MBB: Duke 77, Tennessee 67 Post Game Thread

[Bob Green]

Discuss the game here.

[feldspar]

Perhaps Tennessee will be a litmus test for Duke's perimeter defense. The Volunteers are shooting 49.1% from behind the 3-point arc (26/53) through two games, while Duke is allowing opponents to sink just 33.3% (22/66) through four games. One interesting item to keep an eye one will be whether Tennessee's 3-point offense or Duke's 3-point defense prevails.

Them: 0-8
Us: 7-18

We win.

[Skitzle]

Best game of the season to date by far.

Nitpicking:
1) we still need to be better guarding off the bounce
2) mason needs to make his ft
3) I'd like to see more out of Miles.

Tomorrow's match will be fun!

[Saratoga2]

Another good win with 4 players into double figure scoring. Seth had an excellent game as he is becoming a cagy leader with ball handling, passing, scoring and reasonable defense. Obviously coach K trusts him. Kelly also was excellent out there and has the best overall ability for our bigs plus his length allows him to alter shots and rebound. At the end of game, he also can stay in with his excellent free throw shooting. Austin created defensive problems for Tennessee with his quick step and ability to score with either hand. Dawkins didn't get a lot of shots but his percentage was good and his defense will keep him in a lot of games. Mason looked good out there when he gets the ball close to the basket, but he and most other big men shouldn't be expected to dribble in from beyond 15 feet. Cook's ball handling wasn't exploited due perhaps to his defense, but he certainly can be a plus on offense. Miles had some good minutes and some not so good, which is consistent with his usual play. No one was injured significanly but our key guys did play a lot of minutes.

On the negative side, I thought Tennesse was able to get the ball inside and when they did they scored and/or they will quicker jumpers while our big may have altered shots but gave away some rebounds they should have gotten. Maeon and Miles both have great difficulty with free throws and it makes them a liability, especially at the end of game.I thought Mason would be subbed on offense and defense at the end of game, but coach left Mason in.

I thought another negative was the use of our bigs during the early part of the second half. We seemed determined to get the ball to Miles and Mason, often away from the basket. Miles did hit one jump shot, but the strategy backfired with traveling, lost balls and poorly taken shots.

Michigan played very well and with composure against Memphis. They will be a worthy opponent for us tomorrow as they defend well and are patient and careful with the ball. Should be a good one.

[Bob Green]

Austin created defensive problems for Tennessee with his quick step and ability to score with either hand.

I agree with your overall post, but I disagree with the statement above. Austin Rivers has no left hand.

[Saratoga2]

I agree with your overall post, but I disagree with the statement above. Austin Rivers has no left hand.

I thought Austin put up one of his driving layups by going to his left hand. Maybe I will need to look at the replay.

[jv001]

Our poor foul shooting will sooner or later end up costing us a game we should win. Mason, Miles and even Austin are not making a good percentage of their foul shots. I look for Coach K to do some offense to defense substitutions and get his better shooters in the closing minutes. GoDuke!

[Newton_14]

Our poor foul shooting will sooner or later end up costing us a game we should win. Mason, Miles and even Austin are not making a good percentage of their foul shots. I look for Coach K to do some offense to defense substitutions and get his better shooters in the closing minutes. GoDuke!

As a team we need to improve with foul shots, with Mason needing the most work. K is using the offense for defense subs in the last 3 minutes though. He did it against Davidson and again today. He goes to one big with Ryan on offense and Mason on defense, with Quinn or Tyler as the extra guard. Hopefully the staff can work with Mason and get some improvement there. He gets good rotation on the ball but has trouble with distance control and the shot being too flat.

Solid win today. I like Tennessee's team. Well coached, very athletic with exceptional length at every position, and a tough, gritty defensive team. We were sloppy for the start of the game and the defensive intensity was lacking. Once we ratcheted up the defensive pressure, things turned. One thing we did well all game though, was take the 3 away. We basically forced them to drive and depended on the bigs to stop the penetration. The first 10 minutes we did a poor job with the help in the paint on drivers, but as the game wore on the bigs started making life more difficult. Tennessee attacked hard but we matched their toughness and once again blocked, altered, or pressure the Vols into a lot of misses.

Offensively we were very balanced again with the 4 double figure scorers, and a fifth with 8 points. Mason's foul shooting is the only thing stopping him from scoring in double figures every game. If he can improve by even a little bit there, it will make a difference. Getting double figures from 2 of the 3 bigs each game will make this a very dangerous offensive team. Our perimeter guys played well again as a whole. Andre was more active playing heavy minutes. I would like to see us get him more shots though. He can be a dangerous weapon if he works and the guys find him.

Austin was up and down but I loved the floaters and he kicked to open guys a few times as well. He finished strong the times he took it to the hole as well, and knocked down the 2 three's. Seth was solid again with 17 and 4, but also had 4 turnovers. Just needs to be a bit more careful with the ball.

I liked our toughness out there. With this schedule, by the time conference play starts, these guys will have been well tested. That surely will be a positive in ACC play.

Only question I have is, when did the puke blue color become part of Tennessee's colors??? Yikes!

[dcar1985]

I agree with your overall post, but I disagree with the statement above. Austin Rivers has no left hand.

No left hand is a stretch...he's drove left quite a few times this year already, that eurostep he had against Presbyterian comes to mind right away...thats not an eeasy move at all especially goin to your weak hand. He does prefer to go right...but like I've told people my whole life playin ball being a lefty and people saying I had no right..."I can go right but if you cant stop me going left why do it?"

[Bob Green]

No left hand is a stretch...he's drove left quite a few times this year already, that eurostep he had against Presbyterian comes to mind right away...thats not an eeasy move at all especially goin to your weak hand. He does prefer to go right...but like I've told people my whole life playin ball being a lefty and people saying I had no right..."I can go right but if you cant stop me going left why do it?"

When Rivers goes left to the hoop, he still lays the ball up with his right hand. I have not seen him finish with the left hand so that is why I say he has no left hand.

[dcar1985]

When Rivers goes left to the hoop, he still lays the ball up with his right hand. I have not seen him finish with the left hand so that is why I say he has no left hand.

My example was a left hand layup...he had a couple against Belmont as well as they challenged him to go left and he took it and finished lefty

[Bob Green]

My example was a left hand layup...he had a couple against Belmont as well as they challenged him to go left and he took it and finished lefty

I didn't notice him finishing with his left hand, but seeing as you saw it, I stand corrected.

[licc85]

When Rivers goes left to the hoop, he still lays the ball up with his right hand. I have not seen him finish with the left hand so that is why I say he has no left hand.

I definitely remember a nice left handed lay in that he had in the davidson game, I remember commenting on how he used his left hand.

[Indoor66]

I definitely remember a nice left handed lay in that he had in the davidson game, I remember commenting on how he used his left hand.

Yeah, I saw him go left and finish with the left hand. Bob, I too have commented on his failure to go left and was watching him closely on this issue.

[CDu]

When Rivers goes left to the hoop, he still lays the ball up with his right hand. I have not seen him finish with the left hand so that is why I say he has no left hand.

Typically when the "has no left hand" comment is used, it's in reference to ballhandling (like Gerald Henderson). Lots of players shoot layups predominantly with their dominant hand. That being said, I think we've seen a few examples of Rivers shooting with the left hand. And I'm less concerned about which hand he shoots the layup with than I am about when he choose to shoot and when to pass.

[House G]

At the risk of someone going Lloyd Bentsen on me, I see some of Larry Bird in Ryan Kelly. To me, he doesn't really pass the eyeball test as a great basketball player. Yet he seems to have a similar basketball IQ. Bird was relatively slow and could not jump, but he was able to compensate for these inadequacies by knowing how to play the game. Bird was also tough as nails and I can't think of anyone who wanted to win more than he. Finally, Kelly's height and range create matchup problems and open up the floor, often making his teammates more effective.

[jipops]

There were some excellent defensive exchanges by Miles tonight. The communication he was offering up out there and the ability to recover on drives is something that will benefit us down the road.

[CDu]

At the risk of someone going Lloyd Bentsen on me, I see some of Larry Bird in Ryan Kelly. To me, he doesn't really pass the eyeball test as a great basketball player. Yet he seems to have a similar basketball IQ. Bird was relatively slow and could not jump, but he was able to compensate for these inadequacies by knowing how to play the game. Bird was also tough as nails and I can't think of anyone who wanted to win more than he. Finally, Kelly's height and range create matchup problems and open up the floor, often making his teammates more effective.

Maybe a little bit. Bird was a much better ballhandler and passer. And at the risk of quantifying an intangible quality, while Kelly has a good basketball IQ, Bird's was off the charts. I think Nowitzki is a better style comp of "tall, slowish, not a great leaper, but can get it done as a scorer."

[davekay1971]

Maybe a little bit. Bird was a much better ballhandler and passer. And at the risk of quantifying an intangible quality, while Kelly has a good basketball IQ, Bird's was off the charts. I think Nowitzki is a better style comp of "tall, slowish, not a great leaper, but can get it done as a scorer."

I expect RK would be immensely flattered at either comparison. Of course, a fair comparison would have to be made with RK at age 20-21 versus Bird or Nowitzki at the same age. I have no idea what kind of game Dirk had at that age, but Bird was stunning as a college junior. Off the charts good. Overall, though, I'd agree with CDu - RK has some similarities to Dirk (perhaps the better way to put it is that RK should watch Dirk closely to see what he has the potential to become). Bird was, well, in the conversation of best of all time...and you could see that coming while he was a junior at Indiana State.

Very good second half for our guys. They took a big step forward on defense. Curry, Mason, and RK all continued their very high level of play. Dawkins was good, quite good at times. Austin really showed us in the last 10 minutes of the game what all the hype is about. He's amazing at getting to the rim. Agreed with some above sentiments that he'll just get better and more problematic for other teams as he learns to choose his spots better and distribute when the time is right. Those two floaters he hit were just spectacular shots.

[basket1544]

Comparing Kelly to Larry Legend and to Dirk? Wow! Dirk was playing NBA ball at 20 years old so it's a bit difficult to compare. Ryan has the benefit of coming after both. No one 15 years ago was telling a 6'11" player to go ahead and shoot the three pointer. I think it is great and every time Ryan dribbles behind his back, it is showing another very tall player he too can be a ball handler no matter his size. I can't wait to see what Ryan does next!