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Duke Basketball

Duke at Georgetown Official Game Notes

Game 21
[8 AP/7 Coaches] Duke (17-3, 5-2 ACC) vs.
[7 AP/11 Coaches] Georgetown (15-4, 6-3 Big East)
Saturday, Jan. 30, 2010 • 1:00 p.m.
CBS Verizon Center (20,600) • Washington, D.C.

Courtesy Duke Photography
Courtesy Duke Photography

The Opening Tip

Duke (17-3, 5-2 ACC), ranked eighth in the AP poll and seventh in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll, faces Georgetown (15-4, 6-3 Big East) at the Verizon Center on Saturday, Jan. 30 at 1:00 p.m. The Hoyas enter the contest ranked seventh in the AP poll and 11th in the Coaches’ Poll. The game will air on CBS with Verne Lundquist and Clark Kellogg calling the action.

The Last Time Out

Duke posted a hard-fought 70-56 win over Florida State on Wednesday at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils forced 22 turnovers in the game and limited the Seminoles to 34.5 percent shooting in the second half of play.

Senior Jon Scheyer paced the offensive attack with 22 points for his ninth 20-point game of the year. He went 7-of-12 from the field, including 4-of-6 from three-point range, and 4-of-4 from the foul line in the game. Scheyer also had four rebounds, five assists and three steals in the win.

Kyle Singler added 20 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals in 38 minutes of action. Junior Nolan Smith added 11 points, four rebounds and four assists in the contest.

Duke’s five upperclassmen (Scheyer, Singler, Smith, Lance Thomas and Brian Zoubek) combined to score 65 of the teams 70 points on Wednesday. The group also recorded 25 of the team’s 30 rebounds as the Blue Devils were outrebounded for just the fourth time this season.

Numbers Game

  • Duke and Syracuse are the only teams in the country to rank in the top 10 in the AP Poll and Coaches’ Poll as well as The College Basketball News Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) and Strength of Schedule (SOS). The Blue Devils rank eighth in the AP Poll, seventh in the Coaches’ Poll, third in the RPI and 10th in SOS.
  • Duke is 7-2 on the year against teams currently ranked in the top 50 of The College Basketball News RPI, including a 3-1 mark against the top 25.
  • Jon Scheyer, Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler have accounted for 209 of Duke’s 294 points scored (71.3 percent) in the last four games.
  • Junior Nolan Smith is averaging 19.3 points, 2.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game over the last 11 contests. He is shooting 52.4 percent (77-of-147) from the field and 55.3 percent (21-of-38) from three-point range in that span. He has topped the 20-point mark in seven of those games.
  • Jon Scheyer is the only player in the ACC to rank in the top 5 in six statistical categories; scoring (second, 18.8 ppg.), assists (fourth, 5.7 apg.), free throw percentage (first, .899), three-point field goals (first, 2.7 3pg.), assist-to-turnover ratio (first, 3.4:1) and minutes (first, 36.0 mpg.).
  • Kyle Singler has scored 20 or more points in three of the last four games. He is averaging 18.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game in that stretch.
  • The Blue Devils are 4-1 this season against ranked opponents. Duke has held its first five ranked opponents to 35.4 percent shooting and just 54.2 points per game. The Blue Devils have a +14.8 margin of victory in those five matchups.

Big Three Pace Blue Devil Offense

Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith combine to average 53.0 points per game or 64.5 percent of Duke’s scoring.

Scheyer is second in the ACC in scoring at 18.8 ppg., while Smith (18.1 ppg.) and Singler (16.1 ppg.) rank third and eighth, respectively.

Texas Southern, Nevada, UC Davis, Fairfield, TCU, Kentucky 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.

Checking in on ...

#2 Nolan Smith - +9.7 ppg. increase from a year ago leads the ACC ... averaging 18.6 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 nine times and in scoring six times ... tied for the team lead with 25 steals

#20 Andre Dawkins - Fourth on the team with 27 three-point field goals ... shooting 41.5 percent from three-point range

#21 Miles Plumlee - Leads the team with 25 dunks ... has tripled his scoring and rebounding averages from a year ago

#30 Jon Scheyer - Has scored in double figures in 19 of 20 games with nine 20-point games ... has led the team in assists in all 20 games

#34 Ryan Kelly - 14 blocked shots ... one of five Blue Devils with 10+ blocks

#42 Lance Thomas - Shooting 81.6 percent (31-of-38) from the foul line ... leads the Blue Devils with nine charges taken

#55 Brian Zoubek - Five or more rebounds in 14 of 20 games ... averaging 16.7 rebounds per 40 minutes played

Duke Basketball

Previewing the Hoyas

Scheyer Singler Thomas#8 Duke (17-3) travels to our nation’s capital to take on #7 Georgetown (15-4) at the Verizon Center Saturday afternoon at 1 pm eastern standard time.

Georgetown ripped off 14 unanswered points to open their game against Syracuse on Monday evening. In the process, the Hoyas knocked down four 3-pointers from well beyond the arc. It looked as if the Orange had a long night in front of them.

Syracuse responded by stepping up their defensive pressure, forcing 10 Georgetown turnovers, and outscoring the Hoyas 34-15 to take a 34-29 halftime lead into the locker room. Syracuse forced nine more Georgetown turnovers during the second half. On offense, Syracuse pushed the pace and punished Georgetown in transition.

The game ended with Syracuse winning 73-56. That is a 31 point differential for the Orange after they committed themselves to applying perimeter pressure, forcing turnovers, and scoring in transition. Hopefully, the Duke coaching staff studied this game film as Coach Krzyzewski’s good friend Coach Boeheim laid out a blue print for taking it to the Hoyas.

Georgetown has three perimeter players with consistent 3-point range: Austin Freeman (.473), Jason Clark (.440), and Chris Wright (.379). Georgetown’s perimeter players do not pound the ball into the court they achieve open looks at the basket by moving the ball around via the pass. In order to contain a potential 3-point barrage, Duke will need to pressure the ball on the perimeter just like Syracuse.

Austin Freeman (6’4” 235) is the most potent perimeter player. A solid shooter, Freeman also has the strength and speed to penetrate and finish above the rim.

Frontcourt activity centers around Greg Monroe (6’11” 250) last season’s Big East Rookie of the Year and a player all Duke Fans are intimately familiar with as Duke recruited Monroe for over two years. Monroe is a talented passer out of the high post, who has the ability to make perimeter jump shots, and drive to the basket. He averages a double-double of 14.8 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.

On January 26, 2010 Monroe was named to the Big East Conference’s Weekly Honor Roll for the fourth time this season. Monroe averaged a double-double in conference wins over Pittsburgh and Rutgers. In the loss to Syracuse, Monroe was held to eight points and four rebounds.

Georgetown’s fifth starter is Julian Vaughn (6’9” 245). Vaughn averages 8.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. At 24.1 minutes per game, Vaughn is the only starter averaging less than 30 minutes of playing time per game. Coach John Thompson III favors a thin rotation.

Hollis Thompson (6’6” 180) comes off the bench to the tune of 20.1 minutes per game and contributes 3.5 points and 2.4 rebounds per contest.

Georgetown and Duke have had two common opponents on the year: Connecticut and St. John’s. Duke defeated Connecticut 69-59 and St. John’s 80-71. Georgetown defeated Connecticut 72-69 and St. John’s 66-59.

The keys to the game will be:

1. Defensive intensity on the perimeter: Duke must pressure the ball for 40 minutes in order to prevent Georgetown from achieving good looks at the basket. Additionally, the best way to contain Greg Monroe is to deny him the basketball.

2. Scoring points in transition: Duke needs to push the pace and score in transition off of turnovers.

3. Execute in the half court: Duke must execute ball screens and back cuts to achieve easy inside looks at the basket.

This game is a solid preview of the type match-up Duke can expect to see in March. While most folks are focused on the intense conference games being played across the country, this game provides a look at two Top 10 teams going head-to-head in late January. Both teams possess star players in their line-ups, however, do not be surprised if a role player steps up and provides the difference in securing his team a victory.

Duke Basketball

Duke vs. Wake Forest Official Game Notes

Courtesy: Lance King Nolan Smith matched a career high with 24 points to go along with four assists and three steals in Wednesday’s win over Boston College.
Courtesy: Lance King
Nolan Smith matched a career high with 24 points to go along with four assists and three steals in Wednesday’s win over Boston College.

Game 17
Duke (14-2, 2-1 ACC)
vs. Wake Forest (12-3, 2-1 ACC)
Sunday, Jan. 17, 2010 l 8:00 p.m. l FSN
Cameron Indoor Stadium l Durham, N.C.

The Opening Tip
Duke (14-2, 2-1 ACC), ranked eighth in the AP poll and seventh in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches’ Poll, faces Wake Forest (12-3, 2-1 ACC) at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 8:00 p.m. Sunday’s game will air on FSN with Tim Brando, Mike Gminski and Jenn Hildreth calling the action.

The Last Time Out
Duke is coming off a 79-59 win over Boston College at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Wednesday. The Blue Devils broke the game open with a 16-2 run to start the second half after leading 38-35 at intermission.

Junior Nolan Smith matched a career high with 24 points to go along with four assists and three steals. He was 9-of-14 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free throw line in the contest.

Kyle Singler recorded his 15th career double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds in the win. He also added three steals in the contest. Senior Jon Scheyer and sophomore Miles Plumlee each recorded 12 points for the Blue Devils.

Senior Brian Zoubek registered a game-high 11 rebounds as Duke posted a 40-27 edge on the glass. The Blue Devils grabbed 18 offensive rebounds, including five each by Zoubek and Singler.

Duke made just 1-of-12 three-point field goals, but finished 27-of-48 (.563) from inside the arc in the contest. The Blue Devils also shot 81.5 percent (22-of-27) from the free throw line to secure the win.

Numbers Game

  • Duke is the only team in the country to rank in the top 10 in both the AP Poll and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll as well as the College Basketball News Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) and Strength of Schedule (SOS). The Blue Devils, eighth in the AP Poll and seventh in the Coaches’ Poll, rank second in the RPI with the 10th-best SOS.

  • Sunday’s game is the 300th consecutive sellout at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The last time Duke did not have a sellout at home was on Nov. 16, 1990, against Boston College.

  • The Blue Devils have won 12 straight and 42 of the last 44 games at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

  • Duke has won 23 of its last 25 games in the month of January. The Blue Devils are 202-56 under Mike Krzyzewski in January games.

  • The Blue Devils have won 37 consecutive home games against unranked opponents.

  • Senior Jon Scheyer leads the NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio (4.62:1) while playing 35.6 minutes per game. He has led Duke in assists in all 16 games with six turnover-free games. Scheyer is tied for ninth in the NCAA at 6.1 assists per game.

  • Nolan Smith is shooting 48.9 percent (93-of-190) from the field, including 50.0 percent (26-of-52) from three-point range, to rank ninth in the ACC in field goal percentage. He is the only guard to rank in the top 10 of the league in that category.

  • Duke has had 19 individual 20-point scoring games this season, including seven each by Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith. The Blue Devils have had multiple 20-point scorers in the same game six times on the year.

  • Junior Nolan Smith is averaging 20.1 points per game, while shooting 59.1 percent (52-of-88) from the field and 61.5 percent (16-of-26) from three-point range, in the last seven games. He has topped the 20-point mark in five of those games.

  • Miles and Mason Plumlee are averaging 16.4 points and 11.4 rebounds per game combined over the last five contests. The duo is shooting 56.1 percent (32-of-57) from the field during that span.

  • Jon Scheyer is the only player in the country averaging better than 19.0 points and 6.0 assists per game.

  • Duke has a +31.3 scoring margin in 10 home games this season. Nine of Duke’s 10 wins have been by 20+ points.
Duke Basketball

BDN Locker Room Report – Nolan Smith talks Wake Forest

Smith and Curry confer during the Blue-White game, BDN Photo
Smith and Curry confer during the Blue-White game, BDN Photo

Durham, N.C. - BDN was once again on hand for this weeks player availability and we had a chance to ask Nolan Smith about the Wake game as other media members chimed in.  In fact, Al Featherston who you all know does some work for us led the way with some really good questions.


Just press play -

Duke Basketball

Second half spurt helps Duke roll past Boston College 79-59

Nol;an Smith throws one down during Duke's 20 point win over Boston College - Lance King Photo
Nol;an Smith throws one down during Duke's 20 point win over Boston College - Lance King Photo

Durham, N.C. - On a night when Duke 14-2, 2-1 in the ACC] hit a single three point shot one would think they may have lost the game, but that was far from the case in 79-59 win over Boston College.

After the two teams played an almost identical first half in statistics and score, Duke outscored the visiting Eagles 15-2 to start the half.

The Blue Devils defense simply held the Eagles in check and if it were not for Krzyzewski clearing his bench, they would have scored a lot less than the 24 points they put up.

Nolan Smith led the way for Duke with a team high 24 points [tied his career high] to go with his 4 assists.  Smith made several key buckets to keep runs alive on a night when Scheyer was off by his standards.

"Beginning of the second half, we started with defense.  We were able to execute the play that we drew up at halftime.  Miles got a dunk right off the bat that keyed our defense," said Smith after the win.

Scheyer still ended the contest with 12 points, but he was just 1 of 6 from the three point stripe.  But considering he had Duke's only three, the Blue Devils won the old fashioned way on two point buckets.

The aforementioned Miles Plumlee played his best half of the season and he ended the game with 12 points total, ten in the first half.  After his 5 of 6 shooting from the field, he leads the team in field goal percentage.

When asked of his thunderous dunk to open the half, Plumlee said, "I felt great after the shot.  I know I can make those plays all the time and I can make other plays that I haven't made yet.  I just need to keep doing it in practice and it will show up in games for me.

Singler had a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds and interestingly, he got it going after his fourth foul which was a technical.

The game was heated at times and the refs let the two teams play for most of the game and there is a bit of a chippy history between the two teams.

Flying under the radar were Brian Zoubeks 11 rebounds to go with his 6 points.

Duke benefited from points off defense outscoring Boston College 15-4 on the fast break and held a 17-10 edge on points off turnovers.  The royal blue also outrebounded the Eagles by a 40-27 margin.

Duke will next take on Wake Forest at 8:00 on Sunday evening.

Stay tuned for the Blue Devil Nation Locker Room Report where you will hear from Scheyer, Singler, Smith and Miles Plumlee.

Link to Official Box Score

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