Tag Archives: Austin Rivers

Duke Basketball

BDN Post Game Report – Duke rocks Wake Forest to remain undefeated in the ACC

Duke was in control of the basketball game against Wake Forest from the opening tip as they coasted to a 91-73 victory.  Duke now sits alone atop the ACC at 4-0 but they will now prepare for a 3-1, hot Florida State team which invades Cameron in less than 48 hours.

The Andre Dawkins Show

The first half of the game belonged to Andre Dawkins who knocked down 21 points on 7 of 9 three pointers.  Dawkins earned the praise of Krzyzewski in his post game speech which just concluded. Dawkins failed to score in the second half.  Check out our interview with Andre per BDN Video.  Dawkins knocked down five straight three point shots and Dawkins has now scored 20 plus points in two consecutive games and this was his 9th double figure scoring game for the season.

Ryan Kelly scored a double-double

Kelly went 8 of 11 from the field on his way to a team high 20 points to go with 10 rebounds.  His consistent play was a huge factor for Duke as they maintained a working lead the entire game.  Kelly has scored 20 points in two of his teams ACC wins and he scored in double figures for the 11th time this season.

Austin Rivers comes off the bench for the first time

Rivers started the game on the bench as Krzyzewski said he was checking new combinations, but maybe he should remain the sixth man if he puts up numbers like 20 points.  Despite starting on the bench with 32 minutes of playing time, he basically still was a starter.  His 3 of 4 from the three point stripe matched a career high.  Austin has now scored in double figures 14 times this season and he leads the Blue Devils in scoring.

Just too much talent for Duke

The Blue Devils held Wake to zero three pointers in the first half and just 3 all game long.  They also held the Wake bench scoreless at the half.  Duke ended the game with a 43 to 8 points advantage, thanks to the aforementioned Kelly and Rivers.  Duke held an 18-9 second chance point advantage as well and while they were outscored in the paint, that was due to their outside shots falling where they knocked down 11 three pointers.  The Blue Devils also dished out 17 assists tonight.

This and that

Duke extended it's ACC home court streak to 45 games and 64 straight against unranked teams.  This was the first game since March of 2010 that Duke had three 20 point scorers in one game.  Duke is 51-9 when ranked #4 in the country.  Four Blue Devils scored in double figures for the 11th time this season.

Post game videos

Below are Austin Rivers, Andre Dawkins and Ryan Kelly post game comments per BDN Video.

Duke Basketball

Duke at Georgia Tech Game Notes

• Game 15 •

[5 AP / 3 Coaches] Duke (12-2, 0-0) vs. Georgia Tech (7-7, 0-0)

Saturday, January 7, 2012 • 12:02 p.m. (ET) • ESPNU

The Opening Tip

• Duke (12-2, 0-0 ACC) faces Georgia Tech (7-7, 0-0 ACC) on Saturday, Jan. 7 at Phillips Arena in Atlanta. Tipoff is set for 12:02 p.m. (ET).

• The game will be televised by ESPNU with Brad Nessler (play-by-play) and Doris Burke (analyst) calling the action.

• Duke is ranked No. 5 in the AP Poll and No. 3 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Georgia Tech is unranked in both polls. The Blue Devils are 64-24 all-time when ranked fifth in the AP Poll.

• Saturday’s game marks the ACC opener for both schools. Duke has won four straight conference openers and 24 of its 31 ACC openers under Mike Krzyzewski.

• Duke, coming off a neutral site loss to Temple, has not lost back-to-back games since losing on Feb. 11, 2009 and Feb. 15, 2009. The Blue Devils are 19-2 following a loss in the last five seasons.

Duke-Georgia Tech Series

• Duke and Georgia Tech have met 84 times heading into Saturday’s game with the first meeting between the two schools coming in 1922.

• The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 62-22, including a 24-15 mark in road games.

• Duke has won three consecutive games and 27 of the last 30 in the series.

• Mike Krzyzewski is 49-18 at Duke against the Yellow Jackets.

• Duke has won 11 of the last 13 road games in the series.

• The Blue Devils have a +15.0 points per game scoring margin over the last three games in the series.

• Duke has posted a double-digit win in 19 of the last 30 meetings.

• Duke is 7-3 all-time in ACC Tournament games against Georgia Tech.

Numbers Game

l Saturday’s game marks the ACC opener for Duke. The Blue Devils are 43-15 (.741) all-time in the previous 58 openers.

l Duke is 24-7 (.774) in Atlantic Coast Conference openers under Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils have won 24 of their last 28 conference openers, including 14 of the last 15 league lid lifters.

l Duke has not lost back-to-back games since February of 2009. The Blue Devils are 12-0 following a loss in that span.

l The Blue Devils have posted a double-digit win following each of their last nine losses (does not include season-ending losses) dating back to December of the 2009-10 season.

l Duke has scored at least 40 points in 11 of the last 12 halves. The Blue Devils rank ninth in the NCAA in scoring offense at 82.1 points per game.

l Mason Plumlee leads the ACC with seven double-doubles on the year. He has posted a double-double in three of the last four games and is averaging 11.0 points and 10.5 rebounds during that stretch.

l Miles Plumlee is averaging 9.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game over the last six contests. He is 23-of-31 (.742) from the field and 11-of-13 (.846) from the foul line in that span.

l Either Mason or Miles Plumlee has grabbed 10 or more rebounds in 10 of Duke’s 14 games this season. Mason has reached double figures in rebounds eight times, while Miles has three double digit rebounding efforts.

l Quinn Cook leads the NCAA with a 4.33:1 assist-to-turnover ratio (minimum 2.0 apg.). Cook has just seven turnovers in 162 minutes for an average of 23.1 minutes between turnovers.

l Duke is shooting 47.6 percent (39-of-82) from three-point range over the last four games. Tyler Thornton is 7-of-8 (.875), while Ryan Kelly is 7-of-10 (.700) from behind the arc in that stretch. The Blue Devils rank sixth nationally in three-point percentage (.429, 115-of-268) on the year.

Duke Basketball, Monday Musings

BDN’s Monday Musings – Quinn Cook, Ryan Kelly, the Plums, Rasheed Sualimon, Julius Randle

Most people are adjusting back to a normal routine after the holidays, but I found myself quite busy covering two Duke Basketball games and three days worth of high school prospects.  In fact, I'll finally make it back to the gym today, but only after another edition of Monday Musings.

17 assists, 0 turnovers

During last evening's post game press conference with Duke Coach Mike Krzyzweski, he quipped, "Quinn Cook has 17 assists and no turnovers in his last two games."  I tweeted that and within a few minutes noticed there were a bevy of retweets.  For those counting, Cook has played 62 minutes without a turnover.  The freshman point guard wasn't quite the same after his injury  last season, but after surgery and rest, he's just now getting back to form.  I'm seeing flashes of what he did before the injury when I covered him on the AAU circuit and that means you will see it as well as the season progresses.  But the true test for Cook will be how does he handle hostile environments like he will in the next two road games with Temple and the ACC opener with Georgia Tech.  Cook is the only true PG on the Blue Devils roster and if he can continue to adjust to the college game and improve his defense, he'll get plenty of burn.  One must remember a PG eight miles down the road named Kendall Marshall burst onto the scene last year, but in his case, he had to.  Duke has a steady, calm leader in Tyler Thornton, a swing guard, who was making three point shots look like a three inch putt in his last two outings, but that is an area he needs to be consistent in to keep opposing defenses honest.  My thinking is that there will remain a combination of the two in some manner all season long

Austin Rivers is the ACC Rookie of the Year

Rivers had trouble finishing off his moves in his last outing, but the freshman is destined to break out before seasons end.  With Duke seeking chemistry going into ACC play, he's finding his spot and once again adjusting.  The keyword though is adjusting for he has had a huge transformation with his game since he was in high school.  His willingness to do so has proven that he is all about team first.  Rivers, provided he stays healthy is a lock for ACC Rookie of the Year and he leads the 12-1 Blue Devils in scoring as a freshman for a reason, that being he's pretty darn good.

The Plums

There was one possession Mason past up an easy shot to dish to his brother Miles who was maybe a foot closer to the rim.  The play didn't set well with the bench but it showed that Mason is looking to get Miles going in his senior year and how close these guys and family really are.  Next time, take the shot but don't worry with that play too much for Mason has been a rebounding machine and a very consistent option for Duke.  He's definitely struggling from the free throw line for sure, but he also leads the team in FG%.  And FWIW, his four blocks last evening tied his career high at Duke.  Meanwhile, Miles had solid back to back games and it seems as if the senior is finding more consistency in his last season as a Blue Devil.  And, for one, think that he will continue to improve.

Ryan Kelly getting aggressive

If you watch the videos we provided from last evenings game, you'll hear junior forward, Ryan Kelly, state that he sought to play more aggressively.  Kelly recorded hi first double-double at Duke with 18 points and 12 rebounds and his 26 minutes played in the 85-55 blowout of Penn was tops on the team.  Kelly had struggled a little bit of late but it always seems like you can count on him to come back.  Duke will need Kelly to be a presence in upcoming road tests and the ACC season.

Covering Rasheed Sulaimon

I am as impressed as ever with Rasheed Sulaimon.  The future Blue Devil will join Alex Murphy and Marshall Plumlee who are both red shirting provided there are no injuries in next seasons class.  Sulaimon was flat out sick as a dog during the Holiday Invitational but he reached deep and helped his team, Strake Jesuit, win their last two games to go back to Texas 2-1.  Sulaimon visited Duke with his father and brother for the win over Western Michigan and he continues to recruit for the Blue Devils hoping to add players to his class.

Julius Randle visits

While the students were gone, Randle still got the "Julius Randle come to Duke," chant which he smiled about.  Randle is a flat out stud in the post and a player the Blue Devils staff covets.  Randle visited UNC yesterday and then caught the entire Duke game.  It'll be a good while before Randle, a junior in high school this season, decides, but there is already panic at every turn.  If you do not believe me take a look at the message boards.

BDN Premium

We are still offering the special rate of 80.00 bucks for one year of Blue Devil Nation Premium, which is 20% off the regular rate.  No other site covers s many AAU and high school events than do we and it's time for you to see what you're missing.  We've put together and amazing staff and correspondents that you have to see their reporting to get a feel for how timely and accurate it is.  We have two exclusive interviews up with Rasheed Sulaimon, a bevy of interviews with stud prospects from the City of Palms already waiting and wait until you see our original, yet copied Duke Basketball Team and Recruiting Updates. We also spoke with Brick Oettinger of Prep Stars, a long time analyst about prospects and up next are ESPN's Jason Jordan and Dave Telep telling our members their thoughts on the Tony Parker situation and more.  By being an independent, we can speak with many analysts and are not limited to the ones in our network and we think that is unique on to itself.  And changes are coming as well which are sure to please in 2012, so take advantage of this offer and stay connected and join in the on the discussions and see for yourself the quality we bring to the table.  A quick not on the offer, when joining select the yearly rate of 100.00 through paypal and we'll send you 20 bucks back.  That's pennies a day for non stop behind the scenes Duke reporting.