MBB: Duke 72, Fla St 88 Post-Game Thread

[kshepinthehouse]

Good points. I wish Frank was the typical point guard that could get other involved in the offense. He looks like a shooting guard more than a distributor. We have the offensive fire power if we just had someone to get them the ball on occasion. GoDuke!

I agree. I think if Grayson would have hit a few more shots it def would have helped.

[sagegrouse]

The play by play guy said something went down incidentally. Corey didn't see it. We replayed the sequence but only got that audio.

The announcer said, "He was in a catcher's position and that only means one thing."

[devildeac]

The announcer said, "He was in a catcher's position and that only means one thing."

I'm waiting for the espn/cbssports/bleacherreport/cnn/fauxsports coverage/explanation...

[6th Man]

It seemed to me that there were way too many careless passes and unforced errors in the second half. This team also really needs someone to step up defensively. VT, BC and FSU got to the hoop at will. Allen has great moments being a point but he got out of control at times too. I felt like we were hanging and carelessness let the game get out of hand. I see this team getting better and learning from that, but it's ultimately going to come down to defense and being smarter on offense.

[jacone21]

I'm waiting for the espn/cbssports/bleacherreport/cnn/fauxsports coverage/explanation...

Headline: "Did Grayson Allen try to trip someone with his testicles?"

[DUKIE V(A)]

This isn't the 2015 team because... point guard.

I agree that a point guard like Tyus would go a long way to making this team much more cohesive and effective. However, since his return from suspension, Grayson has been an outstanding playmaker for others. He has sacrificed his scoring to get others good shots and has racked up a ton of assists (and could have had more had some guys hit some relatively easy shots).

I believe the team will improve a great deal as we get healthier and the freshmen continue to develop.

My biggest concern is our defense. Without improved defense, a national title is not in the cards. The 2015 team found a way to improve defensively down the stretch. Perhaps this one can as well.

[gofurman]

I'm pretty sure we made more jump shots than the Noles in the 2nd half.

Yep. Well played - by you and the noles. They took dunks and we shot jumpers. That's a losing formula. That had to be a top ten worst effort as measured by ' Dunks made by opponent'. If there were such a stat that would be a possible number one (meaning worst ever). I have never seen so much penetration and dunk via lob or put back.

Duke misses Amile. But it would have been tough even with him.

That was an as whooping and we deserved it!!! Those are some freajing nasty athletes in the post for fsu. Even when they didn't lob it for an alley oop they rebounded and jumped for an easy slam. Our guys looked pedestrian by comparison. Couldn't stop a. Dribble penetration (which has nothing to do w Amile at the outset, not until D rotation) ... And then b. FSU looked like an NBA team athletically compared to us - blocking Tatum and Jeter like we were a joke.

That's worrisome. I think fsu is seriously legitimate but I do think the dribble penetration issue is a big issue. There will be other top teams just as fast on the perimeter. Even if amile is in there he too has to rotate over to help after they blow by our alarmingly unathletic defenders and he becomes the alley-oop poster boy instead of Giles or Jeter. Once the perimeter blow by occurs it's over.

Don't blame free throws (75% is ok) or offense. That's entirely on the D. Entirely. No offense can keep up when they feel they have to score 88 per game

[Wheat/"/"/"]

No inside game to open up some room for the outside shooting that was needed to stay in this one. Can't be overstated how much this team missed Amile.

As suspected, rebounding was a problem -8 total...of the bigs..Giles had 2, Bolden O, Jeter 6...they combined for 6 total points. Not going to beat many good teams with that kind of production in the paint.

29% from 3 pt range. 16 TO's. Fresh legs and FSU wing pressure took its toll.

Giles looks timid to me, like he's holding back. I have an ACL replacement. It gets in your head. I'm not sure he's gonna go all out this season, lots of $ in his future even if he falls from the lottery by playing soft to protect his knees.

Duke needs Amile back and to keep working on the defense.

[sagegrouse]

I've got one takeaway from the last two games. Grayson is trying to be an angel and distribute the ball. Hell, he's our All-American; he needs to look for his shot and scrap for everything.

[CDu]

Completely agree. I am so confused by Bolden. I remember reading somewhere that Capel said he had earned a starting spot before his injury. He wasn't out for that long. How could his game have changed that much? And who was going to sit if he started? I am not trying to criticize him and I am sure he is extremely frustrated. It is just a strange situation.

Alex Murphy supposedly was going to be a 4-year starter according to Coach K. A freshman, rail-thin Marshall Plumlee was allegedly among the top six (on a team with Miles, Mason, Kelly, Dawkins, Rivers, Cook, Gbinije, Hairston, and Thornton). The coaches are sometimes prone to hyperbole about the freshmen.

[gofurman]

What was the offensive plan? Seemed no one knew what to do. Maybe it was all the things you mentioned but for a team that struggles mightily with defense Duke definitely needs more consistent offense.

I may be in the minority but I am not sold on FSU. They are deep and certainly have some good players. However, the played at home against a team that played poorly with very favorable officiating and up until the Tatum travel call Duke was right in the game. The next two weeks will tell a lot about them though one way or the other.

Fsu has now beaten numbers 23, 12, 21 and 7. That includes winning at UVA. That's tough as we know. That's a good fsu team in my book. And a really good team at home. I only wish Unc was coming to Tallahassee this weekend and we could have been at home.
I believe fsu is legit top 25 and a scary tourney team

[DUKIE V(A)]

Headline: "Did Grayson Allen try to trip someone with his testicles?"

It's takes a lot of balls to suggest a headline like this. It's a pretty sore subject for Grayson and Blue Devil Nation.

[Skydog]

This isn't the 2015 team because... point guard.

Can we get Tyus back?

This team is missing a true point guard. By that I mean someone who sees the quick outlet pass, pushes the ball every time, runs the break like butter, threads the needle for backdoors, or slows down and organizes the offense when needed. You know, like Tyus. Hurley. JWill. Grayson is trying to do it and he is such a great athlete he can pull it off somewhat with his drives, dishes and kickouts. But its not a natural position to him.

And there is another cost. Its hurting his offensive game big time, a sometimes unstoppable offense that carried us in many tough games the last two seasons. He seems to have lost confidence in his shot, both at jumpers and his usually reliable finishing at the rim. When is the last slash and dunk from him? He needs to mix it up more - dishing sometimes, taking it to the rack or taking pull up jumpers other times. Otherwise he becomes predictable and opponents start anticipating his dishes, like has been happening too often recently.

So far the game is too fast for our freshmen. They seem lost. Part of it is practice time, part of it is probably their reliance on athleticism in high school.

I'm sooo impressed with Kennard. His team was flailing and the environment hostile, but he never lost his cool. He anticipates, misdirects, and finishes - what more can you want? He had most of his problems when he tried to dish the ball late in the game, probably some fatigue, and some problems with his teammates readiness. But overall his bball IQ is really impressive - what we've seen from some Duke greats.

Someone said we gave up too many dunks, someone else said those were mostly in the 2nd half. I can tell you this - we gave up a crapload of layups and 1 footers for the entire game.

I'm not judging based on this one game but I think this team is a pg away from being great. Think it will be difficult to completely overcome that missing piece. Possible, yes. Likely, hmmm..I'll take the fifth.

[DukieInBrasil]

Bolden can't stay out of foul trouble long enough for us to see his game.

well, fortunately he'll be around next year so we'll be able to see more of his game.

[Troublemaker]

Giles looks timid to me, like he's holding back. I have an ACL replacement. It gets in your head. I'm not sure he's gonna go all out this season, lots of $ in his future even if he falls from the lottery by playing soft to protect his knees.

That's not the type of kid he is: https://dukeblueplanet.exposure.co/why-duke

[CDu]

The team lost this game on dribble penetration and turnovers. Plain and simple.

Their guards broke us down, which caused our bigs to have to leave their man and play help defense. And that allowed their guards to get offensive rebounds. It is really hard to rebound when the other team has a 2-on-1 and 3-on-2.

FSU's bigs, as expected, didn't hurt us on the glass. Their 7-footers Ojo and Koumadje had a whopping 1 rebound in 16 minutes. Their 3 centers (including the 6'9" Smith) had just 6 rebounds in 38 minutes. By comparison, our centers got 8 rebounds in 39 minutes. And that is despite FSU outshooting us substantially.

No, our bigs weren't the problem on the glass, nor was FSU's size the problem. It was their mid-size perimeter guys (Bacon with 6, Mann with 7, Savoy/Angola-Rodas with 5) that hurt us on the glass. Because FSU spread us out and beat us off the dribble. Over and over and over again.

[Wheat/"/"/"]

Maybe coach K can call Roy and work out a trade for Nate Britt. Duke could have sure used him tonight!

[Furniture]

Tatum may have been the second leading scorer, but his passing was atrocious and he tried to play hero ball almost exclusively in the second half.
Go Duke!

jayson took a couple of shots more than Luke. Not that much difference between the two really. It could that the coaching staff know Luke can do it but they need it from Tatum too. I have to think that the coaching staff is telling him to go for it.

Duke
Player	MIN	PTS	AST	OFF	REB	STL	BLK	TO	PF	FG	FT	3PT	+/-
Luke Kennard	40	23	2	2	3	1	0	2	1	8-15	5-6	2-6	-15
Jayson Tatum	38	21	0	0	4	1	0	4	2	7-17	4-5	3-6	-10

[fan345678]

This team has no idea what it's doing. At this point, practice is more important than games. If we go 9-9 in the ACC and get a 7-seed, I still like our chances as long as we learn to play together...kind of like that Kentucky team that was an 8-seed and made the final.

[jipops]

Over the last two seasons Duke is 22-3 with Amile. 17-11 without.