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-jk
11-11-2008, 11:17 PM
Post your comments here!

Neals384
11-11-2008, 11:28 PM
Missed the game but from the box score looks like a solid performance all around.

51% free throws - ugh! Everyone makes 500 free throws in practice before Sunday.

BlueintheFace
11-11-2008, 11:30 PM
11 rebounds in 14 minutes for E-Will. Really? That can't be correct...

Better start out of the gates than last game...

Singler is simply an amazing player (Plus, I'm glad he figured out that pesky layup shot midway through the first half ;))....

Crazies sounded pretty good...

Jon Scheyer is looking really good early on this season. Can't wait to see what he will look like in March...

I'm about ready for some stiffer competition...

jipops
11-11-2008, 11:38 PM
Excellent move by K giving Zoubek some burn with the start. Lest we forget, Brian really started to come on before getting injured last year. Getting him back into the flow gradually will only help us later in the season. Also probably a good move sitting the freshmen for most of the 2nd part of the back-to-back.

Kyle is something special.

Overall the guys looked much more relaxed tonight than last. Lance seems to have really found his role, looks to be much more comfortable as that high energy guy off the bench.

Anybody notice we have a little bit of depth?

Also worth adding, great execution of the halfcourt trap. This really opened up the game before half-time. Anybody who claims Scheyer is deficient on D needs to seriously look into some new eye wear.

JDev
11-11-2008, 11:39 PM
Duke had a stretch there in the first half where the offense looked as disjointed or more than it looked at times yesterday, but that clearly did not last and they finished the first half in a flurry and picked up right there in the second half. The free throw percentage is alarming, but that will be the exception more than the rule I think. They did get to the line about 50 times! They will shoot a much higher percentage the vast majority of the time. Singler, Scheyer, and Smith looked terrific, and Paulus and McClure player very well. Thomas didn't have quite the stat line he did yesterday, but he was just as active and provided another lift off the bench.

Rudy
11-11-2008, 11:39 PM
Smith 3/4 from 3 pt. territory. Only 11 team turnovers while running more than last night. Zoub going a long stretch in the first half before picking up any fouls; I don't know if he got any blocks but he did alter several shots. He also dove to get a held ball but whistled for a foul instead (boo). Lance played well again, except 1/8 from the line. Yikes. Improved play from Marty too. McClure once again being in the right place at the right time over and over.

Oh yeah, almost forgot. Kyle--wow.

phaedrus
11-11-2008, 11:41 PM
11 rebounds in 14 minutes for E-Will. Really? That can't be correct...


It is, and 2 of them were fairly spectacular grabs after missed Duke free throws.

houstondukie
11-11-2008, 11:41 PM
Some thoughts on the freshmen...

No freshmen played at all in the first half. I don't think it has anything to do with being in Coach K's doghouse, but rather because they looked very nervous in the first game. I think it was a very good move K. The freshmen were able to play continous minutes without substitutions without worrying about the score since the game was already decided.

Elliot grabbed a ton of rebounds (11 rebs) against a small Ga. Southern mostly in garbage time, but still impressive. On one play, both he and Miles came down together with the rebound and neither would let go, causing a traveling call. I think Coach K and the staff had a little fun with that.

Overall, Miles showed very good mobility and finished well near the basket. Elliot had some good moves to the basket but had difficulty with his footwork and didn't finish well. Also had a foolish behind the back pass on a fast break that went into the stands. Olek had some moments.

Great games by Singler, Smith, McClure, and Pocius.
Good games by everyone else.

houstondukie
11-11-2008, 11:51 PM
Excellent move by K giving Zoubek some burn with the start. Lest we forget, Brian really started to come on before getting injured last year. Getting him back into the flow gradually will only help us later in the season. Also probably a good move sitting the freshmen for most of the 2nd part of the back-to-back.

Kyle is something special.

Overall the guys looked much more relaxed tonight than last. Lance seems to have really found his role, looks to be much more comfortable as that high energy guy off the bench.
Anybody notice we have a little bit of depth?

Also worth adding, great execution of the halfcourt trap. This really opened up the game before half-time. Anybody who claims Scheyer is deficient on D needs to seriously look into some new eye wear.

He is perfect in this role. He looks like he is having a lot of fun, and a lot of this has to do with playing his natural PF position.

Regarding Zoubek, there were at least 2 fouls called against him that were terrible calls and must have made K furious. The first was on a charge that should of been a block, and another was dive for a loose ball that was a great hustle play.

wisteria
11-11-2008, 11:56 PM
Email was a rebounding machine tonight... He was so obsessed with the rebounds that he fought for it against Miles, which resulted in a travel call (iirc).




11 rebounds in 14 minutes for E-Will. Really? That can't be correct...

JBDuke
11-12-2008, 12:03 AM
He is perfect in this role. He looks like he is having a lot of fun, and a lot of this has to do with playing his natural PF position.

Regarding Zoubek, there were at least 2 fouls called against him that were terrible calls and must have made K furious. The first was on a charge that should of been a block, and another was dive for a loose ball that was a great hustle play.

Totally agree with you on those two calls. On that charge/block, Brian's left foot was planted so long, I think it grew roots...

Exiled_Devil
11-12-2008, 12:04 AM
He is perfect in this role. He looks like he is having a lot of fun, and a lot of this has to do with playing his natural PF position.

Regarding Zoubek, there were at least 2 fouls called against him that were terrible calls and must have made K furious. The first was on a charge that should of been a block, and another was dive for a loose ball that was a great hustle play.

That dive was a legit call - he yanked the other guy off his feet.

I don't think any starter played after the 13:00 minute mark in the second half. Ga Southern doesn't score 50 and we clear 100 if the starters played 3 more minutes.

mehmattski
11-12-2008, 12:07 AM
Email was a rebounding machine tonight... He was so obsessed with the rebounds that he fought for it against Miles, which resulted in a travel call (iirc).

By far E-Mail's best rebound came shortly after that one, when he nearly jumped over a GSU player's head in pursuit of a rebound off a Duke foul shot. His head nearly hit the bottom of the backboard, and his lay-in barely missed. Would have been the play of the night!

I liked the way our second team (Paulus-Williams-Pocius-Thomas-Plumlee) played in the second half. Pocius in particular has really improved on defense, and had a nice steal late in the game. All three freshmen were a bit shaky on defense (for example, on the play where G made the amazing block against the backboard, Plumlee had completely lost his man), but I think that's to be expected at this stage.

Overall team defense, though, was incredible, with the swarming Duke D we're all familiar with. Great games from Singler and Scheyer (would we expect anything less). On to MSG (with a pit stop against Rhode Island)!

phaedrus
11-12-2008, 12:07 AM
That dive was a legit call - he yanked the other guy off his feet.


Because the other guy was holding onto the ball while Brian yanked it away. That one looked like a bad call real-time, and when they showed it again on the scoreboard, it looked like a terrible call.

Bob Green
11-12-2008, 12:22 AM
Zoubek and Plumlee combined for 11 points and 10 rebounds in 28 minutes of playing time. Those are good numbers and the type of numbers we need against top level teams. With continued improvement as a result of playing more games, these two guys just might get it done in the post. Zoubek needs to play himself into game shape and Plumlee needs more experience.

Jumbo
11-12-2008, 12:54 AM
11 rebounds in 14 minutes for E-Will. Really? That can't be correct...

Better start out of the gates than last game...

Singler is simply an amazing player (Plus, I'm glad he figured out that pesky layup shot midway through the first half ;))....

Crazies sounded pretty good...

Jon Scheyer is looking really good early on this season. Can't wait to see what he will look like in March...

I'm about ready for some stiffer competition...

Elliot's 11 boards were the strangest stat in a really strange game. You can also tell how raw he is -- he's long and athletic (which explains the 11 boards), but has a ton of wasted movement. The four turnovers show that he still has a lot to learn.

Singler is fantastic. Scheyer was fantastic in every way except shooting -- some part of his jumper looks off and I can't quite place it. I don't think he's shooting at the top of his jump, and he may be getting a little sidespin on the ball. But he and Singler are just everywhere all the time, in the middle of every key play. They're fun to watch.

kinghoops
11-12-2008, 01:37 AM
free throw shooting MUST get better!

ACCBBallFan
11-12-2008, 03:34 AM
I liked the way our second team (Paulus-Williams-Pocius-Thomas-Plumlee) played in the second half. Pocius in particular has really improved on defense, and had a nice steal late in the game.

You can tell Marty is really improved on defense having taken two charges the prior night and a couple of blocks the best one of which was whistled.

Speaking of Marty's steal, even more surprising is Greg's 4 steals yesterday put him # 20 all time Duke steals leader with 145 ahead of Demarcus (who has very slightly more career minutes) and Nate James. Greg has another steal tonight.

I posted the details in Jumbo's +/- thread, so won't repeat it here:

http://www.dukebasketballreport.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12453

heyman25
11-12-2008, 05:01 AM
I liked the team effort. Kyle is outstanding as is Scheyer. Lance and David are so much better this season than last. Lance's shooting form at the line is bad and needs major work. We need Lance to become accurate on the line 1 for 8 is unacceptable. Team defense was good. Paulus keeps backing the ball away from the goal in our half court offense, not a good habit. He was shooting better tonight and heard from K has a few nagging injury issues in the off season. That could be why he isn't as sharp as he can be.Scheyer was not shooting well. All of his 3 pointers were good looks Only 1 for 5.

Williams was great on the boards,but his handle is shaky. Behind the back turnover must have been embarassing.Plumlee will get better, I can see improving talent.Zoubek must have small hands. He can not hang on to rebounds.He needs to work a lot harder and get better at fundamentals.Pocius was solid and may see more time than the skeptics think.Williams has a greater upside,but Marty is sounder over all.We do have depth this year. Looking forward to Rhode Island.

Dukie4Life
11-12-2008, 06:59 AM
I'm just really excited to see somewhat of an inside game with Zoubek, Plumlee and Thomas! With those three in the middle and the 1,2 and 3 spots all getting rebounds like they are colds this is going to mean a lot of fast break layups and spectacular dunks from almost all!

I don't remember the last time (maybe the Dunleavy years) When we actually had a solid bench to go to! I'm ready to get the season really in the swing of things b/c I think that this years team is going to be something special!

On a random side note does anyone know what Greg Paulus did to his knee? I saw him this summer at NCCU and didn't notice anything not even a limp.

GTHCGTH!!!

pfrduke
11-12-2008, 07:43 AM
free throw shooting MUST get better!

In the three games leading up to this (Presbyterian and the two exhibitions), we shot almost 80% combined from the line (51/64). Tonight's performance was an aberration - we're a team that will shoot much better than 50% on a regular basis. Probably not 80% either, but should be in the mid 70s, which in this day and age is a solid free throw shooting team.

Wander
11-12-2008, 07:44 AM
You can tell Marty is really improved on defense having taken two charges the prior night and a couple of blocks the best one of which was whistled.

Marty has actually always been the best player on our team at taking charges, interestingly enough.

I said this before, but Singler is the next Redick/Hansbrough type player in the ACC. I still want Plumlee to be good enough where he can start, but I no longer think "well, we're playing 4 on 5 on offense" when Lance comes in the game. He looks like he can be a very capable backup forward (McClure too).

By the way, good job to Jumbo on calling the Scheyer setting up plays from the off-guard spot thing. That appears to be exactly what we're doing and last night it worked quite well.

hoseman
11-12-2008, 07:52 AM
11 rebounds in 14 minutes for E-Will. Really?
I'm about ready for some stiffer competition...

Hope you guys are not superstitious.

Saratoga2
11-12-2008, 08:31 AM
Duke's experienced lineups were formidable defensively and would have given any opponent fits. The additional good news is that Smith played a much more controlled game offensively. With Smith, I thought we got more break opportunities, whereas with Paulus, I thought we got locked more into the setup halfcourt game.

The free throw shooting was poor to say the least. Was Johnny Dawkins the free throw coach? The guys not only were missing, but their form was way off. That needs attention before we play a competitive team.

While others are extolling Pocius game, and he did score well and take a couple of charges, I also notice that people he was guarding started hitting 3 point shots. That didn't happen when Scheyer was guarding the same players. Maybe Marty is giving too much room.

To me the most interesting player, because he is new, is Williams. He is long, quick and can handle the ball and score. He is very raw at this point and apt to try the razzle dazzle plays you might see in an all-star game. If he learns to be more disciplined and lets the opportunities come to him, he could be a star later this year. Right now he tends to dribble too much and look for his shot too often.

Virtually everyone was able to contribute last night and that had to be good for team morale and for player development. On to the RI game.

greybeard
11-12-2008, 09:36 AM
Singler is fantastic. Scheyer was fantastic in every way except shooting -- some part of his jumper looks off and I can't quite place it. I don't think he's shooting at the top of his jump, and he may be getting a little sidespin on the ball.

My guess, too much knee bend, way too much, which combines with slight bend of the torso from the hips forward, that makes an easy, smooth transfer of energy from the floor through his body to his arms as they straighten out of whack.

Scheyer, as would anyone I think, has trouble recovering from the depth of the knee bend--the legs do not straighten easily, smoothly, or all the way (not to hyperextension, but almost straight), the weight does not shift to the balls of his feet to start the movement up and forward. That, along with the body bend, makes a smooth and well timed delivery a real crap shoot--no connection between the start of the shot from the floor and the arms delivering the ball.

This is not entirely new for Scheyer. It often materialized when he was tired his freshman year and also some last year at the end of games when he was doing a lot, a way lot, on the defensive end and defensive boards.

This new three point line might be the culprit with him. The solution? What am I, some kind of expert?

BTW, I saw a marked improvement of the littles as a group in getting the ball inside, a marked improvement. The improvement is that the ball is coming quickly, they see it they throw it. They are also throwing it high and letting bigs make catches, which they are doing.

The best pass I have seen a Duke player make in the modern era to a big occurred in this game. Marty to Zoubs near the end. Zoubs seemed to be in a crowd, Marty got it to Zoubs with the touch usually reserved by Duke guys for a shot. I mean there was touch on this pass, which had an arch that picked up on where Z could move easily and snatch it. Z scored the ball after making a super catch in a crowd. That is what makes playing inside FUN.

I really liked what I saw from Marty. I really liked what I saw from Lance. I really liked what I saw from McClure. I really liked what I saw from Williams, and here I do mean really--really as in this kid might be the best player on this team, really.

That one hand snatch of a rebound that was behind him says it all about Singler.

The guy who seems the most important to this team, however, remains Paulus. Paulus' acceptance of his new role leaves me speechless.

quickgtp
11-12-2008, 09:40 AM
I think we will start seeing a "5 by committee" for a while, well, at least until either Zoubek, Plumlee or Thomas set themself apart from the other two through strong play. Some other notes of the game that stood out to me:

- Lance is aggressive and looking to score the ball. He looks stronger and more willing to get in and bang in the post. Outside of his FT shooting I think he had a great game. I am excited to see if he can keep this up.

- Singler was the man again. He looks like a man amongst boys so far this season.

- GH can do what he wants, pretty much when he wants to. I am not sure what is holding him back so far.

- Email can rebound. I know it was later in the game against "lesser" competition, but this kid is not afraid to get in there and hit the boards!

- We still lack a true drive and dish PG. I thought we would see Nolan drive more and dish, but maybe K wants him and Paulus to manage the game more than anything.

I am looking forward to playing tougher competition so we can see where we stand!

dukelifer
11-12-2008, 10:02 AM
Yesterday's game got me thinking. What's the difference between Lance Thomas and Psycho T? Free throw shooting. Yesterday Lance showed a lot of promise. He played with energy- he went strong to the hoop - he used his new found strength and when he did not score he got fouled. But in the end though- he left 7 points on the line. Hansblah makes a living at the line- good teams make a living at the line. If Thomas is going to play to be a scorer- he needs to hit his free throws. Duke needs to be a good free throw shooting team- always- not just in games where it is important. This team is not good enough to give points away. Ok, now I feel better.

Other than the horrific showing on the line- the team played much better on O and D than the previous game. Henderson showed a bit more life. He needs to use his jumper a bit more. It looks improved. Smith is still a bit shaky handling the ball- but brings a lot of energy and quickness. Singler of course is just at another level - mostly his bball IQ which just a hair lower than Scheyer's who sees the play before it happens. Duke has talent for sure- but we will learn a lot more in the next two weeks.

should_be_working
11-12-2008, 10:16 AM
Everyone played better. There was much more ball movement on the offensive side and the defense was not only solid but made a lot of big plays that led to easy points. Take out the bad free throw shooting, and a few minutes early in the first half, and this was a near perfect performance. Love the depth, love the energy, and I'm especially loving the play of Thomas, Marty, and McClure - these guys could be the key. This game was so fun to watch, much more so than the Presbyterian game. Go Duke!

Think Williams gets in trouble for that behind the back passing attempt that ended up in the stands - coach K didn't look happy about that one.

mapei
11-12-2008, 10:19 AM
The team defense denying passing opportunities - always a Duke trademark - was superb last night. Every good option was smothered several times, forcing the handler to attempt to create on his own.

EW looks very raw to me, but the athleticism is impressive. I also like the potential I see in Plumlee - he's got the strong body we need in that position and moves really well. Agree with everybody else about the improvement we see in several key subs.

Other than FTs, this game was much easier to feel good about than the previous one.

davekay1971
11-12-2008, 10:47 AM
Mainly echoing thoughts from several other people. The game was reassuring on several levels. The defense was probably even better than in the Presby game, the offense seemed smoother and to play at a higher level of energy and, simultaneously, more relaxed. It's clear that Singler, Scheyer, and Paulus are known commodities that we can rely on being productive most every game. Singler is a superstar already. He'll be on the all-ACC team at the end of the year. Henderson looked a little more aggressive, but there's plenty of room to go - he's got every tool - a 3 point shot, a mid range shot, quickness, hops, ability to get to the rim - all he needs to do is decide to take over the game. Thomas is a revelation this year. McClure is going to contribute when he's in there. Pocius looks better. Smith is going to bring a fantastic skill set to the PG position. And both Zoubek and Plumlee were very active on the low post. Plumlee has endless upside. He may or may not become a force in the low post this year, but he's going to be a very solid contributor probably late this year, and then down the line. He was a big steal for us.

Kedsy
11-12-2008, 11:25 AM
Yesterday's game got me thinking. What's the difference between Lance Thomas and Psycho T? Free throw shooting.

Well, that's one difference...

BlueintheFace
11-12-2008, 11:35 AM
Yesterday's game got me thinking. What's the difference between Lance Thomas and Psycho T? Free throw shooting.

This is an interesting game:

NPOY
Final Four
Footwork
FT Shooting
RPG
PPG
Body Control
...

But, Lance's fg% is a lot better, so I suppose they are about even

mr. synellinden
11-12-2008, 11:53 AM
First, Singler. A few weeks ago I wondered why some of the pre-season analyses of Duke seemed to overlook him because I felt very confident that he would be our best player this season and there wouldn't be much of a debate about it.

http://www.dukebasketballreport.com/forums/showpost.php?p=209507&postcount=13

There was a lot of talk about Henderson as an All-ACC/All-American and Miles Plumlee exceeding expectations and possibly starting and how Nolan Smith was the most improved player on the team and had the best summer of any Blue Devil, but not as much about Singler, who had one of the best freshman seasons in Duke history and who it seemed obvious to me was going to be the go-to guy this season and the one who would be able to take us deep into the tourney.

Well, after two games - even though against relatively inferior competition - this seems very clear to me. Singler is spectacular and unique. I find myself watching him move without the ball on offense and focusing him on defense the way I did when Shane was a junior and senior. And I think he can be that good of a player if he stays beyond this year. Try focusing on him on offense for a few possessions and notice how he is almost always in the right place and how perfectly he moves without the ball. Yes, I have a bit of a sports crush on him but it's warranted based on how good of a basketball player he is.

Second - McClure looks really healthy and it's great to see. If he remains healthy he is going to be a very valuable defensive weapon for us this year and could be the "glue" guy, as people like to say. I could see him having a role like Nate James in 2001, although it is clear that he can't shoot the 3 like Coach Nate. But I love to see his explosvieness off the floor, which is a clear sign that he as healthy as he has been at Duke.

Zoubek is struggling terribly in my opinion. I can't sugar coat it. He seems to be moving his feet a little better on defense but other than that, he does not seem to have improved and doesn't, at least currently, look capable of making contributions at an ACC caliber level. I know he is coming off an injury and that may be having an impact, but right now he is slow and sluggish on offense, a liability on defense and seems to be the third best post option we have.

Thomas has to spend every minute at practice shooting free throws. You can't have a guy like that who is going to get most of his offense close to the basket (putbacks, dunks and layups) not be able to shoot at least 65%. He will just get hacked every time. Otherwise, Thomas looks significantly improved to the point where he can make consistent valuable contributions offensively and defensively.

Scheyer shot as poorly as I've seen him shoot while still having a very solid all-around game. I feel most confident when the ball is in Scheyer's hands and I think the offense should start with him as much as possible. However, this leads to my biggest concern about this team after watching two games:

PG - Smith and Paulus have had very good games. Smith is showing why he is starting and Paulus is showing what a great leader and teammate he is - coming off the bench after being a 3 year starter. However, we still have the same problem we have had for the past four years - and I believe it's the single most important reason why we have underachieved in the NCAA tournament, and it will be an obstacle to a deep tourney run again this year unless something changes. That is, we still do not have a point guard that can consistently break down a defense and create easy scoring opportunities. Paulus never was and never will be that kind of point guard. Smith, at least right now, is not that good of a ball-handler and penetrator to create offense that way. And while Scheyer has the ability at times, he is likewise not a playmaking guard in the Chris Duhon, Jason Williams, Bobby Hurley or even Will Avery sense. It is no coincidence that we haven't won a national title without a player like that. That is why during the past several years we have been left wondering after NCAA tournament losses why we shot so many three pointers or shot so poorly from the outside or why we struggled against teams we were favored to beat. Close tournament games usually comes down to three things that can generally be grouped as Easier Scoring - who is getting to the line and making free throws (when you need a score, can you get to the basket and score or get fouled); who is winning the rebound battle (getting offensive rebounds/putbacks and preventing offensive rebounds/putbacks); and finally, who is best able to create easy scoring chances by breaking down the defense.

My fear is that until Duke has a point guard who can give us an advantage in that third category, we are going to be in trouble in March. From what I saw in the first two games, this is still a problem area for us. Maybe Henderson is the guy who can do it. Maybe Scheyer will be the point guard late in close games and he will be able to to it with consistency. Maybe Smith has it in him and we haven't seen it yet. But that is what I will be looking at most closely as the team develops over the course of the season.

dukelifer
11-12-2008, 12:09 PM
This is an interesting game:

NPOY
Final Four
Footwork
FT Shooting
RPG
PPG
Body Control
...

But, Lance's fg% is a lot better, so I suppose they are about even
Just a joke folks. But the idea is that Lance could really boost his numbers if he works on his throws.

yancem
11-12-2008, 12:40 PM
Did anyone else catch the female announcer comparing Elliot Williams' body to Jason Williams' body? I have no idea what she was thinking. I would compare Elliot's body more to Dawkins or Phil Henderson. He might not be quite that skinny but he is not nearly as muscular as Jason.

On comparing Elliot's game to previous players, I think that Ricky Price might be the best comparison. They are both extremely athletic but, at least as freshman seem to have a difficult getting their hands, feet and brain moving at the same speed. Elliot's two traveling violations last night were very similar to the type of mistakes Price seemed to constantly make. Hopefully as Elliot adjusts to the speed of the college game and gets more comfortable with the offense he will sync things up better. He certainly seems to have the talent.

ncexnyc
11-12-2008, 12:42 PM
Yesterday I said I was concerned about our turnovers and our 3 pt. shooting percentage, so the kids go out last night and do a complete 180.

After two games it would appear that Kyle is the man.

Jon's shot was off last night, but he does so many other things for the team we can live with a bad shooting night from him.

Lance has really been impressive, as he seems very confident this year. If it weren't for his poor free throw shooting last night, he would have had a very nice stat line.

Nolan and Greg were solid at the point, with Nolan continuing to show the speed many of us felt was needed at that position.

Brian played alot better and much of that had to do with his ability to stay on the floor.

David was very active again and even had some offensive, which is essential if he wants to get some pt.

Henderson's performance should quiet those who questioned his play on Monday.

Marty had a nice game, but I still don't see where his minutes will come from.

Olek wasn't much of a factor.

Elliot was a beast on the boards, granted it was in garbage time and he needs to stop showboating.

Miles looks very smooth and I echo the sentiment, that we got a steal when he decided to come to Duke.

I loved the pressure d, something we can really use due to our depth.

I really enjoyed the way we pushed the ball with those looooong outlet passes. Hope to see us continue that this weekend.

Aside from the lousy free throw shooting a very solid game.

Gooch
11-12-2008, 01:17 PM
I echo the positive vibe from other posters...tonight was much more fun to watch than last night. Seems silly, but I really liked that we dunked the ball a lot more (including two monsters from McClure!). And many of the flushes came from interior passes or offensive boards. I'm really excited to see this team get better through the season.

trinity92
11-12-2008, 01:24 PM
To me the most interesting player, because he is new, is Williams. He is long, quick and can handle the ball and score. He is very raw at this point and apt to try the razzle dazzle plays you might see in an all-star game. If he learns to be more disciplined and lets the opportunities come to him, he could be a star later this year. Right now he tends to dribble too much and look for his shot too often.

I'm also very intrigued by Williams. Seems to me the problems you point out are a result of him having the ball in his hands a lot. I don't know if it's just an accident of lineups in the late game when he's been getting most of his minutes, but EW has been playing a lot of PG, which isn't his natural position. I'm afraid having him as playmaker this early could lead to some very bad habits later on. I hope he's not looking ahead to the NBA where his size dictates he'll have to develop PG skills. He has plenty of time to develop those aspects of his game. I'd really like to see him in the game with Smith or Paulus so he can play his natural SG position, at least this season, or at very least, early this season.

Great to see LT active and successful inside. He used to have serious problems making too many shot fakes but seems to have cut those out of his game. I think his offensive success this season is a direct result. There was one possession last night where he reverted to his old self and coughed the ball up. He needs to go up strong and he'll be fine.

Plumlee was very smooth and shows great hands. I continue to be very excited about his game and ability to contribute right away.

Zoubek shows improvement but god almighty can we get him a hand transplant? What's the point of having unfettered access to Duke Med Ctr. if we can't cure him of what ails him?

Much more fun to watch this game. Can't wait to see our boys live at the Garden next Thursday

Saratoga2
11-12-2008, 02:48 PM
Did anyone else catch the female announcer comparing Elliot Williams' body to Jason Williams' body? I have no idea what she was thinking. I would compare Elliot's body more to Dawkins or Phil Henderson. He might not be quite that skinny but he is not nearly as muscular as Jason.

On comparing Elliot's game to previous players, I think that Ricky Price might be the best comparison. They are both extremely athletic but, at least as freshman seem to have a difficult getting their hands, feet and brain moving at the same speed. Elliot's two traveling violations last night were very similar to the type of mistakes Price seemed to constantly make. Hopefully as Elliot adjusts to the speed of the college game and gets more comfortable with the offense he will sync things up better. He certainly seems to have the talent.

Did others see the game prior to Duke where Jay was the color commentator.

CLT Devil
11-12-2008, 03:07 PM
Did others see the game prior to Duke where Jay was the color commentator.

I thought Jay did a decent job as the color guy. I don't think he can talk fast enough to be the play-by-play however.

I wasn't able to attend this game, but my friend who was there said he was sitting all by himself, and he's got front row tix. Did anyone else see any of this? I didnt check but there might be another thread about this. It's hard for some folks to get to a 9:00 game if they have to drive more than a couple of hours, but I always make sure the tickets are being used.

Overall very good game. I'm excited about the athleticism Plumlee can give us...he had one putback that really showed how quick he is for a big man. Some posters on these boards have gotten onto me about being too critical on Zoubek, so I will admit he did have a decent (for him) game.

allenmurray
11-12-2008, 03:39 PM
I wasn't able to attend this game, but my friend who was there said he was sitting all by himself, and he's got front row tix. Did anyone else see any of this? I didnt check but there might be another thread about this. It's hard for some folks to get to a 9:00 game if they have to drive more than a couple of hours, but I always make sure the tickets are being used.


I didn't notice a tremendous amount of empty seats. However, I did notice that many of the empty ones were in choice locations.

I was there courtesy of a friend who NEVER lets unused seats go empty.

CLT Devil
11-12-2008, 03:54 PM
Thats good to hear. His seats are basically above the tunnel where the players go after the game and said there were empties around him. I always make sure mine are used, and its never a problem giving them away here in Charlotte. I just dont want K to have any reason to complain about the crowd/attendance...

dukeENG2003
11-12-2008, 04:07 PM
I think K's complaints are with empty seats BELOW the rail, which there were a lot of for the exhibitions. Thankfully it hasn't been a big problem so far in the regular season.

elvis14
11-12-2008, 05:05 PM
I didn't notice a tremendous amount of empty seats. However, I did notice that many of the empty ones were in choice locations.

I was there courtesy of a friend who NEVER lets unused seats go empty.

I disagree. I noticed many empty seats. I was there with a friend and I remember saying to him that I've never seen it so empty (small sample since I haven't been to many games). I also felt that the crowd was the most quiet I've heard. Not that we didn't have our loud moments but overall it was a low key group.

I'm not concerned, it's early and GS isn't exactly a strong opponent. I was just happy to be there :-)

greybeard
11-12-2008, 07:05 PM
1. If Zoubs continues to make good catches, especially on passes up high, he will score the ball. Good footwork is nice, but it is not essential. Right now you might not see quick feet from Zoubek, but he understands momentum. If teammates see where Zoubek's balance (imablance) at a particular moment will allow him to move and pass it accordingly, he will be effective.

2. That pass EW threw on the break, the one that almost went out of the gym, hey, that was something. No, he doesn't need to tone it down. I think that he can make that kind of play, and with the receivers this team has in the open floor, wow! I also wouldn't worry about a couple of walks. This kid is smooth, and is very, very hungry to show. I'm really looking forward to seeing more of him.

3. I'll say it again, Marty impressed me.

4. I like Paulus from the new three line. From what little I've seen, I think that the new line is going to deemphasize the three ball. When Paulus is in, not an issue for him. If this team needs to catch up, look for Paulus to be on the floor.

5. Plumee got to a lot of good places on offense at good times. Seems to have soft hands. That is very encouraging. I expect him to draw fouls.

6. Was I the only one who thought that Lance had to be feeling uncomfortable in that stance of his on the foul line. Left leg way wide and back. Heck, I was uncomfortable just looking at him even though I was reclining on my favorite couch. Strange stance; haven't seen that from him before; let's hope I don't again. I'd love to see him finishing off the glass; seems to have the feel for the grace of such finishes, as opposed to the force of dunks. I'm a grace man myself. Dunks in many instances just speak to me of a lack of confidence, a lack of true feel for the game. I think Lance has true feel. Don't ask me why, I just do.

grossbus
11-12-2008, 07:31 PM
"we clear 100 if the starters played 3 more minutes."

or somebody, anybody makes some foul shots...

DukieInBrasil
11-12-2008, 07:45 PM
The 3 guys that are kinda platooning the 5 did well last night. Z, LT and Plumlee scored 16 and grabbed 14rebs on 6-12 FG. That trio would have scored 20 if LT and Plumlee had just shot 50% FT. 2 blocks, a steal and an assist in 41 combined minutes gives our "5" a nice stat-stuffing balance. They all got just about even time, about 1/3 of the available minutes for each.
To complement those 3, Dave and Olek chipped in extra 6 pts 8 rebs and 4 assists.
And the main presence of our frountcourt, Singler, played very well, again. Our frontcourt scored 41 pts, grabbed 30 boards and handed out 7 assists, as well as 3 blocks and 2steals. Wow. Is our frontcourt still a weakness?

TNDukeFan
11-12-2008, 08:17 PM
I swear, I try to be objective about officiating, but watching the zebras work on BZ is going to make me a conspiracy theorist. He NEVER gets calls - not last year, not the year before that, and not so far this time. Even the announcer last night said the refs must be going on past history. I really wonder whether subconsciously they expect him to foul - or travel -every time.

slower
11-12-2008, 09:10 PM
I really liked what I saw from Williams, and here I do mean really--really as in this kid might be the best player on this team, really.

Come on. That's just obviously not true, by pretty much any empirical or objective measure. Singler is the best player on this team. Not to mention that he is a freaking WARRIOR.

DoubleDuke Dad
11-12-2008, 09:53 PM
I swear, I try to be objective about officiating, but watching the zebras work on BZ is going to make me a conspiracy theorist. He NEVER gets calls - not last year, not the year before that, and not so far this time. Even the announcer last night said the refs must be going on past history. I really wonder whether subconsciously they expect him to foul - or travel -every time.

It is also getting to Brian. In the beginning of the game shortly after he was called for his first phantom foul, he intercepted the ball from the player he was guarding on defense. The player then tried to grab the ball back and Brian reached for it and the ball went out of bounds. When the refs whistle blew you could see by the expression on his face and his gesture that he though he had been called for his second foul. It must be very hard to play if you begin to think that every call is going to go against you.

ice-9
11-12-2008, 11:26 PM
It's a good win, but there were two things that concerned me:

- Our half court offense stalled many times, especially at the start of the game. Even though we were up by 10-15 points early, it should've been a LOT more than that. Good things did seem to have happen when the ball went through Scheyer, so hopefully that continues to happen, but the offense isn't really there yet. We're not clicking. It's still November though so it's early.

- Where in Cameron is the Henderson we know and love pre-wrist injury? He's just too quiet offensively. Defensively he was phenomenal, but offensively I didn't see any of the dominating we've all been hoping for. Did he even take/make a drive-stop-mid-jumper? The way things are going it seems like Nolan will be the guy replacing the points lost by Demarc's graduation.

It seems that Henderson, like McRoberts, may not have the mindset to be an offensive juggernaut (last season's NCAA tourney being the exception). Which is OK as long as we have someone else to step up. Now Elliot, on the other hand, seems like the kind of guy who does have that desire to dominate (offensively)...once his skills and knowledge catch up, watch out!

greybeard
11-12-2008, 11:39 PM
Come on. That's just obviously not true, by pretty much any empirical or objective measure. Singler is the best player on this team. Not to mention that he is a freaking WARRIOR.

What part of "might" did you not understand? I saw the kid once, last night. I am really intrigued by what I saw. Need to see a lot more of him before he'd go past a number of other guys before he gets to Kyle, who I agree is way, way out there.

I'm just saying that I won't be surprised if he turns out to be a terrific talent.

Bob Green
11-13-2008, 04:52 AM
I'm just saying that I won't be surprised if he turns out to be a terrific talent.

I agree with you 100 percent and will actually take it one step further: I will be suprised if Elliot Williams doesn't turn out to be a terrific talent. Once he adjusts to the college game and gains a solid knowledge of Coach K's system, Elliot is going to be a star. It will happen next year for sure and could easily happen during the second half of this year.

slower
11-13-2008, 07:20 AM
What part of "might" did you not understand? I saw the kid once, last night. I am really intrigued by what I saw. Need to see a lot more of him before he'd go past a number of other guys before he gets to Kyle, who I agree is way, way out there.

I'm just saying that I won't be surprised if he turns out to be a terrific talent.

Oh, I understand the word "might". Your original post was just a bit ambiguous as to tense. It appeared that you were speaking in the present tense and saying that Williams MIGHT (currently) be better than Singler, which I don't think is true. But thanks for the clarification.

I agree that Williams is a talent. It should be fun to watch him progress. Singler, as many others have stated, looks like a man among boys out there.

hq2
11-13-2008, 10:54 AM
I don't know if other people are noticing it, but I think we may have a problem with actually having too much talent, as in not enough P.T. for everybody. K is going to have trouble getting enough minutes for all the people who want them. The team will have their share of blowouts where everybody plays, but in the closer games, it might be different. Without a good distributing P.G., the inclination is going to be for everybody to try to get their own shot, and with a lot of guys shuffling in and out, getting offensive continuity can also be tough.
K is really going to have to work to develop roles for players, and get them to accept them (Paulus and Henderson come to mind). How well he does that will determine if the team can make a big push come March, or fall apart in the clutch (see LSU game two years ago) due to lack of good team offense.

gw67
11-13-2008, 10:56 AM
As one who has not seen the Devils this year, I appreciate the post game comments. After reading the comments for both games and doing a quick review of the stats, I have the following impressions:

• Singler appears to be moving in the direction of becoming a Mark Alarie – type player who can provide 15-20 ppg and 7-8 rpg.
• Scheyer has had two cold shooting games but it appears that he is the “point guard” in the half court offense (sort of like Spanarkel on the Gminski teams). He takes care of the ball, looks for others and initiates action. According to the posts, he is also playing good defense.
• Smith may be the best offensive player on the Devils. He can hit from the outside, drive to the hoop, is fearless on fast breaks and is excellent from the foul line. My only concern is that passing the ball appeared to be an afterthought last year and based on his assist totals so far, it still may be.
• I’m surprised that Henderson has not stood out against inferior competition. I still expect him to have a very good year but it is not clear whether he will be a star like Darrell Griffith (Louisville) or just a good player like Jeff Trepagnier (USC). Both Griffith and Trepagnier were 6-4 players who could jump out of the gym.

gw67