MOTM: Duke vs. UNC (Feb 9, 2011)

[JBDuke]

Who was Man of the Match in Duke's 79-73 win over UNC in Cameron tonight?

[rotogod00]

Nolan's numbers were superb, but it was Curry's run midway through the 2nd half that was the difference.

[grossbus]

Nolan's numbers were superb, but it was Curry's run midway through the 2nd half that was the difference.

what he say.

[DMV2434]

Seth was great but we would not have won the game without Nolan Smith

[fisheyes]

Nolan's the man but without Seth's spurt we would have been hurting big time.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

I want to say Curry. He was huge in the 2nd half, a huge lift. But Nolan had 34 pts on 13-23 shooting, and was a steady scoring presence all night, keeping us in the game, and then helping us hold on.

I can't in good conscience not pick someone who put up 34 points. Nolan Smith is MOTM.

[Bob Green]

Each game we need a 3rd player to step up and be a scorer. Tonight it was Seth Curry. He took the game over for a huge chunk of the 2nd half and earned my MOTM vote.

[CLW]

Seth Smith or Nolan Curry. Too close to call.

[ncexnyc]

Glad at least two players showed up tonight. Nolan gets the nod by an eyelash.

[nyr484]

Nolan played great, but Seth was the spark behind the comeback.

[OldPhiKap]

Seth Smith or Nolan Curry. Too close to call.

You beat me to it. Same answer.

[hurley1]

Curry had some very good looks because of the attention they were putting on singler......and he hit them.......motm, smith without a doubt.......he carried the mail all night........

[jv001]

I voted for Nolan, but as Bob said, we need a 3rd scorer every game and tonight it was Seth in a big way. I hope he builds on this game and is that 3rd scorer. Did not see any of the first half as I was at the hospital. Wife's grandmother had a serious heart attack and may not make it. Had to keep my priorities in order. Say a prayer for her. Go Duke!

[Son of Mojo]

Nolan would not let us lose and Seth was just behind in that. Don't let Kyle's bad shooting fool you either--his defense in the 2nd half on Harry was huge.

[SCMatt33]

I think most of us would like to split it tonight, but since we can't, I voted for Seth. Nolan had a career night and was critical throughout the game, but when you need to make a 14 point comeback, it takes some tough shots to fall. Seth made four or five jumpers off of the dribble, which is so hard to do. He was the biggest part of the run that gave us the lead and was crucial in a game where Kyle couldn't get much scoring.

[monkey]

Voted for Smith - but props to Curry as well - couldn't we do a "three stars of the game" sort of thing? Doesn't seem like just one should be honored...

[pfrduke]

Seth Curry's hotness aside, I will remember this as the Nolan Smith game. He controlled every aspect of the second half when Duke had the ball. I think he's the best player in the country, and tonight was a signature performance.





I'm going to miss Nolan so much next year.....

[JasonEvans]

Everyone is saying "Seth or Nolan?" and I agree they were the MOTM...

...but the unsung hero of tonight's win was Miles Plumlee's defense. He was often the only guy over 6-7 for Duke who was really competing and he at least contested a lot of those easy looks Carolina was getting.

We clearly do not win without Nolan and Seth tonight... but I think we would not have won without Miles' D either.

-Jason "I voted for Seth" Evans

[jipops]

Can I vote for Nolan, like 34 times?

[RoyalBlue08]

Tough call. Would have loved to vote for Seth. He was amazing. But Nolan played like the best player in the country, and refused to lose to Carolina in his senior year at Cameron. He gets my vote.

[Verga3]

Seth & Nolan....it's a tie.

Big positive for us to have Kyle having such a tough night (and Ryan was not on either) and to beat a good UNC team playing/defending well. I had to laugh when Kyle finally buried a 3 toward the end and there was a foul away from the ball. Kyle and Ryan still kept firing and working.....I love the mentality. Great win fellows!

[MCFinARL]

I voted for Smith, but it was close. I do want to say,though, that while he was not an MOTM candidate, Miles Plumlee made some very big plays for us in the last stretch of the game and deserves some credit for preserving the win.

Edit: what Jason Evans said, apparently while I was writing this post.

[4decadedukie]

Nolan, our Captain, over-performs when it counts most, and in leadership as well as strict basketball.

[OldPhiKap]

Everyone is saying "Seth or Nolan?" and I agree they were the MOTM...

...but the unsung hero of tonight's win was Miles Plumlee's defense. He was often the only guy over 6-7 for Duke who was really competing and he at least contested a lot of those easy looks Carolina was getting.

We clearly do not win without Nolan and Seth tonight... but I think we would not have won without Miles' D either.

-Jason "I voted for Seth" Evans

Miles had a great game, agreed.

[nyr484]

Everyone is saying "Seth or Nolan?" and I agree they were the MOTM...

...but the unsung hero of tonight's win was Miles Plumlee's defense. He was often the only guy over 6-7 for Duke who was really competing and he at least contested a lot of those easy looks Carolina was getting.

We clearly do not win without Nolan and Seth tonight... but I think we would not have won without Miles' D either.

-Jason "I voted for Seth" Evans

Good point, but only in the 2nd half. In the 1st half it was a different story: our bigs were getting beat up. Miles didn't get a lot of mins in the 1st half and we could have used some rebounding intensity in there.

[jipops]

Everyone is saying "Seth or Nolan?" and I agree they were the MOTM...

...but the unsung hero of tonight's win was Miles Plumlee's defense. He was often the only guy over 6-7 for Duke who was really competing and he at least contested a lot of those easy looks Carolina was getting.

We clearly do not win without Nolan and Seth tonight... but I think we would not have won without Miles' D either.

-Jason "I voted for Seth" Evans

Kyle played great defense too. He did a fantastic job on Barnes and helped on UNC's bigs. He also grabbed 8 boards with 3 offensive. Aside from a horrendous shooting game, the other parts of his game were superb.

[jkidd31]

Voted for Seth...his run in the 2nd half was huge. Nolan is the man and willed this team to win, but we expect that from him :). The bigs were the difference in the 2nd half. The Tools didn't get near the easy looks they did in the 1st half.

[cameroncrazy3104]

This was really tough between Seth and Nolan, I voted for Nolan simply because he put us on his back and got us back into it. I also want to point out this is the best we have seen Miles on the boards this year

[timmy c]

UNC did not have an answer for Nolan in the screen and roll. Strickland earned 5 fouls in 22 minutes and Bullock got 4 fouls in 17 minutes. Meanwhile, Nolan was setting a new career high of 34 points. Seth Curry had a wonderful game, but Nolan was the star.

[DevilHorns]

I'm drunk and I have just two words for you:

SETH CURRY.

Nolan is Nolan, but with an off offensive night by Singler, we aren't close in this one without Seth.

[NovaScotian]

unc is gonna be spending tonight on the toilet - too much curry.

[strawbs]

i really wanted to vote for seth and he deserved it for that amazing stretch in the 2nd half. But it was nolan. He carried the team the entire night. props to kyle as well. I know his scoring was not there tonight but he did a tremendous job on barnes and never let him get going at all.

[Greg_Newton]

This is the first time I truly can't pick one over the other. Nolan continues to be otherworldly and cement his place in Duke lore... but Seth was what got us competing tonight. Even before he started hitting shots, he was the first guy to barrel into the thick of things and come out with a loose ball or long rebound, which he did 3-4 times.

I thought that really got our guys going... and then basically singlehandly shooting us back to a tie game - without missing once, I don't think - was awesome.

[Dukeface88]

I voted for Nolan, but now that I think about it, Kyle deserves props for holding THE GREATEST FRESHMAN OF ALL TIME to 9 points ;)

[DallasDevil]

I didn't vote in the poll because I couldn't choose between the Nolan and Seth. Nolan played like the best player in the country tonight. However, we also don't win without Seth. Aside from shooting lights out to begin the second half, his hustle on a few long rebounds and point guard play were also key factors in the victory.

[elvis14]

I can't in good conscience not pick someone who put up 34 points. Nolan Smith is MOTM.

I picked Nolan as well for the same reason. I mean 34 point against UNC@CH, sweet!


Seth Smith or Nolan Curry. Too close to call.

I may have voted for Nolan but Seth was right on his heels in my eyes.


Miles had a great game, agreed.

I noticed this as well. A great effort by Miles tonight in a role where his contributions were not obvious. Of course I liked the obvious rebounds Mason pulled down as well!

[jv001]

One more shout for Seth. I voted for Nolan,but what a game Seth had. 22pts, 6 rebs(3 offensive) 5 assists and only 2 turnovers. Great game for this young man. Go Duke!

[loran16]

So I voted for Seth, because he was trailing Nolan. They deserve to split it this game, so I wanted to equalize.

[BleedsP287]

My vote goes to Nolan, he kept us in the game first half or we'd have been down over 20 points. And he played a super second half. Honorable mention to Seth for an awesome second half, without him we don't win either.

I was so depressed at half time, relieved and exhausted now. The thing with fans is we have unlimited years of eligibility. These games wear you down after 20-30 years.

[-bdbd]

Curry had some very good looks because of the attention they were putting on singler......and he hit them.......motm, smith without a doubt.......he carried the mail all night........

And I suspect that was part of the Kerlina strategic decision before the game -- "make someone besides Kyle Singelr beat us."

Mission accomplised, by Mr. Curry! Yowza!!

[devildeac]

Nolan would not let us lose and Seth was just behind in that. Don't let Kyle's bad shooting fool you either--his defense in the 2nd half on Harry was huge.
This is a great point. Kyle had a horrendous shooting game. He shoulda shot at least 1/2 dozen more FT and if his name was Jordan Williams or tyler h., he would have. Incredible what it takes to get him a call and put him on the line. Prince harry had 2 points after the half if I counted correctly. Kyle played superb D.

[DevilHorns]

Kyle also had some ridiculous rebounds 2nd half in deep traffic. He knew his shot wasn't falling, but his D on Barnes never faltered, and his intensity on the boards (along with Miles) was crucial to the game's outcome...


and let's not forget the 2 FTs with 25 sec left to ice the game.

[magjayran]

Without Seth in the second half, we don't win. Without Nolan in the first and second half, we don't win. Nolan gets the nod. Great game Seth.

[Duke: A Dynasty]

(1st place) Nolan was a constant for us and a monster he got my vote

(2nd place) Seth provided that spark we needed in the 2nd half to win

(3rd place) Miles, Mason and Ryan had a poor first half but rebounding and D helped out sooo much in the 2nd.

(Honorable Mention) Kyle.... Suffocated Barnes and played great D throughout

[wsb3]

I agree with all the love given out to Curry. Huge game for him. But Nolan how can you not vote for him? Career high in points and he was such a determined force in the game. One thing in particular that with so many early entries that I miss is watching someone grow for four years and be the Senior Leader. Thank you Nolan.. What a huge game and a huge season.

[PADukeMom]

Props to Seth but that can't top 34 points & the determination to not lose his final game in Cameron to Carolina, my vote goes to NPOTY Nolan Smith.

[ChicagoCrazy84]

Everyone is saying "Seth or Nolan?" and I agree they were the MOTM...

...but the unsung hero of tonight's win was Miles Plumlee's defense. He was often the only guy over 6-7 for Duke who was really competing and he at least contested a lot of those easy looks Carolina was getting.

We clearly do not win without Nolan and Seth tonight... but I think we would not have won without Miles' D either.

-Jason "I voted for Seth" Evans


I voted for Seth too. I've come to expect great games from Nolan because he's our go-to player and he's just...awesome. Seth was incredible and came up huge for us. I do agree with you on your Miles Plumlee take. He really stepped it up in the 2nd half and disrupted their rhythm inside and rebounded very well. He even went 2-4 from the FT line! :D

[JasonEvans]

I just can't believe that Miles did not get a single vote. I shoulda voted for him.

-Jason