MBB: Duke-BC ACCT QF pre-game/in-game thread

[roywhite]

Looking forward to this one very much.

BC is a quality opponent that beat us up in Bean-Town with good ball movement and excellent shooting. That was the game prior to our lineup changes; this should be a good reading on our defensive effectiveness against such a team.

BC features Tyrese Rice and a number of other capable players, including Trapani.

Some key things to check:
Will Duke start out strong?
How much will Nolan Smith be used?
Will BC copy some of the defensive tactics that UNC used against Gerald Henderson?
How deep will our bench go?

[Rudy]

It will be interesting to see the big boys play today. The G dome is a cavern, though with a big black curtain about mid field, they cut it down some. Still the space behind the baskets is much bigger than basketball arenas and this will probably affect shooting. Thursday as usual was a fairly sparse crowd, but even the pep bands can't fill the place with sound.

I did not check box scores for actual percentages, but some usually reliable shooters were off while others seemed to do OK. Oglesby of Clemson put up at least 3 air balls. Vasquez was not shooting well from outside and got most of his points on drives McClinton obviously did not shoot well, under 10 for the game I think. Rice did not shoot well but passed very well. OTOH, Clinch (?) of Ga Tech shot really well. He really didn't want his college career to end yet. And Hayes of Maryland shot well.

[CMS2478]

Although I am not sure this will happen........in a perfect world we would jump out to a big lead and Coach K would use the bench a lot and we could rest the starters for the next game. But BC did beat us and I don't predict a blowout, but hopefully Singler, Scheyer, and Henderson are not forced to log 37-38 minutes each. I think the key to these tournaments, aside from playing well and winning, is to make sure you utilize your bench and rest key players any chance you get. But first and foremost we have to win and if that means the big 3 pulling that many minutes then that's what we have to do.

[roywhite]

I'll bump this, so it doesn't fall to page two. :(

[BlueintheFace]

Looks like we will have Nolan. Glad to hear that.

[Bob Green]

The loss to BC was the game prior to Elliot Williams breaking into the starting line-up. I'm interested in seeing how effective EW is guarding Rice. My second focus will be watching Nolan Smith in his first game back. Smith will probably play limited minutes but it will be crucial for him to play steady in his return. A healthy and confident Smith on the court alongside Williams could cause major problems for our opponent's primary ball handlers.

[jjasper0729]

I'm interested to see how much switching we do where our smaller players get caught up inside. That's been one of our flaws with this line up and our primary and secondary help need to rotate/respond a little faster I think

[jamos14]

I am interested in seeing how well Duke plays defense against an improved Boston College team. They looked solid last night against Virginia. I think two players who made a big impact against UVA were Sanders & Southern. I know our #1 priority is to shut down Rice but it seems they have more weapons now.

It will also be a great challenge for Email to guard Rice and hopefully Nolan will come in contribute solid defensive and offensive minutes.

I am very excited for this game and to see this new lineup now that it is post-season.

GO DUKE!!!!

[huied]

I'm pretty pumped up about this game. I know this new line up has worked well for us overall, but I'd love to see us lock teams down defensively again. It seems like the past couple of games have been us outscoring the other guys, rather than playing great defense. That said, I love what I've seen offensively recently.

Is there an official announcement as to whether Nolan will play or not? The last thing I read was that he was going through light practices, but not sure if he's a gametime decision or not.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

This game will be a good test for the five forward line up. The quality of any rest they got between the last game of the regular season and tonight's game may be a bit of a factor. I'm hoping to see a very refreshed team use speed and skill effectively against a BC team known for their tough physical play. It's a good thing BC played a late game yesterday.

[DukieInBrasil]

I think BC may have just played themselves into the tourney with their 1st round win. They have a winning record in the ACC 9-7 and a win in a tourney and wins over UNC and Duke and maybe some others. They´re definitely a good squad but i think we should be able to handle them partly due to the rest factor.
I think Duke wins 76-70.

[chrishoke]

BC will be supremely confident and will be a very tough out - this one will go down to the wire.

[AtlBluRew]

I just tuned in .. why is Henderson on the bench so early?

[jv001]

Two quick fouls. One was sort of stupid, well it was a hustle play. So I take that back. Go Duke1

[chrishoke]

2 fouls in less than 1 minute.

[gep]

2 fouls in less than 1 minute.

Well... if Duke can hold off BC for now... G can get some "rest":D

looks like defense is holding up?

[roywhite]

So much for your 58-59% FG shooting, BC.

Not this game.

[Greg_Newton]

It's sure great to have that defensive intensity back. I think Lance looks a ton better today than he did against Carolina. He's getting a lot of tips and boards on the offensive end and playing above the rim. Great to have Nolan back too, even if he's still shakin' off the cobwebs a little bet. Now if only G would make a jab step before he drives and the threes would start falling, we'd be in business.

Edit: Yeesh, maybe I spoke too soon...

[gep]

seems like Duke generally has this "late first half" lull, where the opponent catches up a bit:rolleyes:

[_Gary]

Unfortunately the blown Smith layup after a great defensive play has turned into THE PLAY of the first half. We should have been up 19-9 with a ton of momentum and instead they come back and make it 17-11 and then whittle it all the way to 19-17 in their favor. Hope we can get a little offensive flurry here in the last 3 minutes of the first half and take a little lead going into the half.

Gary

[jv001]

Man can we shoot any worse than this? We look lost out there. Thank God for Kyle. Nolan looks like he's out of game shape. Missed wide open layup. Come on guys..Go Duke!

[karmacoma]

Turnovers, futility from 3, missed front-ends of 1-and-1's. And still only down 5. Let's go Duke!

[quickgtp]

This is ridiculous. Time to look forward to the NCAA tourney.

Ok so now that I feel better......we need to turn the switch on soon, or this game is over.

[dukebballcamper90-91]

since the missed layup by nolan, we have really been.. in charles barkley's voice...turble

[InSpades]

I absolutely hate when a coach takes a player out of the game for extended time after getting 2 early fouls. I'm not really sure what it accomplishes (aside from helping the other team win the game). It happened in the Wake-Maryland game, they took out Johnson early in the 1st half and he had 0 impact for the 1st half of the game. The same thing is happening with Gerald. The problem with foul trouble is that you may end up playing w/out the player. So to solve that you... voluntarily sit him? It just makes no sense. Obviously you rest them if they are tired, but you can't just sit them on the bench. It only hurts your team. Gah!

[_Gary]

Good gosh that was depressing. I fully expected Duke to come out and beat the you know what out of this team. I just cannot believe what I am seeing. If they don't win this game, and again tomorrow, I think it bodes very bad things to come next weekend. Honest. I just can't believe they are playing this poorly. Am I the only one shocked? Am I the only one suddenly very worried after feeling so, so good about this team leading up to this tournament?

[Sixthman]

Mentally weak down the stretch. My guess is these guys get the full treatment at half-time. How they play in the second half will say as much about what kind of men they are -- or will be -- as anything else.

[Virginian]

Well, Singler came to play. Everyone else is just stinking up the place. That means that whenever Kyle gets the ball he draws three defenders. Could be a long second half. G better get his act back together.

[MarkD83]

(caps are intentional i am trying to shout all the way to atlanta)

wake up and start playing ball!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[roywhite]

Things just went to pot the last 10 minutes of the half.

Missed shots, turnovers, fast breaks by BC, giving up 2nd and 3rd shots...ugh...

Let's see what we can do in the second half.

[dukeballer2294]

I knew this was going to happen the whole first half the announcers are going omg BC has 2 pts through 9 min at the same time im thinking ya but we only have 11

[DukieInKansas]

Does anyone have a radio link? I can't stand the ESPN announcers any more.

[Wildling]

No sense of urgency, and going through the motions like it's a walk through before the actual game.

This is not what I expected going into this game.

[jv001]

Well... if Duke can hold off BC for now... G can get some "rest":D

looks like defense is holding up?

Looks like we're using this game as a scrimmage and we don't really care if we win or not (getting ready for the NCAA's). Seems like that's the case by Coach K's demeanor on the bench. Not very excited. I,ve heard many say this team takes on the demeanor of their coach (Wake game). Well if that's the case he better get into the game. Go Duke!

[ChrisP]

I absolutely hate when a coach takes a player out of the game for extended time after getting 2 early fouls. I'm not really sure what it accomplishes (aside from helping the other team win the game). It happened in the Wake-Maryland game, they took out Johnson early in the 1st half and he had 0 impact for the 1st half of the game. The same thing is happening with Gerald. The problem with foul trouble is that you may end up playing w/out the player. So to solve that you... voluntarily sit him? It just makes no sense. Obviously you rest them if they are tired, but you can't just sit them on the bench. It only hurts your team. Gah!

Umm...we built a pretty nice lead and were in control of the game with G on the bench so I am gonna have to disagree with you there. You win games in the 2nd half, not the first, so I'll defer to the coach on this one.

Obviously, it would have been nice to have had Gerald available (and maybe we would have built a bigger lead with him in there) but even so, I thought we played pretty well for about the first 12-14 minutes and just missed some wide-open shots. Scheyer had two 3's that were like halfway down and popped out. We should have had at least a 12-15 point lead fairly early in the game and then our "O" just went in the tank BIG TIME. The mental lapses are what worry me at this point.

[CAT Blue Devil]

Does anyone have a radio link? I can't stand the ESPN announcers any more.

I am just waiting for Patrick to flash back to calling the Maryland game. Someone needs to check his glasses.

[Bob Green]

Does anyone have a radio link? I can't stand the ESPN announcers any more.

www.wsfl.com

[Coballs]

I was really fired up for this game all day...now, not so much. Our games against BC seem to follow a similar pattern. Duke jumps out to a double digit lead, then BC always comes back. This is not a team that we should be losing to twice in a season. Let's hope the team wakes up and realizes this too.

[Bob Green]

It is time for Coach K to make some halftime adjustments. And we need some shots to fall. Oh well, lots of basketball left to play before this game is over.

[Greg_Newton]

We should have been up 19-9 with a ton of momentum and instead they come back and make it 17-11 and then whittle it all the way to 19-17 in their favor.
Gary

You know, as savvy as we play 95% of the time, I've noticed we often fail to capitalize on a ton of opportunities at important moments in games. Little things... point-blank shots that roll out, missed free throws, defensive rebounds where that we immediately turn over due to a mix-up or foot on the line, a foul on a box-out when we've already gotten the rebound on the other side of the basket, etc, etc, etc... A lot of these are just bad breaks, but it's so frustrating to watch the team play so well most of the time and then give up a few of cheap plays that completely deflate our momentum and allows the other team to get their feet back under them and get back in the game (and take the lead, in this case). I'm not just referring to Nolan's missed layup, there were probably 4-5 little moments like that in the first half that just drove me crazy.

I think it's the type of thing G was referring to when he said something like "We need to learn how to step on our opponents throats when they're down", and put games away. Hopefully we can play smart, tough, mistake-free ball in the 2nd half and pull this out.

[Les Grossman]

He has no help. Scheyer doesn't seem to be looking for a shot. Is E Will getting any pt at all? Nolan, Paulus and the rest just don't seem to want to even try to score. Well, Hendo back for the second half. 1st half as ugly as it gets.

[InSpades]

Umm...we built a pretty nice lead and were in control of the game with G on the bench so I am gonna have to disagree with you there. You win games in the 2nd half, not the first, so I'll defer to the coach on this one.

Obviously, it would have been nice to have had Gerald available (and maybe we would have built a bigger lead with him in there) but even so, I thought we played pretty well for about the first 12-14 minutes and just missed some wide-open shots. Scheyer had two 3's that were like halfway down and popped out. We should have had at least a 12-15 point lead fairly early in the game and then our "O" just went in the tank BIG TIME. The mental lapses are what worry me at this point.

Nice lead? It was 9 points when they had scored 2 over 9 minutes! Did you think they were gonna keep scoring at that pace? Last I checked, 1st half points count just as much as 2nd half points. What's the point of sitting Henderson for a vast majority of the 1st half? So he can play in the 2nd half when we are spotting them a 7-point lead? It just doesn't make any sense.

[roywhite]

He has no help. Scheyer doesn't seem to be looking for a shot. Is E Will getting any pt at all? Nolan, Paulus and the rest just don't seem to want to even try to score. Well, Hendo back for the second half. 1st half as ugly as it gets.

Scheyer is shooting and missing.

Nolan is majorly rusty.

[quickgtp]

I just flipped over to watch the end of Scarface with Pacino. Maybe they should play that in the locker room at halftime. Duke needs to come out guns-a-blazing and not have a care in the world (play aggressive and let the chips fall as they may.)

[Coballs]

I am just waiting for Patrick to flash back to calling the Maryland game. Someone needs to check his glasses.

Patrick's lowlights of the first half (a three way tie):
1. Confusing Singler and LT
2. Praising Scheyer for his great defense on the made basket/blocking call
3. His list of things that can be accomplished in 90 minutes, which included eating 2 pounds of chocolate....well, I'm sure he can

[ChrisP]

Nice lead? It was 9 points when they had scored 2 over 9 minutes! Did you think they were gonna keep scoring at that pace? Last I checked, 1st half points count just as much as 2nd half points. What's the point of sitting Henderson for a vast majority of the 1st half? So he can play in the 2nd half when we are spotting them a 7-point lead? It just doesn't make any sense.

Yeah, I think 9 is a pretty nice lead for this game. Against a good team (not great, but solid - remember they did beat UNC at home with a healthy Ty Lawson?) in the ACC tourney mid way through the first half. I'll take it every day. As I said, I'm not happy with what we did after that point, but yeah, it was a NICE lead.

[MarkD83]

[QUOTE=ChrisP;271232]Umm...we built a pretty nice lead and were in control of the game with G on the bench so I am gonna have to disagree with you there. You win games in the 2nd half, not the first, so I'll defer to the coach on this one.

The way we are playing offense a 7 point lead might as well be 20.:mad:

ChrisP, nothing personal. I have been waiting for 2 years for Duke to blow somebody away in a post season tournament so that they can regain their swagger. I am just not seeing it.

[mapei]

And, unfortunately, it's not just about us. Rice is a really, really good player - better offensively than anyone we have IMO.

[quickgtp]

Why does ESPN keep splitting the screen and showing Al Skinner sitting their emotionless?

[DukieInKansas]

www.wsfl.com

Thanks, Bob!

[_Gary]

Nice to see Nolan hit that 3. No hesitation at all, which I've very glad to see. Hope that helps shake the rust off offensively for him.

[Greg_Newton]

Scheyer is shooting and missing.

Doesn't he look like he's leaning/drifting forward on his threes more than usual? It's not quite the same perfect form we saw against Carolina. Maybe that last one will get him on track.

Elliot has been doing a terrific job on Rice so far. The only time he's really doing anything is when Singler or someone else is switched off on him.

[jv001]

If Kyle keeps switching off and guarding Rice, we are in real big trouble. WE're getting caught with a guard on their big man. Fight thru the screen for heavens sake. Go Duke!

[tendev]

can someone get a fricken rebound?

[_Gary]

I hate this type of game. As another poster mentioned, there have been several little plays here in the 2nd half where we were right on the verge of pulling ahead and seizing the momentum and BC finds a way to get the loose ball after a missed shot or just avoid a turnover. It's driving me crazy because I honestly do feel like Duke is very close to being able to pull ahead and they just can't get that one extra play that's needed.

[Coballs]

It will be tough to pull this one out unless Henderson steps up. As well as he's playing, Singler probably won't be able to carry us all the way on his own. He needs some help.

BTW, why are there Carolina fans all over the dome?

[_Gary]

If Kyle keeps switching off and guarding Rice, we are in real big trouble. WE're getting caught with a guard on their big man. Fight thru the screen for heavens sake. Go Duke!

Absolutely, that has to stop. They are exploiting that almost every single time down the court.

[UrinalCake]

If Kyle keeps switching off and guarding Rice, we are in real big trouble. WE're getting caught with a guard on their big man. Fight thru the screen for heavens sake. Go Duke!

I agree... I understand that switching on every screen keeps defensive pressure on them, but when they're not even attacking the basket but just walking by each other, there's no reason for us to switch.

[_Gary]

What?!!! How can these announcers be screaming for a foul there? That was a clean block and the body contact afterward is incidental. Geesh. :rolleyes:

[Oh Canada]

and don't have time to read the entire thread. Is there somewhere I can listen to the game on the internet?

[FerryFor50]

How was that Rice ball fake on the drive not a travel?

[Coballs]

What?!!! How can these announcers be screaming for a foul there? That was a clean block and the body contact afterward is incidental. Geesh. :rolleyes:

Because one of the announcers is a complete moron and the other one hates Duke. Of course, they don't replay the phantom 3 shot foul on Rice. Of course.

[Greg_Newton]

It's driving me crazy because I honestly do feel like Duke is very close to being able to pull ahead and they just can't get that one extra play that's needed.

Case in point, that phantom foul on the 3 just there. Soooo frustrating.

And Patrick has now extended the Singler name to Scheyer, Thomas and McClure. All 4 look virtually identical though, so I suppose it's understandable.

I also love watching this Singler-Trepani battle. Kyle's playing with some fire today.

[_Gary]

Elmore might as well just go sit on the BC bench and be another assistant because he's only calling the game from their vantage point, IMHO.

Gerald is really looking to exert his will into the game now. As long as we can keep Rice from heating up we'll be OK. But with him you just never know and it's really hard to keep him in check. Oh, and McClure has been the man on defense, along with Kyle. Some stellar inside play from both of them here during this stretch.

[UrinalCake]

What's with our uniforms? They appear to have a circuit diagram embedded in the fabric.

[Lulu]

well i'm convinced on the espn producer's bias if they cannot find time during 3 foul shots to show the supposed foul on williams on that 3 attempt

[FireOgilvie]

I mentioned our lack of shot-blocking on the Phase V thread... it's good to see we've turned that around in this one. Kyle and McClure have been awesome.

[FerryFor50]

well i'm convinced on the espn producer's bias if they cannot find time during 3 foul shots to show the supposed foul on williams on that 3 attempt

I always understood fouls on 3 point attempts to be ones that affected the shot. I can't tell you how many times I see Scheyer get knocked down on 3 point shots attempts with no call, yet an incidental tap on Rice's arm after the follow through is a foul? Sigh.

[roywhite]

Rice's flaw---his ego.

He thinks he can do it all himself.

[FerryFor50]

Singler is playing outta his mind. Good to see.

[FerryFor50]

Gerald is not. Not good to see.

[FireOgilvie]

It would be nice to see some killer instinct from this team.

[_Gary]

Here we go again. Carbon Copy of how the first half went. We are going to have to match them on the offensive end because they are going to score in bunches at this point. Just a feeling. This is now at least 5 straight possessions where we haven't stopped them.

[Greg_Newton]

Geeeeez we are getting called for a TON of touch fouls. Huge call there, fast break and potential 5 point lead turns into a 1 point game and Scheyer's 4th foul.

That was legit call on EWill there, but each of his first three have been fingertip-fouls... phantom handcheck on the left side, finger on the wrist on an inbounds play, and the phantom 3pt foul. It's the tournament, let them play.

[FerryFor50]

Geeeeez we are getting called for a TON of touch fouls. Huge call there, fast break and potential 5 point lead turns into a 1 point game and Scheyer's 4th foul.

And then another one on Elliott on the drive. While I don't disagree it was a foul, it's been happening on the other end with no call.

[_Gary]

I got a feeling we are looking at either pull up 3's or drives that result in foul calls for BC from here till the end. This is going to be a tough game to pull out. As it stands right now if Rice hits at least one free throw coming out of the TO that will make 6 straight possessions where we've been unable to get a stop.

[jv001]

I know he's HOF coach but I hated to see him "ice" Gerald on that 2nd FT near the 8 min mark. Gerald had taken over for a few mins and was in the flow. I know he did it to rest the team at the 8 min mark. I hope Coach has not been reading the posts saying the team is tired. Go Duke!

[FireOgilvie]

I know he's HOF coach but I hated to see him "ice" Gerald on that 2nd FT near the 8 min mark. Gerald had taken over for a few mins and was in the flow. I know he did it to rest the team at the 8 min mark. I hope Coach has not been reading the posts saying the team is tired. Go Duke!

Yeah, that was ridiculous. I've never seen a coach do that to their own player.

Nice run-out by E-Will.

[Greg_Newton]

Funny the announcers focus on that foul drawn by Singler there. Hansbrough has used that exact same move roughly 17,481 times in the last four years, and they love it.

FREEEEE THROWWWWS!!!

[FerryFor50]

And we see why hitting your FTs down the stretch is so important...

[_Gary]

BC has now scored on 8 of it's last 9 possessions. You just can't win close games when you allow your opponents to do that in the last 4 minutes of the second half.

[FerryFor50]

My only gripe about that Henderson shot is that I wish they had left a little more time on the clock in case BC scores... BC can hold for last shot.

[_Gary]

OK, guess it's going to come down to getting one stop here. If BC scores this time down that will be an incredible 90% offensive efficiency to end the game.

[Greg_Newton]

Here's where we apply our lesson from the early game today and shield the refs' vision while applying some Hansbrough-on-Delaney style defense.

[FerryFor50]

YESSSSS!

terrible pass by BC. Great defense. Fortuitous bounce.

NOW HIT THE FREE THROWS!

[FerryFor50]

YESSSSS!

terrible pass by BC. Great defense. Fortuitous bounce.

NOW HIT THE FREE THROWS!

Or not.... ARRRRGH.

[_Gary]

Well, if we lose we really have only ourselves (free throws) to blame. Thought for sure Jon would nail both those. Ugh...

[karmacoma]

Uggggghhhhhhhhhhh.

[FerryFor50]

Wish he had trapped when they went to the corner there, before they crossed midcourt.... Burn off some more time.

[Tappan Zee Devil]

I guess it is survive and advance

but geez

[Les Grossman]

too close! Great game by Kyle S.

[Greg_Newton]

WOOOOOOO

Free throws are a major problem for us right now but how about those two huge defensive efforts at the end. Nice contrast to the first Wake Forest game.

[jv001]

Kyle Singler is the toughest player in the league. He did alittle bit of everything to help us win this game. The firs thalf almost cost us this game. Go Duke!