons.

Despite playing a role where he came off the bench in his freshman season, Mason Plumlee showed flashes of brilliance. One moment which stands out was his exclamation point, behind the head dunk versus rival North Carolina at the Dean Dome which helped Duke continue a run which sealed the victory.

And for those not keeping track, Mason is 2-0 against Duke's arch rival with two ACC and one national championship in his first season.  Talk about the kind of stats where a legacy can start, right?

Many are excited by Mason's potential which has one on line draft projection specialist slotting him in the first round of next season's draft.  To fill those expectations Mason will have to round the learning curve this season after adjusting to the speed of the game in his freshman campaign.

Learning the Duke system is no easy task.  It took Brian Zoubek's senior season for the light to go off on where he needed to be on the court.

Mason will still experience some growing pains but there is no reason for the athletic big not to rise to the occasion.  In order to do that, Mason knows that his off season workouts are vital to his progress and he'll waste little time in preparation.   In fact, the Duke coaching staff was able to get their soon to be starting center into a summer internship with Attack Athletics.

The rising sophomore will train under one of the masters of his profession in Tim Grover, known as the trainer to the pro's.  If you haven't heard of him before, Grover not only trained Michael Jordan exclusively but former Duke standouts, Carlos Boozer, Elton Brand, Luol Deng and Chris Duhon, and that only scratches his list of clients.

After spending the better part of a month in Chicago, under intense daily tutelage, Mason will return to Durham where he'll work out with returning players under the watch of Duke Assistant Coach Nate James, Chris Carrawell and Chris Spatola.  In short, there will not be a lot of down time.

Duke will play up tempo in the coming season with a sleek point guard named Kyrie Irving who will almost certainly run the team from day one.  With the likes of Irving and Nolan Smith pushing the ball, Mason should have lots of opportunities for easy baskets off cuts.  And of course, nothing brings the Cameron Crazies to their feet like a thunderous and emphatic dunk.

Only time will tell just how good Mason Plumlee will be but there are few people that would tell you anything other than he should flourish in the 2010-11 season.  If Duke is to make another run at the title, Mason will have to be at his best and all signs point to the fact that he will certainly put in the work and that in itself should excite the Blue Devil Nation.

Duke Basketball

Ryan Kelly, Mason Plumlee, Steve Johnson and Todd Zafirovski are happy Blue Devils

Duke National Champions
And the place went nuts! BDN Photo

INDIANAPOLIS - BDN Caught up to Ryan Kelly, Mason Plumlee, Steve Johnson and Todd Zafirovski during the Blue Devils trophy presentation.  The Blue Devils won their fourth national championship in what turned out to be one of the most amazing seasons in Duke Basketball history.

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Duke Basketball

Duke’s Mason Plumlee talks of going back to his home state for the Final Four

Mason Plumlee returns home for Final Four
Duke freshman Mason Plumlee

DURHAM - Selected Duke Men's Basketball  players addressed the media in Cameron Indoor Stadium today and BDN was on the scene before we head out to Indianapolis for the Final Four.  In this audio chat, Mason Plumlee talks of his homecoming and more.  Check back in for our Duke-West Virginia preview, more player interviews and a interview with Quincy Miller and more as the week progresses.

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Duke Basketball

NCAA South Regional Report – One on Two with the Brothers Plumlee

Miles Plumlee Duke set for NCAA's
Miles Plumlee throws one down in practice which took place in the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena

Jacksonville, FL - The Duke Blue Devils just finished up their open practice for fans in Jacksonville, Florida as they prepare for their NCAA opening round game with Arkansas Pine Bluff.  BDN is on the scene and we bring you a one on two interview with the brothers Plumlee, Mason and Miles.

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