MBB: Duke 85, UAB 64 Post Game Thread

[Bob Green]

Discuss the game here.

[superdave]

We only had 6 turnovers which is exceptional against a quick team. Our opening blitz was the best ball we've played all year - starting out 26-4. Ultimately our focus and energy dropped off, sort of like the guys got bored.

I do think the offensive game plan UAB executed was a pretty good one - spread us out, drive and kick. If they had a better finishers, it would have been a game. Is that what we see out of FSU?

[Duvall]

I do think the offensive game plan UAB executed was a pretty good one - spread us out, drive and kick. If they had a better finishers, it would have been a game. Is that what we see out of FSU?

The way FSU shoots - 195th in the country in 3FG% - I certainly hope so.

[loran16]

The good: Nolan Smith. Just....wow. Pomeroy had us winning 81-60, We won 85-64. (Our pomeroy ranking should drop slightly, keeping us at 2, since we were less efficient than predicted).

Our opponent shot 40% from 3 and yet we never led by less than 14 in the 2nd half.
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The Bad: The team couldn't pull away for the 2nd straight game, though they at least won the second half. Kyle Singler was apparently 5-18 today, his second game where he seemed way cold. If he make 5 more of those shots, we pull away like we were supposed to.

Kelly took at least 3 wide open shots (2 of them 3s) that he couldn't get to drop....he seems to be cold from range recently, which would be a huge addition to this game.

Seth Curry seemed oddly enough to be in Ks doghouse, not playing for a good bit of the first half and then not being in for a good bit of the second. Not sure why that was the case. He did go 2-3 with 5 points when in the game.

Miles......returned to hacking Miles.

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I don't mean to sound totally negative. I have high expectations for this team, and for the first 8 minutes of this game, the team blew right by them. But after that, it was like a different team on defense. Too many open shots.

[Saratoga2]

We had a great start to the game. Coach K felt safe enough to give some young players a little playing time early, otherwise it might have been a complete blowout.

Clearly Nolan had an absolutely super game. Getting to the basket and shooting from the perimiter. Good ball handling and defense as well.

It also appeared that we wanted to get Mason going. He had some physical advantages in the game, but he also played better and scored under pressure. Good step forward. I hope it will continue for him.

Singler is always very important but I thought with Kelly and Singler missing from the perimiter it would have seemed sensible to get Dawkins more shots. Is he too passive or are they not setting screens for him? I think he only took 4 shots tonight. 2 for 3 on threes and 1 for 1 in close. He is too good a shooter not to get more shots in the game.

On to the Maryland game Sunday.

[mgtr]

I thought Mason was a positive tonight. He looked more like a basketball player than a high jumper. Still a long way to go, but I am optimistic.

[CDu]

We only had 6 turnovers which is exceptional against a quick team. Our opening blitz was the best ball we've played all year - starting out 26-4. Ultimately our focus and energy dropped off, sort of like the guys got bored.

I do think the offensive game plan UAB executed was a pretty good one - spread us out, drive and kick. If they had a better finishers, it would have been a game. Is that what we see out of FSU?

Well, FSU doesn't have the offensive weapons that even UAB has. The 'Noles really have trouble scoring. They shoot pretty poorly from 3pt range, they shoot pretty poorly from 2pt range, they shoot poorly from the line, they turn it over too much, and they don't draw a lot of fouls. FSU only stays competent because they play very tough defense. They also rebound well offensively, though that only brings them back to mediocre offensively (140th in offensive efficiency).

[SCMatt33]

It's always great to see Duke score a first round knockout. It takes a lot of the pressure off and allowed some of the backups to get a couple of minutes early. After the first 5 minutes, it was pretty clear that Duke let off the gas big time, especially on D. I don't have a problem with that as it's a long season, and if you don't have to exert a ton of energy and can still keep the lead at a comfortable margin, than do so. We've already seen that this team can bring it for 40 minutes against good teams.

Because of that, it's hard to comment seriously on how the game went. Individually, Nolan continues to be a beast which is always good to see. I was slightly disappointed with Josh and Tyler when they got a chance in the first half. You can't be hard on them, as without consistent minutes, it's tough to get into a flow, but Josh came in and immediately got lost on D, leading to a layup, and then took a very quick and contested turnaround jumper at the other end. Again, I can't expect them to come in a play like veterans when their freshman who don't get many minutes, but I also didn't see anything that makes me think that we will see more than a strict 7 man rotation in big games.

One thing that did concern me somewhat legitimately is the 3 point defense. Duke did a poor job of rotating to cover shooters when we bring double teams or go for steals. This led to a TON of wide open 3 pointers for UAB. Again, let me emphasize that I think this has a lot to do with the the team stepping off the gas, which I don't mind, but this isn't the first time I've seen it this year. Before tonight, Duke ranked 84th in 3 point defense, giving up 31.5%. That's not bad, but Duke has finished as bad as 84th in that department only once since 2004. It's just one of those things where upsets are often built on hot three point shooting, and this team hasn't been great at stopping it this year. I would hardly call it a big concern, but it is something that I will keep an eye on as the ACC season progresses.

I can't be all negative after a 21 point win, and their were plenty of positives. First, nothing makes me happier than putting a team away early. It let's everyone relax, and makes the game easier. Even though Duke never pushed out the lead, you pretty much knew it was over 5 minutes in. Why? Duke never let them go on a big run. I haven't seen a full play-by-play, but I can't remember them getting closer than 14 the entire game. For the most part, that game stayed between a 14 and 20 point game, which is magnificent for a team who is essentially coasting. They always got the timely bucket when UAB started to get close and would stop UAB on defense when they got a few consecutive stops on us.

It's obvious to see how well Nolan is playing, but he is really starting to put me at ease if Kyrie can't come back. Nolan had a chance two years ago to be the point guard, and struggled, but he has been absolutely dominate both in scoring and distributing lately. For him personally, this has to be big in the eyes of NBA scouts that he can work on the ball since he is probably too small to be off the ball full time at the next level.

I love seeing this team continue to improve and am hoping for some good news on the toe front soon.

[Bob Green]

Singler is always very important but I thought with Kelly and Singler missing from the perimiter it would have seemed sensible to get Dawkins more shots. Is he too passive or are they not setting screens for him? I think he only took 4 shots tonight. 2 for 3 on threes and 1 for 1 in close. He is too good a shooter not to get more shots in the game.

Andre Dawkins is shooting 57.9% on field goals (55 of 95) and 53.8% on 3-pointers (35 of 65). A little elementary math reveals he is 20 of 30 or 66.7% on 2 point field goals. Whether or not Dawkins needs to shoot more is a chicken or egg situation. Is Andre Dawkins shooting great percentages due to great shot selection? Or is he having a lights out season? Personally, I'd like to see him take a few more shots even if it results is some degradation to his amazing shooting percentages. He is a critical cog in the team and I believe he needs a few more looks per game.

[DoubleDuke Dad]

Clearly Nolan had an absolutely super game. Getting to the basket and shooting from the perimiter. Good ball handling and defense as well.



If we can arrange for Nolan to get called for a charge every game we will not lose!

[superdave]

Kyle Singler was apparently 5-18 today, his second game where he seemed way cold. If he make 5 more of those shots, we pull away like we were supposed to.


I thought Kyle's shot selection was poor, particularly in the 2nd half. He took too many contested shots and missed open teammates. I dont know if he thinks he needs to carry a lot of the scoring load and it makes him press a little, but he missed out on finding a better shot a handful of times.

[superdave]

One thing that did concern me somewhat legitimately is the 3 point defense. Duke did a poor job of rotating to cover shooters when we bring double teams or go for steals. This led to a TON of wide open 3 pointers for UAB. Again, let me emphasize that I think this has a lot to do with the the team stepping off the gas, which I don't mind, but this isn't the first time I've seen it this year. Before tonight, Duke ranked 84th in 3 point defense, giving up 31.5%. That's not bad, but Duke has finished as bad as 84th in that department only once since 2004. It's just one of those things where upsets are often built on hot three point shooting, and this team hasn't been great at stopping it this year. I would hardly call it a big concern, but it is something that I will keep an eye on as the ACC season progresses.


I think UAB's game plan was to get into the lane and kick it out which they did well. With our big men rounding into shape on D, I think something gets lost during the growth period and this appears to be it. They helped out on the penetrator and UAB slid to open space. If UAB could have scored better in the lane, they would have had us really off balance. We should get better at defending threes - remember that we lost three rotation guys from last year and are not where we will be come March yet. But defending threes has emerged as an issue to watch.

[fgb]

Andre Dawkins is shooting 57.9% on field goals (55 of 95) and 53.8% on 3-pointers (35 of 65). A little elementary math reveals he is 20 of 30 or 66.7% on 2 point field goals. Whether or not Dawkins needs to shoot more is a chicken or egg situation. Is Andre Dawkins shooting great percentages due to great shot selection? Or is he having a lights out season? Personally, I'd like to see him take a few more shots even if it results is some degradation to his amazing shooting percentages. He is a critical cog in the team and I believe he needs a few more looks per game.

i think andre is doing a fantastic job of letting the game come to him; i wouldn't want to see him push things too hard. the guy is in such a groove right now just doing what he's doing, taking what's there. if he starts to try and create too much, his shooting percentage could drop pretty quickly, and there's no way to know how much of an effect that can have on a kid's confidence.

[fgb]

I thought Kyle's shot selection was poor, particularly in the 2nd half. He took too many contested shots and missed open teammates. I dont know if he thinks he needs to carry a lot of the scoring load and it makes him press a little, but he missed out on finding a better shot a handful of times.

my guess is that he was just taking advantage of a big lead, and trying to adjust his stroke in game.

[dukelifer]

Andre Dawkins is shooting 57.9% on field goals (55 of 95) and 53.8% on 3-pointers (35 of 65). A little elementary math reveals he is 20 of 30 or 66.7% on 2 point field goals. Whether or not Dawkins needs to shoot more is a chicken or egg situation. Is Andre Dawkins shooting great percentages due to great shot selection? Or is he having a lights out season? Personally, I'd like to see him take a few more shots even if it results is some degradation to his amazing shooting percentages. He is a critical cog in the team and I believe he needs a few more looks per game.

Andre can shoot the ball. I thought JJ had the purest stroke- Dawkins is really unbelievable. When he is set- there are few better, The kid can flat out shoot and I agree he needs more shots.

I thought Kelly bounded the ball very well tonight and he is a sneaky good defensive player. Mason looked much better tonight. He is still raw on O but you can see a lot of potential. I liked the fact he was more aggressive on the glass.

Nolan of course was the star- but I do wish he could pass better- but, then again- when you don't miss there is no reason to pass. He showed some Kyrie moves tonight- like pulling the ball close to his body as he went up for a layup. Nolan is just playing great.

Kyle is still struggling but he is just missing - hopefully he will work out the kinks.

[Neals384]

Nolan was amazing. Nice game for Mason. Some very tough work under the boards for Ryan, his extra strength is paying dividends. Seth had a neat drive, but he lost his man on D at least twice.

[BlueintheFace]

I thought Kyle's shot selection was poor, particularly in the 2nd half. He took too many contested shots and missed open teammates. I dont know if he thinks he needs to carry a lot of the scoring load and it makes him press a little, but he missed out on finding a better shot a handful of times.

I disagree. I can think of only two really poor shot selections. One went in fading from the baseline (and can't be that bad because he hits it a lot). K posted up Kyle 2 or 3 times in the 2nd half and he just happened to miss them all (which is unusual). The rest of his shots came on standard three pointers that K wants him to shoot, and the same curl off the baseline screen up and in to the lane that Duke runs maybe 2nd most of any set (behind the high Plumlee screen for Nolan).

[cspan37421]

More than one young guy got lost on D ... and that explains some of the playing time things that people are wondering about. As for UAB shooting well, well it seemed to me they didn't exactly have their toes on the line. They were way back and we often weren't that close to the shooter when they took an NBA+ range shot. Plus they're fairly quick, and we probably didn't want to get beat off the dribble by covering the perimeter tight in a man to man.

It all begins with D, and we're a good running team, so we can shoot a higher percentage than when were were mostly a half court offense. But even then, our speed - Nolan did a fair impersonation of Kyrie tonight, just abusing his defender off the dribble.

That early charge - I know Patrick and Elmore immediately pointed out that "you don't have to have your feet set to draw a charge" - well, maybe, I guess, and although that's primarily the way I grew up thinking the rule was, I figure if you've got position and the guy runs over you, well, if you're shuffling your feet a bit in place, it's still a charge. But the defender was backpedaling big time and Nolan was going full steam ahead. I don't care if he lowered his shoulder a bit to save his face, that's a block, it seems to me. The guy was in the way and had not established position at all, feet moving or not. I can see why K went ape-dung over it.

Then the rest of the game, a couple of nearly identical calls went as blocks, not charges. Strange. But Nolan was simply great. Talk about exploiting a mismatch.

Ryan does shoot well from the outside usually; but I've noticed he doesn't have much arc on his shot (FG or FT). Probably because he's so tall - but that leaves less room for error.

I was glad to see our boys crush a Mike Davis team. That Indiana-Duke game still smarts! I have to admit I was a little concerned when I saw that UAB had him as coach - and was impressed how they never folded and kept at it (until they started fouling out). They're a good team, but unless they rebound better, they're very vulnerable to a cold shooting night.

[SMO]

The Bad: The team couldn't pull away for the 2nd straight game, though they at least won the second half. .

Serious question: what do you consider "pulling away"?

[Spy]

What was the deal with the ref not allowing that UAB player to come in because he had long sleeves? I could have sworn I have seen players play with long sleeves before.

[roywhite]

The good: Nolan Smith. Just....wow. Pomeroy had us winning 81-60, We won 85-64. (Our pomeroy ranking should drop slightly, keeping us at 2, since we were less efficient than predicted).

Our opponent shot 40% from 3 and yet we never led by less than 14 in the 2nd half.
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The Bad: The team couldn't pull away for the 2nd straight game, though they at least won the second half. Kyle Singler was apparently 5-18 today, his second game where he seemed way cold. If he make 5 more of those shots, we pull away like we were supposed to.

Kelly took at least 3 wide open shots (2 of them 3s) that he couldn't get to drop....he seems to be cold from range recently, which would be a huge addition to this game.

Seth Curry seemed oddly enough to be in Ks doghouse, not playing for a good bit of the first half and then not being in for a good bit of the second. Not sure why that was the case. He did go 2-3 with 5 points when in the game.

Miles......returned to hacking Miles.

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I don't mean to sound totally negative. I have high expectations for this team, and for the first 8 minutes of this game, the team blew right by them. But after that, it was like a different team on defense. Too many open shots.

Thanks for letting us know you didn't mean to sound totally negative. I might have been confused into thinking that from the bulk of your post.

Did we watch the same game?

[sagegrouse]

Thanks for letting us know you didn't mean to sound totally negative. I might have been confused into thinking that from the bulk of your post.

Did we watch the same game?

I think to please Loran16, the NCAA should adopt the old CBA system, where IIRC the winner of the game got three points and the winner of each of the four quarters got one point. That way, just stomping the pea turkey out of someone in the first eight minutes isn't enough -- you need to do it in every time segment of the game.

sagegrouse

[delfrio]

i think andre is doing a fantastic job of letting the game come to him; i wouldn't want to see him push things too hard. the guy is in such a groove right now just doing what he's doing, taking what's there. if he starts to try and create too much, his shooting percentage could drop pretty quickly, and there's no way to know how much of an effect that can have on a kid's confidence.

I'm not so convinced. Andre seems to float on the perimeter during most offensive sets with very little movement. Maybe that's intentional, maybe not. But regardless, it seems like people are also not looking to get him the ball. Multiple times tonight and prior games Nolan or Kyle could have sent it his way for an open shot, but didn't. I don't know if it's not seeing him or what, but at least his defense stats seem to be picking up in the meantime.

[Billy Dat]

It's clear that the game plan is for Nolan to be a score-first PG who we depend on to get his points early, often and in a variety of ways. Clearly, he seems up to the task. Everyone else is going to have to figure how where they fit in that formula.

For Kyle, it's going to be a lot of pick and pop 3s after he sets high screens, and, it seems, more post-ups. Hopefully he'll start converting that little baby hook because the shot is there when he wants it. He'll also be forced to be active on the boards which is usually a good thing for he and the team.

We seemed to run a lot more plays for the bigs tonight, perhaps because we had a size advantage. Mason was a big beneficiary. We set him up both on the wing and on the block and he really finished well. Kelly got a lot of looks and played well. Miles was kind of non-existent. Most nights, I guess we'll be ok as long as 2 of the 3 have decent games.

Extending that thought a little further, after Nolan and Kyle, it seems like we're ok as long as 3 other guys have decent games. You need 2 of the 3 bigs to show up and we need Dre or Seth to be on their game. Obviously, against the best teams we'll need solid efforts from everyone, but no one is really emerging from the pack game after game. You'd think Dre and Mason were the most likely candidates - they've got a lot of games left to increase their consistency.

I agree about UAB hitting some seriously long 3s, I was more concerned with how easily they seemed to be getting backdoor looks. They missed a ton of shots from 5 feet and in that they should have made, especially early. We also seem a little susceptible to the drive, but we held them 7 points below their season average.

We made a really decent team look bad. Solid win...now let's put the ACC square in our sights and deliver a strong effort against the Terps on Sunday.

And...oh yeah...congrats to Kyle on 2,000...ho hum.

[strawbs]

did I miss something or did the announcers not even mention kyle getting to 2000 career points tonight? That is an amazing accomplishment, how does it get overlooked?

[Duvall]

did I miss something or did the announcers not even mention kyle getting to 2000 career points tonight? That is an amazing accomplishment, how does it get overlooked?

Mike Patrick is how. We're lucky he didn't call him Kenny Singleton.

[mr. synellinden]

I thought Kyle's shot selection was poor, particularly in the 2nd half. He took too many contested shots and missed open teammates. I dont know if he thinks he needs to carry a lot of the scoring load and it makes him press a little, but he missed out on finding a better shot a handful of times.

I noticed this as well, and I would bet this is the kind of thing the coaching staff will pick up when they watch film (if they didn't during the game itself) and work on with Kyle. I'm expecting to see better shot selection and better passing out of him the next few games.

[-bdbd]

I thought that we looked disappointingly ragged tonight against a fairly clearly outmanned UAB squad. And the shooting was just dreadful for long stretches. Can't play like that against MD, FSU, NCSU, VPI, NC@CH, etc. and still expect to win. Hope we step it up a bit for the Terps Sun.

I've never been a Len Elmore hater, but boy did he sound like he was pulling for UAB tonight! Others have complained in the past, but I felt it really came through in several comments tonight. At least he's smart enought that he'll catch himself saying something a little too anti-Duke or anti-refs (who are supposedly giving the Devils too many bennies), he'll then come back quickly with a qualifier or lukewarm compliment of Duke/K/the Duke player.

[mr. synellinden]

did I miss something or did the announcers not even mention kyle getting to 2000 career points tonight? That is an amazing accomplishment, how does it get overlooked?

They mentioned it briefly - said he was the fifth Duke player ever to achieve that and put up the stat when he hit 2001, and then it was overlooked. I was surprised the game wasn't briefly stopped, or there wasn't a shot of the scoreboard.

[Bluedevil114]

did I miss something or did the announcers not even mention kyle getting to 2000 career points tonight? That is an amazing accomplishment, how does it get overlooked?

They did mention it but did not dwell on it probably because Nolan was putting on a better show and they could not stop slobbering over him. I am sure Kyle would want it that way.

[SuperTurkey]

Mike Patrick is how. We're lucky he didn't call him Kenny Singleton.

Kenny Singleton needs to get untracked!

[roywhite]

Post-game quotes (http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=22724&SPID=1845&DB_OEM_ID=4200&ATCLID=205072512)

I really liked what Coach K had to say about Mason:


That was Mason Plumlee's best game I think at Duke. He was talking, he played with a presence, getting 14 points and nine rebounds and four blocks, he didn't play tired either. We kept him in there a long time. We had a little bit of foul trouble with the bigs.

[Billy Dat]

I thought that we looked disappointingly ragged tonight against a fairly clearly outmanned UAB squad. And the shooting was just dreadful for long stretches. Can't play like that against MD, FSU, NCSU, VPI, NC@CH, etc. and still expect to win. Hope we step it up a bit for the Terps Sun.

I think if we play like we did tonight, we beat the teams you cited. I thought we looked good, the game was never in doubt after the first 3 minutes. We had Mason, Tyler, Josh, Seth and Kelly on the floor together in the first half.

[Ultrarunner]

I'm not so convinced. Andre seems to float on the perimeter during most offensive sets with very little movement. Maybe that's intentional, maybe not. But regardless, it seems like people are also not looking to get him the ball. Multiple times tonight and prior games Nolan or Kyle could have sent it his way for an open shot, but didn't. I don't know if it's not seeing him or what, but at least his defense stats seem to be picking up in the meantime.

It looks as though Andre is being used as a decoy/threat. By staying on the perimeter, Andre is forcing the defense to commit to him and limiting help defense when Nolan and Kyle are driving. It also looks as though he is looking to take advantage of defenders closing on him by driving past which creates a lot of uncertainty for the defender.

Andre really had a very well rounded game tonight with a solid 6 rebounds and three steals to go with eight point. Like you, I don't understand why he isn't the recipient of more kick out passes but expect there is a good reason for it. Or an opportunity for the team to grow which should make other teams a mite nervous.

[msdukie]

They mentioned it briefly - said he was the fifth Duke player ever to achieve that and put up the stat when he hit 2001, and then it was overlooked. I was surprised the game wasn't briefly stopped, or there wasn't a shot of the scoreboard.

11th Duke player.

[msdukie]

Mike Patrick is how. We're lucky he didn't call him Kenny Singleton.

He would have called him Todd Singleton.

[jv001]

We only had 6 turnovers which is exceptional against a quick team. Our opening blitz was the best ball we've played all year - starting out 26-4. Ultimately our focus and energy dropped off, sort of like the guys got bored.

I do think the offensive game plan UAB executed was a pretty good one - spread us out, drive and kick. If they had a better finishers, it would have been a game. Is that what we see out of FSU?

FSU just has a hard time getting the basketball in the hoop. Another thing I noticed in their loss to Auburn was that they don't do well against the press. The one thing they do well is play terrific defense. But first we must beat the twerps and then concentrate on FSU. Go Duke!

[Son of Jarhead]

Nolan's offensive proformance speaks for itself. Coach K spoke well for his defense. Coach K pointed out in his post-game that UAB's point guard, Johnson (#1, the player that had some fun with the Crazies when he fouled out) came into the game tonight leading the nation in assists & was probably the quickest guard Nolan will defend this year. Nolan defended him quite well. Coach K also commented that UAB's Sanders (#4) was a great shooter, could play for any team in the ACC, even ours, & that he would be playing in the NBA someday. {Side Note: As always, Coach K makes a point of complimenting opposing players afterwards when they play well against us. My favorite example of this was Bryant Stith of UVA... as a senior, Coach K took the mike after his last visit to Cameron & encouraged the crowd to applaud in appreciation for Stith, which we promptly did, giving him a standing O.} UAB is actually a very good team, I expect they will be dancing in March. We knocked them back at the beginning, but once they settled down, they played us fairly well. Good prep for a Round of 32 game perhaps.

[wtm001]

Did anybody see the lady holding up the sign that said something like "seeing Coach K win his 881st game, priceless"?

Wasn't this win number 882? Or maybe she was at the Miami game? I don't know

[hurley1]

Coach K obviously let off the gas once the score got so one sided in Duke's favor. Had we been playing a top team, he would have held it to the floor and you would have seen a different outcome.

[Kedsy]

The Bad: The team couldn't pull away for the 2nd straight game, though they at least won the second half.

I'm not buying this. Was there any moment after we jumped out to a 26-4 lead that you thought the outcome was in doubt? Was there any moment against Miami after the Nolan 13-2 run that you thought the outcome of that game was in doubt?

Because, in my mind, if the outcome isn't in doubt then we did pull away.


Seth Curry seemed oddly enough to be in Ks doghouse, not playing for a good bit of the first half and then not being in for a good bit of the second. Not sure why that was the case. He did go 2-3 with 5 points when in the game.

Seth averages 20.5 minutes a game, and tonight he played 24. It doesn't seem to me that he was benched for an inordinate length of time nor that he's in anybody's "doghouse."


Miles......returned to hacking Miles.

I was a bit disappointed in Miles picking up so many fouls so early, but to my eyes only one of them seemed especially avoidable. I actually thought Miles played reasonably well when he managed to stay on the floor. And I don't think there was any kind of regression out there, he just got caught on his fouls tonight.


But after that, it was like a different team on defense. Too many open shots.

I think when you get that big a lead that early, it's difficult to keep up your intensity. The team clearly seemed to take their collective foot off the gas pedal, especially on defense, but I wouldn't be so hard on them. They may have blown UAB out the first few minutes and then coasted the rest of the way, but the game was never in doubt and it was a good win.


Kyle is still struggling but he is just missing - hopefully he will work out the kinks.

Kyle missed a lot of shots in the 2nd half tonight (he actually shot pretty well during the brief time when it mattered), but I didn't feel he was struggling at all. He took two shots that I thought were ill-advised, but overall I thought his game was strong tonight.


We seemed to run a lot more plays for the bigs tonight, perhaps because we had a size advantage. Mason was a big beneficiary. We set him up both on the wing and on the block and he really finished well.

We were all thinking that Mason's "problem" was he didn't have Kyrie setting him up these past few games. But maybe he just has to have plays run for him (as he did in his big game against Marquette and again tonight) and isn't as good when he has to freelance.

Or maybe he wasn't really having problems the past few games; he just wasn't scoring. Scoring isn't everything, and I think a lot of times many of us seem to (erroneously) equate scoring with how well a player plays.

[striker219]

I just wanted to point out an interesting factoid from the game; Aaron Johnson, the point guard for UAB, is currently leading the country in assists at 8.3 per game. I don't know if it was pointed out during the broadcast that he is the current assists leader, but he is averaging more assists per game (8.3) than any other player in the country. Honestly, this (the fact that he is leading the country in assists per game) seems like the kind of thing that the announcers should point out to their viewing audience; I'm speaking, of course, of the fact that Aaron Johnson is leading the country in assists. Maybe it was mentioned by either Mike Patrick or Len Elmore during the game that he is the assists leader in the country, but I watched the game and never heard either of them comment on the fact that Aaron Johnson is leading the country in assists at 8.3 per game.

Anyway, I thought it was interesting.

[Jim3k]

I just wanted to point out an interesting factoid from the game; Aaron Johnson, the point guard for UAB, is currently leading the country in assists at 8.3 per game. I don't know if it was pointed out during the broadcast that he is the current assists leader, but he is averaging more assists per game (8.3) than any other player in the country. Honestly, this (the fact that he is leading the country in assists per game) seems like the kind of thing that the announcers should point out to their viewing audience; I'm speaking, of course, of the fact that Aaron Johnson is leading the country in assists. Maybe it was mentioned by either Mike Patrick or Len Elmore during the game that he is the assists leader in the country, but I watched the game and never heard either of them comment on the fact that Aaron Johnson is leading the country in assists at 8.3 per game.

Anyway, I thought it was interesting.

It was mentioned several times, including the break as he fouled out.

[gam7]

It was mentioned several times, including the break as he fouled out.

Pretty sure that was thinly veiled sarcasm from Striker. :)

[jammsb]

This team is absolutely amazing. They've gone from "alarmingly unathletic" :-) to being perhaps the most athletic Duke team its been my pleasure to watch using mostly the same personnel.

[Saratoga2]

I'm not so convinced. Andre seems to float on the perimeter during most offensive sets with very little movement. Maybe that's intentional, maybe not. But regardless, it seems like people are also not looking to get him the ball. Multiple times tonight and prior games Nolan or Kyle could have sent it his way for an open shot, but didn't. I don't know if it's not seeing him or what, but at least his defense stats seem to be picking up in the meantime.

It seemed with UAB playing man and Nolan having a mismatch that our strategy was to spread the floor and have Nolan exploit the matchup. It definitely worked very well, vut did leave Dawkins in particular and some others as well more stationary and less involved in the offense. Andre played well regardless of that and both Kyle and Nolan had several opportunities to get him the ball when he was open but instead looked to their own shot. In Nolan's case it is hard to argue that was the wrong thing to do, but Kyle was 5 for 18 and perhaps should take his lack of sharpness as a reason to make the extra pass.

[ice-9]

It seemed with UAB playing man and Nolan having a mismatch that our strategy was to spread the floor and have Nolan exploit the matchup. It definitely worked very well, vut did leave Dawkins in particular and some others as well more stationary and less involved in the offense. Andre played well regardless of that and both Kyle and Nolan had several opportunities to get him the ball when he was open but instead looked to their own shot. In Nolan's case it is hard to argue that was the wrong thing to do, but Kyle was 5 for 18 and perhaps should take his lack of sharpness as a reason to make the extra pass.

I didn't particularly track Andre, but if I recall right most of the time Nolan drove it wasn't Andre's man who came to rotate. I believe it was Kelly's or Mason's, but they were so slow in helping that Nolan had a more or less clear path to the basket. Perhaps if Andre's man had been the one to help, he might've had more shots.

If anything it was the rolling Mason who had opportunities to receive a pass and make the high percentage shot; when Tyler subbed in the closing minutes that's exactly what happened. Mason set a screen, Tyler drove by, Mason rolled, and Tyler passed to Mason for an easy layup.

But Nolan was so unstoppable that it was kind of a situation where it may not make sense to pass if you can always make the basket or draw the shooting foul.

[Saratoga2]

I didn't particularly track Andre, but if I recall right most of the time Nolan drove it wasn't Andre's man who came to rotate. I believe it was Kelly's or Mason's, but they were so slow in helping that Nolan had a more or less clear path to the basket. Perhaps if Andre's man had been the one to help, he might've had more shots.

If anything it was the rolling Mason who had opportunities to receive a pass and make the high percentage shot; when Tyler subbed in the closing minutes that's exactly what happened. Mason set a screen, Tyler drove by, Mason rolled, and Tyler passed to Mason for an easy layup.

But Nolan was so unstoppable that it was kind of a situation where it may not make sense to pass if you can always make the basket or draw the shooting foul.

It is true that in most cases the defender stayed within recovery distance of Andre when Nolan drove. And Nolan was very effective. I only saw three cases where Andre was open and two of those were when Singler had the ball.

There was a front page item showing the shooting percentage from Andre this year versus last. He tends to take good shots. It would be interesting to see a similar one from Singler who has had great games but also has shot rather poorly at other times. I think Duke could make additional passes at times to get the best shot and also have the best shooter take it.

[jammsb]

You guys are oh so tough.

[devildeac]

After the initial 3 by UAB (U Are Bad=classic stuff from DUMB and/or the grad students), we went on a 26-1 run. That was some of the best Duke BB I have ever seen, ranking up there with the something-like 32-3 run-out vs Michigan years ago and the something-like 25-3 run we had vs Clemson after Trajan had his lip split. Fabulous ball movement and shooting, boarding and devastating defense. I'm glad K had the chance to use multiple combinations in both halves because of the quick early lead and the foul trouble we had. I became a bit worried on a couple or three occasions when the lead dropped to 14 and they had some chances to cut it further, but we came up with some good D and/or boards and quickly pushed it out to 18-20 again.

[moonpie23]

folks....the rule is.... FEED THE BEAST......and nolan was clearly the beast.....


not to draw comparisons, but one of the best things about last year's team was that someone was always stepping up when someone wasn't having "their ususal game".

I think everyone on the team last night just watched nolan dismantle the entire UAB squad.....and enjoyed it as well...


kyle will get his shots, miles will make plays of NOT hacking against different players, different teams and different officiating crews...

seth will have games where HE has the mismatch....different games, different matchups, different needs of offensive and defensive flow...


man, my glass is at LEAST 7/8ths full...

[Channing]

A couple observations -

(1) Nolan is playing at an incredibly high level right now. In fact, Nolan's play is reminding me a lot of J-Wil. He can create for himself and create for others. He is finishing VERY strongly around the hoop and is keeping teams honest with a very accurate three point shot.

(2) If Andre continues to get stronger he will be an absolute force to be reckoned with. He already has the mindset of taking it to the hoop, he has the midrange game, and we know about the three game. Once he is able to routinely finish in traffic I think we will see him take another leap forward.

(3) Mason was great last night. We saw a couple times just how gifted he is as a big man (like the run out layup). With a little more strength so he can hold his ground on the block, and a little more polish on his back to the basket moves, we will hopefully see more Marquette performances and fewer Miami performances.

(4) I love watching Seth play. Thats all.

(5) Kyle looked a little lost and/or confused trying to play with his back to the basket. He left a number of shots short, almost like he didn't know where on the court he was. Fortunately, I dont think he will be playing on the post many times this year. He was and is much more effective as a face up player.

[Eckster]

What was the deal with the ref not allowing that UAB player to come in because he had long sleeves? I could have sworn I have seen players play with long sleeves before.

I found this from NCAA Men's Basketball Central Hub:
2010-2011 Uniform Rule Clarifications
Monday, November 29, 2010

"Long-sleeved shirts. NCAA rules do not permit shirts to extend below the elbow. One must present medical documentation from a physician, written on his/her business letterhead, justifying the medical need for sleeves to extend below the elbow. This letter must be sent to the appropriate NCAA Basketball Secretary-Rules Editor. Should this waiver be granted, a copy of the written waiver must be available to officials at each game. No logos, decorations, trim, commerative [sic] patches, lettering or numbering are permitted on these long sleeved undershirts. Please note: NCAA rules permit arm sleeves, that is a sleeve that slips over the hand and up the arm. No written waiver is required for this item, but verification is required verbally by either the player's coach or the team's medical personnel. (Rule 3-9.9)"

Sounds like either a new rule or a new specific interpretation of an existing rule.

[MChambers]

The good: Nolan Smith. Just....wow. Pomeroy had us winning 81-60, We won 85-64. (Our pomeroy ranking should drop slightly, keeping us at 2, since we were less efficient than predicted).
Actually, our numbers went up very slightly, so we are now #1 by the smallest of margins, ahead of Ohio State. I suspect that this is due to the results of some of our past opponents, rather than due to our performance last night because, as you suggest, our efficiency was a little lower than predicted last night. Perhaps Elon hanging tough with State raised our schedule difficulty somewhat?

[trinity92]

Nolan's offensive proformance speaks for itself. Coach K spoke well for his defense. Coach K pointed out in his post-game that UAB's point guard, Johnson (#1, the player that had some fun with the Crazies when he fouled out) came into the game tonight leading the nation in assists & was probably the quickest guard Nolan will defend this year. Nolan defended him quite well. Coach K also commented that UAB's Sanders (#4) was a great shooter, could play for any team in the ACC, even ours, & that he would be playing in the NBA someday. {Side Note: As always, Coach K makes a point of complimenting opposing players afterwards when they play well against us. My favorite example of this was Bryant Stith of UVA... as a senior, Coach K took the mike after his last visit to Cameron & encouraged the crowd to applaud in appreciation for Stith, which we promptly did, giving him a standing O.} UAB is actually a very good team, I expect they will be dancing in March. We knocked them back at the beginning, but once they settled down, they played us fairly well. Good prep for a Round of 32 game perhaps.

I was at that game. Christian Laettner scored 32. It was a beautiful thing. I recall something else special about that game, but can't exactly recall. I thought it might have been the last home game of the year, but looking back, it was carolina. Maybe I was just remembering K on the mic.

[jv001]

A couple observations -

(1) Nolan is playing at an incredibly high level right now. In fact, Nolan's play is reminding me a lot of J-Wil. He can create for himself and create for others. He is finishing VERY strongly around the hoop and is keeping teams honest with a very accurate three point shot.

(2) If Andre continues to get stronger he will be an absolute force to be reckoned with. He already has the mindset of taking it to the hoop, he has the midrange game, and we know about the three game. Once he is able to routinely finish in traffic I think we will see him take another leap forward.

(3) Mason was great last night. We saw a couple times just how gifted he is as a big man (like the run out layup). With a little more strength so he can hold his ground on the block, and a little more polish on his back to the basket moves, we will hopefully see more Marquette performances and fewer Miami performances.

(4) I love watching Seth play. Thats all.

(5) Kyle looked a little lost and/or confused trying to play with his back to the basket. He left a number of shots short, almost like he didn't know where on the court he was. Fortunately, I dont think he will be playing on the post many times this year. He was and is much more effective as a face up player.

1. I love how Nolan's playing scoring and getting others involved(5 assists). He's playing tough defense and rebounding from his guard position. No one in the nation is playing better.
2. Andre is also playing very well. He's taking good shots and making them. His defense has gotten better. One thing I've noticed is when he gets the ball in the back court, he acts like it's a "hot potato". He can't wait to get it to Nolan. I've laughed at that more than one time.
3. Mason had a very good all-around game last night. Coach K said it was his best game. Mason has so much talent and has only scratched the surface. It was good to see him finish with his left hand last night and he can really handle the ball. His ceiling is way up there.
4. I really like Seth as well. He usually plays good defense, but last night he was out of position a few times. I think it's just a matter of confidence with Seth. We really need Seth to perform.
5. At first I thought Kyle forced some shots last night. But it looked like Coach K had called for some sets in order to get Kyle isolated on a smaller player near the basket. We were able to do that but Kyle just didn't hit the shots. I'm not worried about Kyle. He's a beast with a tremendous motor.
A good game for us going in to the Maryland game. Go Duke!

[MChambers]

2. Andre is also playing very well. He's taking good shots and making them. His defense has gotten better. One thing I've noticed is when he gets the ball in the back court, he acts like it's a "hot potatoe". He can't wait to get it to Nolan. I've laughed at that more than one time.
Not to get into public policy discussions here, but Dan Quayle agrees with you. :)

[jv001]

Not to get into public policy discussions here, but Dan Quayle agrees with you. :)

Yeh my bad, I actually beat you to it. Changed that Idaho thingy. Go Duke!

[jimsumner]

I just received a confidential communication on a breaking story. Duke is going to petition the NCAA to switch to four-on-four-basketball. The reason is simple. With Miles Plumlee, Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry in the doghouse and Krzyzewski's typical refusal to play his 8th and 9th men, Duke only has four available players.

Inasmuch as Duke gets all the calls, the proposal should pass by noon. Look for Singler, Smith, Dawkins and Kelly to play 40 minutes per game. Unless one of them gets in the doghouse. Then we can switch to three-on-three.

[Billy Dat]

RE: Dawkins
K praised him, I think, in the post game for his discipline on offense which opens the floor for the rest of the team. The scouting reports clearly hone in on Andre's sweet stroke, and smart teams are typically afraid to get buried by a 3-pt shooting-stoked Duke run. So, Andre's defender doesn't typically leave him which opens up those driving lanes for Nolan. With Nolan playing at this high a level, you have to imagine upcoming defenses are going to key in to stopping him which should open up kick-out 3s. Or, if teams are really smart, they'll force Nolan to dump it to a big to see if they can convert, or, say if he's going to his right, cover the man set up on the strong side 3pt line, close off the lane, stick with the bigs, and force Nolan to make that difficult, back-across-the-body pass to the guy open at the 3 point line on the weak side - a pass that is always potentially picked off by the weak side defender. Bottom line, I can't imagine teams are going to let us keep playing a style where Nolan gets 25 via lots of lay-ups...unless he's so good that he can't be contained!

RE: NBA style game mgmt by K
It's been said before, but the fingerprints of the Team USA experience can really be seen in the way we consistently try and exploit mismatches, NBA-style. This is happening a ton on switches, and you saw it last night with, even Nolan, posting up their short guard. That kind of on-the-fly read fits perfectly with our read-and-react motion offense.

A couple other points:
-Nolan rebounded like a BEAST last night
-Pretty play by Singler where he led the break off a turnover, faked a pull up at the foul line, and dumped it to Kelly for the hoop and the harm
-Once Mason got a few early buckets, he was more active getting out on the break and he is really a smooth finisher in that setting. We really need to make it a priority to try and get him off early, but he also needs to make that happen for himself by running and being really active.

[hq2]

Kyle should shoot less (5 for 18), and Andre should shoot more. They need to redesign the offense to get more looks for Andre, and have Kyle pass more. Kyle is shooting again like he did early last year.

[jv001]

Kyle should shoot less (5 for 18), and Andre should shoot more. They need to redesign the offense to get more looks for Andre, and have Kyle pass more. Kyle is shooting again like he did early last year.

Kyle will finish like he did last year. I agree it would be nice for Andre to get a few more looks and I'm sure Coach K has thought of that as well. What I don't want is for Andre to begin forcing shots. It's one thing for our senioir AA to force shots but not our young sophmore. We need Andre's confidence to remain high. I'm not worried about Kyle. Go Duke!

[davekay1971]

Inasmuch as Duke gets all the calls, the proposal should pass by noon. Look for Singler, Smith, Dawkins and Kelly to play 40 minutes per game. Unless one of them gets in the doghouse. Then we can switch to three-on-three.

We'd win the 3 on 3 national championship, even with Kyrie injured. Give me Nolan, Dre, and Singler and we'll beat anyone. Yeah, I know, I'm sacrificing size for outside shooting by taking Dre over Kelly, but I've been drinking the K brand Kool-Aid for 25 years now, and we all know that K neglects the interior in favor of over-reliance on the 3, so I'm just a product of my environment.

[Kedsy]

Mason was great last night. We saw a couple times just how gifted he is as a big man (like the run out layup). With a little more strength so he can hold his ground on the block, and a little more polish on his back to the basket moves, we will hopefully see more Marquette performances and fewer Miami performances.

Against Miami, Mason had 10 rebounds and 4 blocks and had a significantly higher plus/minus per 40 than anyone on the team except Ryan. Personally, I wouldn't mind him having lots of performances like that.

[Channing]

Against Miami, Mason had 10 rebounds and 4 blocks and had a significantly higher plus/minus per 40 than anyone on the team except Ryan. Personally, I wouldn't mind him having lots of performances like that.

I should clarify. I think Mason has been playing good D and been providing great rebounding all year. That has been a constant. I was referring to offensive production.

[ACCBBallFan]

Here are Frank Haith's comments on the Michael Irving show which sounded very simiular in format ot the Dave Glenn show.

http://wqam.com/index.php?page=347

Coach Haith made the point that except for Nolan's 11 point run, Miami played Duke even the other 38 minutes.

Same in UAB game, after the 26-4 start, rest of the game was Duke 59, UAB 60.

With a perimeter of Nolan - Kyle - Dre (or Seth), defense has to pick its poison especially when Kelly is in there to spread the floor.

UAB is a good team that was star struck the first few minutes, quality win for Duke.

Coach Haith made the point that Miami has played Duke tough and has led the prior three games at half.

So return match at Miami should be closer on February 13, and a trap game afer the emotional UNC rivalry game on Feb 9.

[NSDukeFan]

It's clear that the game plan is for Nolan to be a score-first PG who we depend on to get his points early, often and in a variety of ways. Clearly, he seems up to the task. Everyone else is going to have to figure how where they fit in that formula.

For Kyle, it's going to be a lot of pick and pop 3s after he sets high screens, and, it seems, more post-ups. Hopefully he'll start converting that little baby hook because the shot is there when he wants it. He'll also be forced to be active on the boards which is usually a good thing for he and the team.

We seemed to run a lot more plays for the bigs tonight, perhaps because we had a size advantage. Mason was a big beneficiary. We set him up both on the wing and on the block and he really finished well. Kelly got a lot of looks and played well. Miles was kind of non-existent. Most nights, I guess we'll be ok as long as 2 of the 3 have decent games.

Extending that thought a little further, after Nolan and Kyle, it seems like we're ok as long as 3 other guys have decent games. You need 2 of the 3 bigs to show up and we need Dre or Seth to be on their game. Obviously, against the best teams we'll need solid efforts from everyone, but no one is really emerging from the pack game after game. You'd think Dre and Mason were the most likely candidates - they've got a lot of games left to increase their consistency.

I agree about UAB hitting some seriously long 3s, I was more concerned with how easily they seemed to be getting backdoor looks. They missed a ton of shots from 5 feet and in that they should have made, especially early. We also seem a little susceptible to the drive, but we held them 7 points below their season average.

We made a really decent team look bad. Solid win...now let's put the ACC square in our sights and deliver a strong effort against the Terps on Sunday.

And...oh yeah...congrats to Kyle on 2,000...ho hum.
I agree with most of your points here, especially the team looking a bit more inside for our bigs and Kyle. One tiny point is that I think (or maybe hope) that many teams will be missing a lot of shots from inside 5 feet against this team (much like last year) due to the presence of Miles, Mason, Ryan and Kyle.

I noticed this as well, and I would bet this is the kind of thing the coaching staff will pick up when they watch film (if they didn't during the game itself) and work on with Kyle. I'm expecting to see better shot selection and better passing out of him the next few games.
I have seen some people post negatively in the past few weeks about Kyle's shot selection. I disagree. I know I am biased as I pretty much believe that Kyle is a superhero (which is pretty much the criteria for jersey retirement at Duke due to the number of great players that have played for the program.) But when Kyle posts as strong as he did and makes strong moves to get the 5 foot baby hooks he had vs. UAB, I just think it would be great if our bigs could post up and make moves like that. Yes, he missed them, but to me those are excellent shots. When Kyle is on the move and takes pull-up shots inside 15 feet, even with someone in his face, I feel that is a good shot for him that he has consistently shown he can make. When he is on the perimeter and he gets his defender off balance and pulls up for a three or 18-20 footer, even if his defender is right there, and he gets a clean look, I think that is a good shot for him that he has shown he can make consistently. There was one instance where Kyle drove vs. UAB and looked like he may have been fouled but drove into a help defender and that may not have been a great shot. I also recall an instance where he was short on a 13 footer or so that he may not have had a clean look, but I believe he has earned the benefit of the doubt for his shot selection.

Kyle was first team all-ACC last year, even though his shooting % started off below his standards early last year as it increased during the year. He had surgery in the off-season and may not be shooting as well as we know he can. I am very confident in the shots All-American and POY candidate Kyle has been taking and expect he will make more of them as the season progresses.

I thought that we looked disappointingly ragged tonight against a fairly clearly outmanned UAB squad. And the shooting was just dreadful for long stretches. Can't play like that against MD, FSU, NCSU, VPI, NC@CH, etc. and still expect to win. Hope we step it up a bit for the Terps Sun.

I've never been a Len Elmore hater, but boy did he sound like he was pulling for UAB tonight! Others have complained in the past, but I felt it really came through in several comments tonight. At least he's smart enought that he'll catch himself saying something a little too anti-Duke or anti-refs (who are supposedly giving the Devils too many bennies), he'll then come back quickly with a qualifier or lukewarm compliment of Duke/K/the Duke player.
Ken Pom rankings for:
MD (15) FSU (43), NCSU (77), VPI (33), NC@CH (18), UAB(66)
I think if Duke plays like they did tonight, they likely beat all of the teams that you mentioned. You could argue that if the team relaxes before they get up 20 and don't include the stretch where the team built the lead, sure Duke would have to play better than that.
I agree with you that Elmore can be annoying as an announcer, but I actually didn't find him too bad last night and thought he complimented the team appropriately, specifically when mentioning that Duke had 2 of the top 5 seniors in the country and that wasn't really fair.

Post-game quotes (http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=22724&SPID=1845&DB_OEM_ID=4200&ATCLID=205072512)

I really liked what Coach K had to say about Mason:
So maybe we shouldn't give up on Mason just yet? ;)

I just wanted to point out an interesting factoid from the game; Aaron Johnson, the point guard for UAB, is currently leading the country in assists at 8.3 per game. I don't know if it was pointed out during the broadcast that he is the current assists leader, but he is averaging more assists per game (8.3) than any other player in the country. Honestly, this (the fact that he is leading the country in assists per game) seems like the kind of thing that the announcers should point out to their viewing audience; I'm speaking, of course, of the fact that Aaron Johnson is leading the country in assists. Maybe it was mentioned by either Mike Patrick or Len Elmore during the game that he is the assists leader in the country, but I watched the game and never heard either of them comment on the fact that Aaron Johnson is leading the country in assists at 8.3 per game.

Anyway, I thought it was interesting.
So, who are you saying leads the country in assists?

A couple observations -
...

(5) Kyle looked a little lost and/or confused trying to play with his back to the basket. He left a number of shots short, almost like he didn't know where on the court he was. Fortunately, I dont think he will be playing on the post many times this year. He was and is much more effective as a face up player.

I agreed with your other four points, but completely disagree here (see above.) I thought Kyle posted really hard, made great moves to get nice little baby hooks and happened to miss the shots. I hope he continues to get post touches as I feel he gets the best shots inside out of anyone on the team.

Great win and fantastic opening stretch against a quality opponent that looks like they would be as strong as an average ACC opponent this year.

[roywhite]

Coach Haith made the point that except for Nolan's 11 point run, Miami played Duke even the other 38 minutes.

Same in UAB game, after the 26-4 start, rest of the game was Duke 59, UAB 60.


...Coach Haith made the point that Miami has played Duke tough and has led the prior three games at half.



Yeah, except for that one stretch from late 2007 to early 2009, the stock market has been terrific the last 7 or 8 years.

I understand the point, I guess, but Duke's ability to hit a spurt has been a feature of the team in 2009-10 and so far this year. If teams can't stop that, they'll have a hard time winning the game, no matter how even other segments may seem.

[UrinalCake]

Here are Frank Haith's comments on the Michael Irving show...

Michael Irving has his own show?!? What is this world coming to?

[NSDukeFan]

I should clarify. I think Mason has been playing good D and been providing great rebounding all year. That has been a constant. I was referring to offensive production.
If Mason (as well as Ryan and Miles) can provide consistently good D and rebounding this year, any offense will be a bonus.

I just received a confidential communication on a breaking story. Duke is going to petition the NCAA to switch to four-on-four-basketball. The reason is simple. With Miles Plumlee, Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry in the doghouse and Krzyzewski's typical refusal to play his 8th and 9th men, Duke only has four available players.

Inasmuch as Duke gets all the calls, the proposal should pass by noon. Look for Singler, Smith, Dawkins and Kelly to play 40 minutes per game. Unless one of them gets in the doghouse. Then we can switch to three-on-three.

Thanks for the chuckle.

[ncexnyc]

I wasn't sure what I was going to witness when I got home early this morning, but I was very pleased with what I saw. I had some concerns going into this game, as UAB isn't a cupcake, they were sporting a very strong 10-2 record coming into the game.

I feel sorry for UAB, because not only did they miss some chip shots, but we hit everything we threw up. That combination resulted in them getting blitzed. I'll give them credit they regrouped and hung tough and avoided being totally embarassed, although I'm not sure they feel the same way.

If Nolan isn't mentioned as NPOY,then I don't know what a kid has to do to get there. He did it all last night and he really didn't seem to be hogging the ball or taking bad shots to get his numbers.

Kyle's shot just isn't falling right now, but I can't say he was forcing the issue or taking bad shots. He'll find his groove like he did last year and he does so many other things to make up for an off night of scoring.

Andre played very well last night. He was hitting the boards hard and played within the flow of the game. On Sunday we needed him to score and he did, last night his offensive wasn't needed. This kid is the perfect player, whatever Coach K asks him to do he does it.

We had another solid effort from Ryan last night. His added bulk is letting him mix it up around the basket, resulting in more rebounds and easy baskets. He definitely appears to have the more polished offensive moves of our bigs.

Miles had an off game last night. He just never got into a groove due to the fouls. I hope he can put this game aside and bounce back strongly against Jordan Williams this weekend, as we'll definitely need his size.

A very nice game from Mason yesterday. Take your pick between Nolan's slam or Mason's steal and drive for a hoop for play of the game. If Mason needs to be force fed early to get him going then Coach K had better do it.

Seth's play was alright, but I keep waiting for that offensive outburst that we heard so much about last year and during the summer.

Nice to see some playing time for both Josh and Tyler. I honestly believe both will have a big moment for Duke some time later this year.

All in all a very nice effort from the team, against a talented opponent.

[devilsadvocate85]

I just received a confidential communication on a breaking story. Duke is going to petition the NCAA to switch to four-on-four-basketball. The reason is simple. With Miles Plumlee, Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry in the doghouse and Krzyzewski's typical refusal to play his 8th and 9th men, Duke only has four available players.

Inasmuch as Duke gets all the calls, the proposal should pass by noon. Look for Singler, Smith, Dawkins and Kelly to play 40 minutes per game. Unless one of them gets in the doghouse. Then we can switch to three-on-three.

I was growing tired of defending Mason and was planning a "smartaleck" post to see if we still thought he was in the doghouse after last night! Glad you beat me to it.

[jimsumner]

Let me address the issue of playing time more directly.

Krzyzewski said last night that he considers each of his top seven players to be starters and he wants them to feel the same way.

Coaching BS?

Well, let's look at the numbers.

Below are the minutes played for Duke's 6th and 7th men in all the post-Kyrie games.

Bradley-Curry 26, Kelly 16, total 42
Saint Louis-Curry 26, Kelly 20-total 46
Elon-Dawkins 32, Kelly 21, total 53
UNCG-Dawkins 23, Mason 18, total 41
Miami-Dawkins 29, Mason 25, total 54
UAB-Mason 28, Seth 24, total 52

So, in the six games since Irving injured his toe, the 6th and 7th have averaged 48 mpg, 24 per player.

Those are starter's minutes. So, the idea that coming off the bench equates to being in the hypothetical doghouse isn't supported by the evidence, at least as I interprete the term "doghouse."

Krzyzewski has always been somewhat intuitive in his substitition patterns. Foul trouble, matchups and game situations always factor in here. But as a general rule, play better, get more minutes; play poorer, get fewer minutes. Seems like a rational allocation of resources to me.

If being yelled at constitutes being in the doghouse, then every player who has ever played at Duke has been in a doghouse. Johnny Dawkins was yelled at, Bobby Hurley was yelled at, Shane Battier was yelled at. Sometimes, in the heat of a game, yelling cuts through the fog and helps a player focus on the task at hand. I suspect that applies to other schools, other coaches, other sports, other jobs.

Different human beings respond to different motivational and/or teaching techniques and the coaches adjust accordingly. As the old saying goes, some people need a pat on the back, some need a kick in the butt and Duke does a pretty good job of figuring out which.

But pretty early in their tenures at Duke, players are told to pay attention to the message being delivered not the delivery system. Responding positively to the message results in one outcome, responding negatively results in another.

[Kedsy]

Take your pick between Nolan's slam or Mason's steal and drive for a hoop for play of the game.

Actually, my favorite play of the game was Kyle's shot-fake-bounce-pass to Ryan for the pseudo-dunk-and-one.

[Wander]

So, in the six games since Irving injured his toe, the 6th and 7th have averaged 48 mpg, 24 per player.

Yeah, viewing this as "5 starters, 4 non-starters" is the wrong path to take. I think a better way to look at the divisions is "2 stars, 5 good players who get meaningful minutes, and 2 backups."

[ice-9]

Actually, our numbers went up very slightly, so we are now #1 by the smallest of margins, ahead of Ohio State. I suspect that this is due to the results of some of our past opponents, rather than due to our performance last night because, as you suggest, our efficiency was a little lower than predicted last night. Perhaps Elon hanging tough with State raised our schedule difficulty somewhat?

Our defensive efficiency was lower than expected, yes, but our offensive efficiency was also higher so it's more a matter of degrees.