Tag Archives: Seth Curry

Kyrie Irving’s debut at the N.C. Pro Am thrills Duke fans

Kyrie Irving drives to the basket during is N.C. Pro Am debut - photo copyright Rick Crank, BDN Photo

Durham, N.C. - Fans from all across the Triangle packed North Carolina Central University's gym on Tuesday night, as a record-breaking crowd was on hand to see some of the ACC's best young incoming talent on display. Four Blue Devils took to the floor in Tuesday's round of games, including the much anticipated debut of incoming freshman point guard Kyrie Irving. Irving played in the first game where he scored a team high 36 points while dazzling the crowd with his ball handling and crafty finishes around the basket. While his 36-point debut was quite an impressive performance, it came up a little short for Irving as his team fell to Team Navy by 4 points. In the second match-up of the night, Seth Curry teamed up with Miles Plumlee and incoming freshman forward Josh Hairston for a balanced attack to defeat Team 212/Trianglegi.com. Curry led the way with 22 points, shooting 8-16 FG and 3-8 3pt. Curry showed off his array of scoring abilities, dialing in from NBA range while also taking the ball strong to the hoop for several solid finishes around the rim. Miles Plumlee used his athleticism and size around the rim to throw down 2 or 3 rim-rocking dunks, sending the crowd into frenzy on more than one occasion. He finished the game with 21 points and 10 rebounds. Josh Hairston played good defense out on the perimeter and showed some touch on his turn-around jump shot. He finished the game 5-10 from the field for 10 points while also grabbing a team-high 11 rebounds. In the most anticipated match up of the night, the incoming Tar Heel freshmen alongside John Henson, Justin Watts and PJ Hairston took on the incoming freshmen from Raleigh, as it was an old fashioned UNC vs. NCST rivalry game. The game was heated from the beginning, with Harrison Barnes and CJ Leslie going head to head both making plays on both sides of the court. While Barnes led the team with a game-high 26 points, the real story of the game was UNC freshman Reggie Bullock. Bullock used his size and athleticism to consistently drive and shoot over Lorenzo Brown from NCST. The UNC freshmen took home the 10 point win.

As for the Duke players, many were excited to see their future point guard in action for the first time, and he did not disappoint. Coming into the game with virtually no warm up, Kyrie quietly began to assert himself in the first quarter before taking off before the end of the half. He missed on his first few 3-point attempts, however quickly recovered with a few fast break points and a huge one handed alley-oop on the fast break. Irving really shined with the ball in his hands as he used his amazing shift of pace to slice through the heart of the defense either finishing at the rim or dishing off to an open teammate. Irving draws many comparisons to former Wake Forest great Chris Paul, and they are not far off. If Tuesday night was any indication of the type of impact Irving could have at Duke, then Duke fans should buckle up, for it's going to be a fun season. Truly an elite level point guard who will have the ball in his hands early.

Seth Curry's feel for the game is so clear when watching him play. You can tell that he comes from a basketball family and that he knows how to play the game the right way. While a deadeye shooter from 3, Curry has no problem going into attack mode and getting to the rim. He will have no problem playing some point for Duke this season, as his ball handling and decision-making are superb. He showed off his array of scoring tools, getting points from virtually every spot on the floor. He will be a dangerous weapon to put on the floor along side players like Irving, Smith and Singler.

Miles Plumlee has completely reshaped his body and looks to be in the best shape of his life. He is extremely cut and moves as well as any big man you will see at his size. His lift off the floor is much quicker than it was in his previous two seasons as he has turned much of his bulk into pure solid muscle. He showed nice touch with a right handed hook shot and wowed the crowed with his thunderous dunks. While his shot was somewhat off tonight, he showed glimpses last season of hitting the mid range jumper. Rebounding will be a key area of focus for the Plumlee brothers this upcoming season as they look to replace key seniors Brian Zoubek and Lance Thomas.

Incoming freshman forward Josh Hairston blended in well with Curry and Plumlee, quietly doing the little things to help his team. Hairston possesses an athletic frame that will be able to defend out on the perimeter very similar to the way Lance did last season. Hairston showed good form and touch from the outside, hitting two turn-around jumpers on the baseline.

Overall, this was one of the biggest nights in the N.C Pro Am history. With lines reaching over 200 people outside, many were turned away simply because of fire code. With the talent that is showing up, the Pro Am does not look to be slowing down anytime soon. Many suggest getting there up to an hour early in order to secure a parking spot and a comfortable seat in the house.

Will be on hand for Thursday's action and excitement. Tobacco road is showing what it's all about.

- article by Michael Mueller


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.

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USA U19 Brings Home the Gold Medal

mens-basketball-action-sethcurry2-7-09large-300x206The United States captured the Gold Medal at the FIBA U19 World Championship, held July 2 - 12, in Auckland, New Zealand. Team USA rolled through the competition going undefeated in nine games, behind a balanced scoring attack, and defeated Greece 88-80 to win the Championship.

In the Gold Medal game, the United States utilized a 27-11 second quarter run to take a 46-30 halftime lead over Greece. Greece responded by outscoring the Americans 21-14 in the third quarter to cut the lead to nine points and setup an exciting fourth quarter. Team USA was paced by Tyshawn Taylor (Kansas Jayhawks) who scored 18 points and recorded five steals. Ashton Gibbs (Pittsburgh Panthers) chipped in 13 points, while Klay Thompson (Washington State Cougars) and Arnett Moultrie (UTEP Miners) scored 10 points each. Both Seth Curry (Duke Blue Devils) and Terrico White (Mississippi Rebels) contributed nine points.

Team USA advanced to the Gold Medal game with victories over Canada and Croatia in the quarterfinals and semifinals respectively. The quarterfinals victory was a decisive 93-73 victory, while the semifinals was a tough fought 81-77 victory.

In the semi-finals, Team USA made 10 of 12 free throw attempts down the stretch to secure the victory. Gordon Hayward (Butler Bulldogs) was the team's leading scorer with 15 points. Croatia outscored the USA 26-11 in the 3rd Quarter to take a two point advantage, but the USA persevered in the fourth quarter and secured a berth in the Championship Game.

Against Canada, Gordon Hayward paced the team with 20 points, while Seth Curry made four of five 3-point attempts scoring 12 points. Team USA went 14-26 from behind the 3-point arc overall setting a single game record for 3-point shooting percentage. Arnett Moultrie grabbed 11 rebounds in leading the USA to a 39-35 advantage on the boards.

The USA waltzed through preliminary play with a 41 point average margin of victory in games against Iran, France, and Egypt. Against Iran, seven USA players scored in double digits with Tyshawn Taylor leading the way with 13 points. John Shurna (Northwestern Wildcats) posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. The game against France saw Seth Curry lead the way with 12 points as he made four of seven 3-point attempts. In the victory over Egypt, seven players scored in double digits led by Ashton Gibbs with 18.

In the first game of the second round, Greece put up a valiant fight in the first half, but the USA opened it up in the second half on the way to a 85-69 win. Howard Thompkins (Georgia Bulldogs) paced the USA with 22 points and three assists. Seth Curry was the team's leading rebounder with six.

Team USA opened the second quarter with a 15-0 run to blow open game two of the second round against Puerto Rico. The USA went on to outscore Puerto Rico 23-6, in the second quarter, to take a 43-19 advantage at halftime. Puerto Rico tightened it up slightly in the second half, but the United States cruised to a 82-61 victory. Howard Thompkins just missed a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds. Gordon Hayward contributed 11 points and seven rebounds.

The final game of the second round saw Team USA beat Lithuania 76-69 behind a strong defensive effort. Tyshawn Taylor was the leading scorer with 13 points. Gordon Hayward grabbed eight rebounds.

The USA U19 team was coached by Jaime Dixon of Pittsburgh. He was assisted by Chris Lowery of Southern Illinois and Matt Painter of Purdue.

Seth Curry picks the Blue Devils

mens-basketball-action-sethcurry2-7-09largeSeth Curry decided to finish his college basketball career at Duke University.  Curry will be an incoming transfer from Liberty University and will become eligible in 2010.  Curry, a 6'-3", 180-pound shooting guard, will be able to practice with next seaso's team.  He was the nation's leading freshman scorer, tallying 20.2 ppg with the Flames this season.  He's the brother of ex-Davidson star, Stephan Curry, and his Father is Wardell "Dell" Curry, a former Charlotte Hornet and Virginia Tech player.  We will have more in Blue Devil Nation Premium.