MBB: Duke 98, NCSU 85 Post-Game Thread

[vick]

There were, however, definitely spots in the second half where we could have been more on the offensive with the ball in our hands. Maybe I accidentally hit the buttons on my remote and was watching a different game, but I don't believe I am crazy. We were totally out of our element on offense for much of the final 10 minutes, and I believe we partly did that to ourselves by slowing things up, losing our flow and ending up with difficult shots or turnovers in the final 10 seconds of the shot clock.

Don't get me wrong. I am elated we won. I just tend to be more misanthropic than most. Seth and Mason were brillian tonight, and Sheed set the tone early.

I don't think you're crazy on this, actually, though I don't think it was quite that bad. I just don't think it means that much for tournament implications because we aren't too likely to have 20+ point leads past the first round (if that), and if we do, well, I'll be really really happy about it. Also, while he's a great talent, Quinn's still a sophomore who is playing his first full season at point, and effective slow pace against decent teams (as opposed to December non-conference cannon fodder) is a hard skill that I think takes some time to learn. My guess is Coach K will be a lot more frustrated at the second-half defense than the second-half offensive effectiveness.