PDA

View Full Version : MBB: Duke 66, Va Tech 48 Post-Game Thread



JBDuke
02-25-2014, 08:46 PM
Put your post-game thoughts here.

Duvall
02-25-2014, 08:49 PM
Put your post-game thoughts here.

Not bad for the end of an energy cycle.

mr. synellinden
02-25-2014, 08:50 PM
1:45 minute game. That seems like a record.

We have to avoid the offensive droughts - they seem to have one thing in common: an inability to penetrate the defense or create shots and/or poor shot selection.

kAzE
02-25-2014, 08:51 PM
Really good defense for most of the game. I thought Sulaimon played incredibly well defensively, he was the best player on the floor in my opinion. He dominated them.

BlueDevilBrowns
02-25-2014, 08:52 PM
Workmanlike performance.

Jabari in the post is nearly unstoppable.

Starting the bye week on a positive note.

Let's hope Quinn gets healthy.

GO DUKE!

weezie
02-25-2014, 08:54 PM
What shall we all do this weekend?

Bob Green
02-25-2014, 08:54 PM
Basketball 101 says attack a 2-3 zone at the free throw line. Rodney Hood earns an A+ tonight in Basketball 101. He tore VT up with the mid-range jump shot.

hudlow
02-25-2014, 08:55 PM
What shall we all do this weekend?


ABC!!!!

GGLC
02-25-2014, 08:56 PM
Shouldn't be hard to play good defense against an absolutely putrid offense.

I would have liked to have seen more time for our bench this game.

Bob Green
02-25-2014, 08:56 PM
What shall we all do this weekend?

Watch Duke football at Wallace Wade Stadium!

dairedevil
02-25-2014, 08:56 PM
Thank you, VT, for not extending the inevitable and fouling to stop the clock the last few minutes of the game. Good game, Rodney, Rasheed, Jabari with another double-double. Looking for the positives in a game that was decided pretty much in the first 10 minutesf.

Merlindevildog91
02-25-2014, 08:58 PM
Basketball 101 says attack a 2-3 zone at the free throw line. Rodney Hood earns an A+ tonight in Basketball 101. He tore VT up with the mid-range jump shot.

It seemed like the plan against Syracuse was for him to set the screen when the ball was on the left side of the court, and catch and drive when it was on the right side. I am not a basketball guru (though I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express), but that didn't make a lot of sense to me, for a left-handed guy to drive on the right side of the goal and never get the ball on the left.

I liked tonight's offense a lot better, with him taking the mid-range jumper and not limiting himself to setting screens.

jv001
02-25-2014, 09:01 PM
Great game from Rasheed tonight. 15points, 5 assists and 0 turnovers. Plus great defense. Hood impressive as well. Rest and go get Wake. GoDuke!

bedeviled
02-25-2014, 09:01 PM
First response in Rodney's on-court post-game interview: we did a good job moving the ball and making the extra pass.
I suspect this was a point of focus...and was rewarded with 19 assists on the night. Tyler (7) and Rasheed (5) leading the way with Rodney (4) and Jabari (3) also getting a good amount, primarily in the beginning of the game.

Duvall
02-25-2014, 09:02 PM
Shouldn't be hard to play good defense against an absolutely putrid offense.

I would have liked to have seen more time for our bench this game.

Like who? Dawkins, Plumlee and Cook all had substantial minutes. Jones, Hairston and Ojeleye aren't going to play heavy minutes in key games going forward this year, so giving them minutes now doesn't really make sense.

roywhite
02-25-2014, 09:04 PM
Basketball 101 says attack a 2-3 zone at the free throw line. Rodney Hood earns an A+ tonight in Basketball 101. He tore VT up with the mid-range jump shot.

Reminded me of Jack (Goose) Givens, who tore up Duke's zone from the middle in the 1978 National Championship.

Looks like Rodney is becoming more familiar and better with that role; can be very important against UNC, Syracuse, and others.

CLW
02-25-2014, 09:06 PM
Not the sharpest performance tonight but it didn't need to be as the Hokies are just a bad basketball team and were playing short 2 of their best players.

33/60 shots were from 3. That's way to high a % especially with how easy it was to simply get the ball to Hood at the free throw line.

On a related note, I'm tired of all the zones. The "new" rules are going to ruin college basketball as its only a matter of time before 3/4 of the country plays nothing but zone the entire game it forces the tempo down to a grinding halt and scores are in the 50s.

MChambers
02-25-2014, 09:08 PM
Jabari in the post is nearly unstoppable.
Funny, I was saying to my kids how poorly Jabari did tonight down low. Seemed he got stuffed several times and didn't look to pass back out to open shooters.

GGLC
02-25-2014, 09:10 PM
Like who? Dawkins, Plumlee and Cook all had substantial minutes. Jones, Hairston and Ojeleye aren't going to play heavy minutes in key games going forward this year, so giving them minutes now doesn't really make sense.

Jones was starting not too long ago, and he's one of our best perimeter defenders. How is he not deserving of a little more run in a game that was never really in question? And the fact that Semi won't be getting into many games going forward is MORE reason to give him a chance to get some game action here.

Saratoga2
02-25-2014, 09:14 PM
The starters all had good games on both sides of the ball and Marshall did well as a substitute. I agree that Rasheed had a very good game.

On the other hand, Quinn and Andre didn't do much. Is something wrong with Quinn and what is Andre's issue? Without them able to perform as well as we might expect, the team goes from being deep to not very. Maybe the time off will heal what seems to ail a couple of our players.

Matt, Josh and Semi played light minutes with Matt the most likely to get minutes going forward.

Duvall
02-25-2014, 09:15 PM
Jones was starting not too long ago, and he's one of our best perimeter defenders. How is he not deserving of a little more run in a game that was never really in question? And the fact that Semi won't be getting into many games going forward is MORE reason to give him a chance to get some game action here.

Pretty sure the freshman wing that can help Duke most with improvement through game minutes is not Matt Jones or Semi Ojeleye.

throatybeard
02-25-2014, 09:18 PM
Not the sharpest performance tonight but it didn't need to be as the Hokies are just a bad basketball team and were playing short 2 of their best players.

33/60 shots were from 3. That's way to high a % especially with how easy it was to simply get the ball to Hood at the free throw line.

On a related note, I'm tired of all the zones. The "new" rules are going to ruin college basketball as its only a matter of time before 3/4 of the country plays nothing but zone the entire game it forces the tempo down to a grinding halt and scores are in the 50s.

Yes and no. Yes, watching offenses play against zone D is...offensive. But no, in that college basketball was already ruined by the excessive roughness.

tbyers11
02-25-2014, 09:24 PM
Shouldn't be hard to play good defense against an absolutely putrid offense.

Ken Pom predicted us to hold VT to 59 points in 65 possessions for 0.91 PPP. We actually held them to 48 points on 61 possessions (# of poss according to scacchoops.com) for 0.79 PPP. So even taking into account VT's horrible offense we still played pretty good D.

ChillinDuke
02-25-2014, 09:31 PM
What shall we all do this weekend?

Check Throaty's pocket reference guide for likely options.

- Chillin

vick
02-25-2014, 09:33 PM
Jones was starting not too long ago, and he's one of our best perimeter defenders. How is he not deserving of a little more run in a game that was never really in question? And the fact that Semi won't be getting into many games going forward is MORE reason to give him a chance to get some game action here.

It's a little tough for me to question playing Jefferson-Parker-Hood-Sulaimon-Thornton heavy minutes as a group when they were by far our most effective lineup. It certainly wouldn't shock me if today's rotations were similar to what we will have in most games if no one is in foul trouble, though I would guess if either Dawkins or Cook heats up (neither was highly effective today), they will grab some more second-half minutes from either Thornton or Sulaimon.

NYBri
02-25-2014, 09:39 PM
Reminded me of Jack (Goose) Givens, who tore up Duke's zone from the middle in the 1978 National Championship.

Looks like Rodney is becoming more familiar and better with that role; can be very important against UNC, Syracuse, and others.

I totally agree about Goose. Very similar to that game.

Native
02-25-2014, 09:44 PM
Basketball 101 says attack a 2-3 zone at the free throw line. Rodney Hood earns an A+ tonight in Basketball 101. He tore VT up with the mid-range jump shot.

This. We're going to see more and more zone — we need to look for Jabari and Rodney in the high post. They're so versatile that they can make that shot. We're lucky to have two guys who can operate from that spot.

Bonus points to Sheed — awesome defensively tonight. Marshall brought some great energy and rebounding once again.

All around good game. On to the Cheats for us Crazies.

mgtr
02-25-2014, 09:44 PM
It's a little tough for me to question playing Jefferson-Parker-Hood-Sulaimon-Thornton heavy minutes as a group when they were by far our most effective lineup. It certainly wouldn't shock me if today's rotations were similar to what we will have in most games if no one is in foul trouble, though I would guess if either Dawkins or Cook heats up (neither was highly effective today), they will grab some more second-half minutes from either Thornton or Sulaimon.

I agree. Those five are our five best players currently.

Karl Beem
02-25-2014, 09:51 PM
Funny, I was saying to my kids how poorly Jabari did tonight down low. Seemed he got stuffed several times and didn't look to pass back out to open shooters.

I think he was tired. No lift.

mr. synellinden
02-25-2014, 09:55 PM
I think he was tired. No lift.

Yeah - Elmore even used that expression on the play where Parker got stuffed by the rim on the dunk attempt after a pass from Rasheed. He looked like he had pretty good lift though on the breakaway dunk a few minutes later. It did seem to me that he was breathing very heavy during the early parts of the game. I've noticed that in a number of games this year. I think the coaching staff needs to find the right substitution pattern for him to keep his legs fresh during games. This 8 day break is a great thing right now for this team.

greybeard
02-25-2014, 10:28 PM
Best pass penetration performance I have seen from Duke ever. Folks can count assists all they want. Duke took its time, kicking it around, in to Hood, who could have but thought something better might come, kicked it out, the ball moved, Hood the other way, it moved further, Hood moved to space, and from there, did whatever he wanted. That was the number 1 play. Off that all else flowed and there was plenty of it.

Exercising dominion over the game in that fashion, creating time, after time, good looks, very often incredible ones, to me defines the game and will take this team further than all the assists put out by any team that played tonight. Much further.

Parker has a whole lot, and I mean a whole lot of moving parts, moving a whole lot of distance in sequential fashion to bring the ball from way low with his body bent over all the way to an upright, hyperextension of his back with an above the head release. For a 3-ball. There's an awful lot there that has to be timed just right, way too much. He needs to play quick games of horse with Hood, Rasheed, Dawkins, or Cook as often as possible. Only 3-shots. The other guy has to mimic exactly, or nearly so, the entire shooting motion the first guy uses. If the first guy misses, you still follow. You make, he get's to make it on top of you. Otherwise H.

He spends even 15 minutes each practice day doing that, in two weeks you will see a much different and more reliable 3-ball from Parker. Guaranteed.

Will emulating Parkers' style hurt theirs'? The brain is attracted to what is easy and elegant. What do you think?

Billy Dat
02-25-2014, 10:29 PM
It's a little tough for me to question playing Jefferson-Parker-Hood-Sulaimon-Thornton heavy minutes as a group when they were by far our most effective lineup. It certainly wouldn't shock me if today's rotations were similar to what we will have in most games if no one is in foul trouble, though I would guess if either Dawkins or Cook heats up (neither was highly effective today), they will grab some more second-half minutes from either Thornton or Sulaimon.


Yeah - Elmore even used that expression on the play where Parker got stuffed by the rim on the dunk attempt after a pass from Rasheed. He looked like he had pretty good lift though on the breakaway dunk a few minutes later. It did seem to me that he was breathing very heavy during the early parts of the game. I've noticed that in a number of games this year. I think the coaching staff needs to find the right substitution pattern for him to keep his legs fresh during games. This 8 day break is a great thing right now for this team.

In the press conference, K said a few things about the rotation:

-He likes the way the recent starters have gelled, Tyler, Rasheed, Amile, Jabari and Rodney
-He said with this time off, he needs to work on the rotation. In his words, "Andre should be playing better and Quinn should be playing better", but he was saying it in regards to how they are being worked in to the rotation and that being sub-optimal.
-In his words, "We aren't going to 5 man substitute - we need a real rotation"
-He mentioned Marshall's improved play and that further complicates the rotation.
-He said Jabari and Rodney have to be on the floor a lot, as much as possible, so that also has to be considered.

That tells me Jones is off the radar and he is focused on the starters plus Quinn, Andre and Marshall - a rotation of 8.

Troublemaker
02-25-2014, 11:12 PM
I think our offense -- our shooting, to be precise -- will return to normal after this long break we're about to take. This recent stretch of ragged 3-pt shooting does put a dent in my previous hopes to sell this team as the best 3-pt-shooting team of all time, but c'est la vie. Ball movement was good in this game; we just missed shots. Defense played well. If the bench could've played better after Duke got a 24-5 lead, they would've ended up playing A LOT because that's what happens in blowouts; alas, the game became competitive again. Regardless, I'm pleased that our guys got out with our health intact. Not much else to say.

Zeb
02-25-2014, 11:28 PM
Was it just me or was Elmore particularly insufferable tonight?

I'm not sure what was more annoying:
- Acting concerned we were only 3-11 from 3pt land when we were up 19-4.
- Gasping about how much contact was being allowed (only by Duke of course)
- Being ignorant of the huge progress Marshall has been making of late
- In a game where VT scored 48 points, continually questioning our defense
- Shorter version of his post-game question to Rodney: "You're really versatile. Is that as valuable as it appears?"

This could have been a game where Duke's effort after a grueling and unprecedented 5 games in 11 days stretch was celebrated. Instead we had got Len in full curmudgeon mode pouting and whining for the whole broadcast. Why does he still have a job? He just makes the game less fun to watch.

Furniture
02-25-2014, 11:40 PM
Len " the problem is" Elmore?
I didn't notice a thing.

Kedsy
02-25-2014, 11:56 PM
This could have been a game where Duke's effort after a grueling and unprecedented 5 games in 11 days stretch...

Minor quibble: It doesn't happen too often, but it's hardly unprecedented. Just last season we played 5 games in 11 days (November 18 to 28). The season before that (2011-12), we played 5 games in 9 days (November 15 to 23). There are others if you go further back, like in 1991 when we played 5 games in 10 days (February 7 to February 16), including two ranked teams and three ACC games, and the most grueling I could find: 8 games in 17 days to open the 1985-86 season (November 21 to December 7), including games in 5 cities (2 true road games), 3 ranked opponents, and only two home games, one of them our ACC opener.

burnspbesq
02-26-2014, 12:30 AM
What shall we all do this weekend?

Full slate of ACC lacrosse games on Saturday: Duke-MD, UNC-ND, and Cuse-UVa.

Or you can find a local movie theater that shows the live Metropolitan Opera broadcasts and check out Prince Igor.

heyman25
02-26-2014, 01:21 AM
I think our offense -- our shooting, to be precise -- will return to normal after this long break we're about to take. This recent stretch of ragged 3-pt shooting does put a dent in my previous hopes to sell this team as the best 3-pt-shooting team of all time, but c'est la vie. Ball movement was good in this game; we just missed shots. Defense played well. If the bench could've played better after Duke got a 24-5 lead, they would've ended up playing A LOT because that's what happens in blowouts; alas, the game became competitive again. Regardless, I'm pleased that our guys got out with our health intact. Not much else to say.

They need practice at shooting. Take some extra time in the gym during this break. This kind of shooting could lead to a swift exit in post season play.

ElSid
02-26-2014, 01:31 AM
Hoped and expected for this to be kind of a boring / uneventful game. No major red flags. Biggest positives were how well Rasheed played on defense and how well Rodney played on offense. Everything else? Eh. Thornton 7 assists no turnovers, Rasheed 5 assists no turnovers. Good to see Amile have a more positive night against the lesser competition. People on here were worried about a little slump, but I think he just didn't match up well against UNC and he got into a lot of foul trouble. He's fine.

I think we're fine here heading into the Wake game and then the UNC rematch, which I also feel fine about. Barring injury, I don't know if a lot will change between now and the tournament. Which is fine. We'll enter the tourney as one of the 5-8 teams with the best chance to win. Everything's fine. Keep on truckin'.

Edouble
02-26-2014, 01:45 AM
I agree. Those five are our five best players currently.

I would actually go with Parker, Hood, Jefferson, Sulaimon, and Plumlee (not Thornton) as our current best five players.

Rodney was looking like a complete zone breaker out there, with two 3 pointers as his first made field goals, followed by the work he did at the free throw line (with the clock was running). I feel really good about our chances against zones going forward.

Pretty mediocre night for Jabari. His shot selection needs to be better if we are going to get to the Final Four. He's in the discussion as a NPOY and a first pick in the NBA Draft... so I know he is capable of consistent greatness. Perhaps he was tired tonight, but we will need better performances in March if we want to cut down any nets.


Was it just me or was Elmore particularly insufferable tonight?

I'm not sure what was more annoying:
- Acting concerned we were only 3-11 from 3pt land when we were up 19-4.
- Gasping about how much contact was being allowed (only by Duke of course)
- Being ignorant of the huge progress Marshall has been making of late
- In a game where VT scored 48 points, continually questioning our defense
- Shorter version of his post-game question to Rodney: "You're really versatile. Is that as valuable as it appears?"

This could have been a game where Duke's effort after a grueling and unprecedented 5 games in 11 days stretch was celebrated. Instead we had got Len in full curmudgeon mode pouting and whining for the whole broadcast. Why does he still have a job? He just makes the game less fun to watch.

I thought Elmore actually had his best night of the season. Based on the ESPN Bias thread, I kept careful track of his reaction to the fouls. He actually had a negative reaction to only one call against Virginia Tech... the first call of the game when Jabari's defender was whistled for a foul under the basket. Other than that, he either criticized the Virginia Tech players ("That was an obvious offensive foul") or had no comment.

I found that a lot of his discussion about Duke was related to his comments at the start of the program that Duke is one of about ten teams that could make the Final Four. He mentioned several times that his critique was given with that in mind.

CBecker
02-26-2014, 02:25 AM
Everyone's already pointed it out, but I have to say I'm really liking Hood operating around the foul line against the zone like he has the last couple of games. Lots of quality shots were generated there tonight. Good sign for future games!
Everyone defended well but gotta give a shoutout to Rasheeds defense tonight, gave them nothing at all.

ice-9
02-26-2014, 04:20 AM
In the press conference, K said a few things about the rotation:

-He likes the way the recent starters have gelled, Tyler, Rasheed, Amile, Jabari and Rodney
-He said with this time off, he needs to work on the rotation. In his words, "Andre should be playing better and Quinn should be playing better", but he was saying it in regards to how they are being worked in to the rotation and that being sub-optimal.
-In his words, "We aren't going to 5 man substitute - we need a real rotation"
-He mentioned Marshall's improved play and that further complicates the rotation.
-He said Jabari and Rodney have to be on the floor a lot, as much as possible, so that also has to be considered.

That tells me Jones is off the radar and he is focused on the starters plus Quinn, Andre and Marshall - a rotation of 8.

Does that mean we'll have to go small when Parker and Rodney go to the bench? Without Parker, that sounds like Plumlee and Amile in the post...we'll probably be great at rebounding (Marshall doesn't grab many, but he boxes out) and limited offensively in the block. In this mode I can see us try to be the 2010 team with superior offensive rebounding and lots of 3-point shooting.

jv001
02-26-2014, 08:46 AM
Jones was starting not too long ago, and he's one of our best perimeter defenders. How is he not deserving of a little more run in a game that was never really in question? And the fact that Semi won't be getting into many games going forward is MORE reason to give him a chance to get some game action here.

I have high hopes for Matt as well, but for a player with a very good reputation as a shooter in high school. He has been a terrible shooter so far on the college level. His stats: .319% FG, .158% 3s, .590% FT. He has 4 assists and 4 turnovers. I know these numbers are in limited minutes, but he has not taken advantage of the time he has gotten. His jump shot is he more of a push shot and he usually hurries it. I believe if he had some lift on his shot, he would not have to hurry it. I think Matt is the type player to work on his game during the summer and I'm sure the coaching staff will help him improve. As for the rest of this season, I think he could come off the bench and give the team a lift on defense. The three players that I was surprised to see get relative short minutes were; Andre, Quinn and Marshall. I think Coach K addressed the rotation regarding all three in his post game presser. GoDuke!

whereinthehellami
02-26-2014, 08:56 AM
Len Elmore word associations - Eeyore, wet-blanket, NO!, mute...

flyingdutchdevil
02-26-2014, 09:21 AM
1) First 10 minutes were really fun. Next 30 minutes were meh....

2) Rasheed's D on the PG was something else. He looked incredibly focused, moreso than I've seen him all year.

3) Rodney Hood has made himself a lot of money in the last 3-4 games. He was always going to be a lottery pick, but I think his ability to consistently hit that mid-range is such a unique skill. Because of this zone, Rodney hasn't been driving as much. But I don't mind as much. His mid-range is something else.

4) Who is this MP3 guy? I remember Marshall being a tall stiff from November to January. Now? The dude is beginning to look as athletic as his brothers. I am loving it. Absolutely loving it.

5) Why have Quinn's minutes been reduced? I thought that he played well against UNC. He shot poorly against Syracuse, but that can't be it, can it?

6) Cameron Crazies were on fire. And then they weren't. Just like players, the Crazies do get emotional fatigue.

7) What is DBR going to do for a week now that we don't have games? :(

daveyro
02-26-2014, 09:23 AM
Reminded me of Jack (Goose) Givens, who tore up Duke's zone from the middle in the 1978 National Championship.

Looks like Rodney is becoming more familiar and better with that role; can be very important against UNC, Syracuse, and others.

Basketball minds greater than mine, which is most of you, might explain why we used the perimeter to shoot over Oranage Zone instead of the aforementioned attack from the middle. Is there a difference in their zone schemes, or just the quickness of their players to close down the mid-range shot? or something else?

Matches
02-26-2014, 09:26 AM
Does that mean we'll have to go small when Parker and Rodney go to the bench? Without Parker, that sounds like Plumlee and Amile in the post...we'll probably be great at rebounding (Marshall doesn't grab many, but he boxes out) and limited offensively in the block. In this mode I can see us try to be the 2010 team with superior offensive rebounding and lots of 3-point shooting.

In competitive postseason games, I think the question of what we do when Parker and Hood are on the bench will be mostly a theoretical one, barring foul trouble. But yes, K has shown a willingness to use Amile and MP3 together when Parker is out of the game. Another option would be the lineup we saw for awhile in the 2nd half last night, with Dawkins and Hood at the forward spots. (This lineup seems especially useful against a zone.)

If Hood has to sit for an extended time, I'd expect to see Dawkins soak up most of those minutes, or we'd go three guards with Cook/ TT/ Sheed.

flyingdutchdevil
02-26-2014, 09:28 AM
Basketball minds greater than mine, which is most of you, might explain why we used the perimeter to shoot over Oranage Zone instead of the aforementioned attack from the middle. Is there a difference in their zone schemes, or just the quickness of their players to close down the mid-range shot? or something else?

We did. Rodney Hood did the exact game thing about Syracuse that he did last night.

Matches
02-26-2014, 09:28 AM
5) Why have Quinn's minutes been reduced? I thought that he played well against UNC. He shot poorly against Syracuse, but that can't be it, can it?


He's playing poorly, and his role isn't particularly well-defined when he comes off the bench. At times last night he wasn't the primary ballhandler even when TT was out of the game. Quinn is going through a lot of the same stuff Sheed went through earlier this year IMO - hopefully he makes a similar recovery. I still believe our offense is at its best when Quinn is running it and playing well.

Brockt10
02-26-2014, 09:38 AM
1) First 10 minutes were really fun. Next 30 minutes were meh....

2) Rasheed's D on the PG was something else. He looked incredibly focused, moreso than I've seen him all year.

3) Rodney Hood has made himself a lot of money in the last 3-4 games. He was always going to be a lottery pick, but I think his ability to consistently hit that mid-range is such a unique skill. Because of this zone, Rodney hasn't been driving as much. But I don't mind as much. His mid-range is something else.

4) Who is this MP3 guy? I remember Marshall being a tall stiff from November to January. Now? The dude is beginning to look as athletic as his brothers. I am loving it. Absolutely loving it.

5) Why have Quinn's minutes been reduced? I thought that he played well against UNC. He shot poorly against Syracuse, but that can't be it, can it?

6) Cameron Crazies were on fire. And then they weren't. Just like players, the Crazies do get emotional fatigue.

7) What is DBR going to do for a week now that we don't have games? :(

I was at the game and loved sheed's D. My friend (not a duke fan) was with me and said he thought he saw VT's point guard crying within the first 2 minutes. Rodney played amazingly but I wish he could grab a few more rebounds. Quinn, in person, is the slowest defender on our team by a long shot. He got beat off the dribble several times which resulted in help defense and an open man down low. The best chant of the night from the crazies was "Just like football."

MChambers
02-26-2014, 09:40 AM
Basketball minds greater than mine, which is most of you, might explain why we used the perimeter to shoot over Oranage Zone instead of the aforementioned attack from the middle. Is there a difference in their zone schemes, or just the quickness of their players to close down the mid-range shot? or something else?
In the first Syracuse game, their perimeter defenders were collapsing on the guy in the lane, so we shot over the zone. In the second Syracuse game, their perimeter players were not collapsing, so Rodney shot from the lane.

We did a mix of both last night, but the outside shots just weren't fallling. We got great outside shots, but couldn't make them.

jv001
02-26-2014, 09:43 AM
He's playing poorly, and his role isn't particularly well-defined when he comes off the bench. At times last night he wasn't the primary ballhandler even when TT was out of the game. Quinn is going through a lot of the same stuff Sheed went through earlier this year IMO - hopefully he makes a similar recovery. I still believe our offense is at its best when Quinn is running it and playing well.

I was wondering the same thing, why isn't Quinn playing more? I answered myself(I do that at times), Coach K might be resting his injured ankles or knee. We then have 8 days off in which he can rest ever more. As for Andre, I have no clue? GoDuke!

brevity
02-26-2014, 09:46 AM
What shall we all do this weekend?

My buddy Len Elmore and I will be visiting movie theaters, stopping families on their way in and reminding them that "LEGOS" is not a word. Officially, the brand "LEGO®" is both singular and plural, but if that makes people uncomfortable, saying "LEGO® brand building bricks" or even just "LEGO® bricks" is acceptable. Everything is awesome, except the poor use of the English language.

Rain is in the forecast, so we're calling it Wet Blanket Weekend.

daveyro
02-26-2014, 09:51 AM
We did. Rodney Hood did the exact game thing about Syracuse that he did last night.
I looked at the box scores and you are correct re: Hood. I wonder if players other than Hood were also doing that? - I don't record and re-watch so I don't know if anyone else was hitting mid -range shots. And my memory is shot from too many shots.....

brevity
02-26-2014, 09:56 AM
What shall we all do this weekend?

I'm pretty good friends with Jim Boeheim and Phil Collins. They're coming to visit me, and we plan to attend a few parades celebrating Mardi Gras. If tradition holds, there will be a fun-but-not-dangerous level of intoxication, and I expect Phil to enter at least one French Quarter establishment and announce, "I'm renaming this place Sussudio!" Jim holds his liquor better, but this year he'll probably run up and down Bourbon Street and yell at anyone wearing a striped shirt.

It should be warm outside, so we're calling it No Jacket Required Weekend.

brevity
02-26-2014, 10:10 AM
What shall we all do this weekend?

Right now I'm only e-mail friends with Russian curler Anna Sidorova, but I would like that to change. Fresh off the Sochi Olympics, she's doing a brief tour through the United States as part of her Bible study group. She's planning on attending Lakewood Church in Houston this Sunday, where TV preacher and best-selling author Joel Osteen will deliver a sermon. I'll be flying in and meeting with them after. I'm not a Bible expert, but I figure this would be a good time to learn.

Weather might be windy and cold, so we're calling it Curling Up with a Good Book Weekend.

Marc81
02-26-2014, 10:15 AM
Len Elmore word associations - Eeyore, wet-blanket, NO!, mute...

Mute is the only good answer for his mind numbing dialog. I tried to tune him out it just wasn't working. Both my wife and I hate when we get him. I would much rather have anyone else. Atleast he is not paired with mike Patrick anymore.

If I had a gun with 2 bullets in it and I was in a room with Len Elmore, Sadam Hussein and Hitler then I would shoot Len Elmore twice.

60's Devil
02-26-2014, 10:16 AM
Elmore in so many words said that over reliance on the three and suspect defense would keep us from the big prize. He later reiterated that teams that rely on the three are doomed when they are not falling. It is almost like he is longing for that tournament game to arrive.

Matches
02-26-2014, 10:16 AM
Elmore at the movies would be great. You could listen for about twenty minutes as he explains his overly-complicated method for ranking movies. He undoubtedly has devised a complex mathematical formula that assigns a huge amount of weight to some statistic that has nothing to do with the quality of the movie, such that all the spots go to the movies with the highest box office. He will then claim he is "not good at math" but that he stands by the results.

CBecker
02-26-2014, 10:18 AM
I was wondering the same thing, why isn't Quinn playing more? I answered myself(I do that at times), Coach K might be resting his injured ankles or knee. We then have 8 days off in which he can rest ever more. As for Andre, I have no clue? GoDuke!

Coach K said he loves the chemistry the starting 5 are developing and that Cook needs to make a bigger impact than what he is showing. Hardly sounds to me like he's injured.

nocilla
02-26-2014, 10:20 AM
I thought Elmore actually had his best night of the season. Based on the ESPN Bias thread, I kept careful track of his reaction to the fouls. He actually had a negative reaction to only one call against Virginia Tech... the first call of the game when Jabari's defender was whistled for a foul under the basket. Other than that, he either criticized the Virginia Tech players ("That was an obvious offensive foul") or had no comment.

I found that a lot of his discussion about Duke was related to his comments at the start of the program that Duke is one of about ten teams that could make the Final Four. He mentioned several times that his critique was given with that in mind.

He also murmured one time that there was an awful lot of contact with no call while VT was trying to score in the post. Immediately follwed by "I don't know what the refs are doing."

brevity
02-26-2014, 10:31 AM
What shall we all do this weekend?

Okay, last one.

The Academy Awards are broadcast live this Sunday. I won't try to lie and pretend that I'll be in attendance or anything. I'm not that connected.

I will, however, be throwing a fairly elaborate party. The first challenge is trying to clean up the place; my fastidious nature ordinarily clashes with my slovenly roommate. But even he is willing to keep the place looking sparkly for our guests. We brought in this rock band willing to perform the National Anthem -- apparently they made a big impression last weekend in Daytona. We've set up a regulation hoop in the driveway for Miles and Mason Plumlee. Also scheduled to attend are actress Lauren Graham, actor Kevin Bacon, and New Zealand author Eleanor Catton.

The invitation cards were large, so we're calling it the Oscar Madison Rising Stars Hollow Man Booker Prize Weekend.

MChambers
02-26-2014, 10:44 AM
What shall we all do this weekend?
I'm attending a tropical fish convention in Gaithersburg, MD. Thought it was nice of Coach K to give me the weekend off so I could attend.

http://capitalcichlids.org/aquamania/

DBFAN
02-26-2014, 10:47 AM
He also murmured one time that there was an awful lot of contact with no call while VT was trying to score in the post. Immediately follwed by "I don't know what the refs are doing."

I was at that game last night and can't believe that any announcer would have said VT was getting shafted. I was behind our basket for the first half and I can tell you the only team getting hosed was us. They were hacking, slapping, anything they could, and the refs just let them do what they want. I really think sometimes when a team is getting blown out the refs start having sympathy for them. The PG was continually carrying the ball. On one play he carried the ball, then got tapped on the arm, took about 4 steps, then shot a lay up and got the continuation. It was a horrible call by the refs to give him that. I pretty sure most of the fans in there had no idea what had happened, because nobody really reacted, since there was no way on earth it could have been a continuation. I'm pretty sure the refs in the NBA were shaking their heads at that one

davekay1971
02-26-2014, 10:48 AM
Mrs. Davekay1971 and I will be getting away from our dearly beloved progeny, ditching them with Grandma while we fly our tired rear-ends to Paradise Island for some well deserved weekend R&R. The fact that we're not missing a Duke game to do it is a happy coincidence, but I'll take it.

I won't be contributing to the "ymmm...beer" thread this weekend, but I will be contributing to a "Why is the rum gone?" thread if anyone wishes to start one.

DBFAN
02-26-2014, 10:54 AM
Is the Zome the only thing we are going to see for the rest of the year. I am really getting tired of watching it. It makes the game sooooo slow and boring. I would like to take this time to than the NCAA for creating this mess, maybe we will get a national championship game with a final score of 47-45. Because as everyone knows hand checking is the worst thing to ever happen to basketball and we must be rid of it

Gewebe14
02-26-2014, 11:04 AM
Was it just me or was Elmore particularly insufferable tonight?

I'm not sure what was more annoying:
- Acting concerned we were only 3-11 from 3pt land when we were up 19-4.
- Gasping about how much contact was being allowed (only by Duke of course)
- Being ignorant of the huge progress Marshall has been making of late
- In a game where VT scored 48 points, continually questioning our defense
- Shorter version of his post-game question to Rodney: "You're really versatile. Is that as valuable as it appears?"

This could have been a game where Duke's effort after a grueling and unprecedented 5 games in 11 days stretch was celebrated. Instead we had got Len in full curmudgeon mode pouting and whining for the whole broadcast. Why does he still have a job? He just makes the game less fun to watch.

He is completely insufferable every game. Literally every single sentence he utters falls into one of 3 categories:
1. Cheering for the other team, or lamenting them not making the good/right play
2. Complaining about a call that went Duke's way
3. Talking about Duke's weaknesses or something that we aren't doing well

I cannot believe that ESPN allows it.

-bdbd
02-26-2014, 11:14 AM
What shall we all do this weekend?

Well, we could suddenly all become huge VPI and Notre Dame fans.

UNC BB Sked:
Wed, Feb 26 NC State * at Raleigh, N.C. 8:00 PM ACC Network

Sat, Mar 01 Virginia Tech * at Blacksburg, Va. 2:30 PM ACC Network

Mon, Mar 03 Notre Dame * Chapel Hill, N.C. 7:00 PM ESPN

Sat, Mar 08 Duke * at Durham, N.C. 9:00 PM ESPN


Interesting scheduling quirk: Between now and when Duke plays its next game, UNC will have to play THREE times. Here's hoping somebody jumps up and bites them... (especially tonight at State or maybe ND revives themselves). :confused:

roywhite
02-26-2014, 11:15 AM
Coach K said he loves the chemistry the starting 5 are developing and that Cook needs to make a bigger impact than what he is showing. Hardly sounds to me like he's injured.

Rasheed and Tyler have become a very good back court combo, particularly on defense. Rasheed has become a good on-ball defender, and has been able to force the primary ball handler further from the basket. This in turn has allowed Tyler to anticipate passes and go for steals.

I'll buy the point I've seen here that our offense runs best when Quinn is playing well, but the Rasheed/Tyler combo has taken the Duke defense to another level.

Channing
02-26-2014, 11:24 AM
We haven't been out of the 60s in 5 games I think. This coming after some absurd offensive efficiency. I really think we are built to shred a zone with Rodney at the FT line, we just need to make the open outside shots. When SU pinches on Rodney it should open corner and wing jumpers. If we get back to shooting well, we'll be fine. However, if we see more of the brick-fest that we had last night, it could be a teeth-gnashing close to the season.

tbyers11
02-26-2014, 11:40 AM
Is the Zome the only thing we are going to see for the rest of the year. I am really getting tired of watching it. It makes the game sooooo slow and boring. I would like to take this time to than the NCAA for creating this mess, maybe we will get a national championship game with a final score of 47-45. Because as everyone knows hand checking is the worst thing to ever happen to basketball and we must be rid of it

Depends on who we play. If we meet teams that play exclusively zone (Syracuse, Miami, or VT) we definitely we will. We may see teams that don't typically play zone throw some at us (a la UNC). However, I think that chance decreases dramatically as we enter conference and NCAA tourney time. With the decreased time between games, I don't think many teams that don't regularly play zone are going to spring it on us. My reasoning is that you have to at least practice some zone to be adequate at.

Maybe, we face some unexpected zone in a Sweet 16 game (should we get there) when our opponent would have 4 or 5 days to prepare. I just don't see many teams, especially the caliber of teams that we would like face in the later rounds of the ACC or NCAA tourney, switching up their defensive scheme with little preparation time. Then again, Utah beat Arizona in the Elite 8 in 1998 by triangle-and-2 with only a day to prepare. So who really knows.

azzefkram
02-26-2014, 11:40 AM
We won which is always a good thing. Our O still looks suspect without Quinn running it but our D is much better. Speaking of Quinn, he just looks lost out there. I hope this break allows him to clear his head and regroup. We have a pretty significant issue if Quinn doesn't snap out of it. I know people are wondering why Dre isn't playing more but he seems to be in the same boat as Quinn. Dre hit the side of the backboard on a shot. I didn't think that was physically possible. Marshall is stepping up nicely. Amile had a good bounceback game. Rodney is so crazy good on the offensive end it's just silly at times. Jabari didn't shoot well but he certainly racked up the stats.

As for the weekend, I am going to pretend I'm sacrificing a Duke game to spend more quality time with the family. I'm guessing that will work on my wife for about 90 seconds, but I am probably overly optimistic on that estimation.

roywhite
02-26-2014, 11:47 AM
We haven't been out of the 60s in 5 games I think. This coming after some absurd offensive efficiency. I really think we are built to shred a zone with Rodney at the FT line, we just need to make the open outside shots. When SU pinches on Rodney it should open corner and wing jumpers. If we get back to shooting well, we'll be fine. However, if we see more of the brick-fest that we had last night, it could be a teeth-gnashing close to the season.

We finished 10-33 from 3-pt, 30.3% on tired legs, so that's not disastrous. The season's average is down to 40.1%, which is still excellent.

In round numbers, Duke shoots 40% from 3-pt and makes over 9 per game. Our opponents shoot 30% from 3-pt and make fewer than 4 per game. Huge advantage.

tbyers11
02-26-2014, 11:48 AM
I think our offense -- our shooting, to be precise -- will return to normal after this long break we're about to take. This recent stretch of ragged 3-pt shooting does put a dent in my previous hopes to sell this team as the best 3-pt-shooting team of all time, but c'est la vie. Ball movement was good in this game; we just missed shots. Defense played well. If the bench could've played better after Duke got a 24-5 lead, they would've ended up playing A LOT because that's what happens in blowouts; alas, the game became competitive again. Regardless, I'm pleased that our guys got out with our health intact. Not much else to say.

I really agree, and hope :D, that our outside shooting will be better after the 8 day layoff. With so many games in such a short window the players don't get much time to actually work on their shot. Between the travel, film study, offensive and defensive game plan walk-throughs, and the actual games themselves there has been very little time to actually practice things like shooting. When your shot gets off you want to get some reps in. Also, the chance to reset and refresh should help any mental and/or physical fatigue that was affecting the shot as well.

CBecker
02-26-2014, 12:46 PM
Rasheed and Tyler have become a very good back court combo, particularly on defense. Rasheed has become a good on-ball defender, and has been able to force the primary ball handler further from the basket. This in turn has allowed Tyler to anticipate passes and go for steals.

I'll buy the point I've seen here that our offense runs best when Quinn is playing well, but the Rasheed/Tyler combo has taken the Duke defense to another level.

Was interesting that even when Quinn was in the game, he wasn't running the offense, he was playing off the ball.

Channing
02-26-2014, 12:50 PM
We finished 10-33 from 3-pt, 30.3% on tired legs, so that's not disastrous. The season's average is down to 40.1%, which is still excellent.

In round numbers, Duke shoots 40% from 3-pt and makes over 9 per game. Our opponents shoot 30% from 3-pt and make fewer than 4 per game. Huge advantage.

yes, 10-33 on tired legs is not terrible, but certainly not what we have become accustomed to seeing. But we were also 7/21 against SU (33.3%), 5/22 against UNC (22%), 10/18 against GT (this was great), and 5/24 against UMD (21%). So 4 of the last 5 have seen a marked drop in 3pt%. That is a trend we need to reverse. I know we have been great on the year, and our numbers are still great for the year, but in the what have you done for me lately category, we are shooting just north of 31% for the last 5 games (and that includes GT). For our offense to click on all cylinders I would say that needs to be up at least around 37/38%.

oldnavy
02-26-2014, 01:00 PM
yes, 10-33 on tired legs is not terrible, but certainly not what we have become accustomed to seeing. But we were also 7/21 against SU (33.3%), 5/22 against UNC (22%), 10/18 against GT (this was great), and 5/24 against UMD (21%). So 4 of the last 5 have seen a marked drop in 3pt%. That is a trend we need to reverse. I know we have been great on the year, and our numbers are still great for the year, but in the what have you done for me lately category, we are shooting just north of 31% for the last 5 games (and that includes GT). For our offense to click on all cylinders I would say that needs to be up at least around 37/38%.

Our shooters are good... downward tics are to be expected. Hopefully some time to de-stress will help.

Good news is these guys have the form down pat so it isn't like we have marginal shooters that need to step up and get better, we have outstanding shooters that just need to get back to baseline...

What has given me hope is that in the last couple of games when our offense hasn't been there our Defense has kept us in the games.... that is really a welcomed development.

In the UNC game for example, we had an absolute HORRID stretch on offense, yet we stayed in the game... if we would have just been awful that night on offense in the second half, I believe we pull it out...

The guys are seeming to "get it" now, with far fewer breakdowns... a good thing...

Dukehky
02-26-2014, 01:22 PM
Last night wasn't particularly fun to watch, it didn't look fun to play in, but at this point in the season, it's about getting wins and we got one last night without too much emotional investment. I look to see us come out really strong after a week off. Speaking of next week...

Is Wake Forest still a good team in the Joel or can I coast through the next game with marginal concern? I know CMM didn't play last game, which is a big deal, but not 20 points worth of a big deal right?

roywhite
02-26-2014, 02:11 PM
Last night wasn't particularly fun to watch, it didn't look fun to play in, but at this point in the season, it's about getting wins and we got one last night without too much emotional investment. I look to see us come out really strong after a week off. Speaking of next week...

Is Wake Forest still a good team in the Joel or can I coast through the next game with marginal concern? I know CMM didn't play last game, which is a big deal, but not 20 points worth of a big deal right?


Wake has lost 3 times at home this year, but still play considerably better at home than on the road.

Living in the Winston-Salem area, I hear very little support for Coach Bzdelik. The team may have tuned him out already, but the other possibility would be a coach and team desperate for a big win vs mighty Duke. We've seen that before.

Kedsy
02-26-2014, 02:13 PM
Is Wake Forest still a good team in the Joel or can I coast through the next game with marginal concern? I know CMM didn't play last game, which is a big deal, but not 20 points worth of a big deal right?

This season, Wake is 13-3 playing at home and 2-10 when not playing at home. Last season Wake was 11-5 at home and 2-13 when not at home.

We're certainly the favorite in the game, but I wouldn't coast if I were you.

ChillinDuke
02-26-2014, 02:29 PM
Okay, last one.

The Academy Awards are broadcast live this Sunday. I won't try to lie and pretend that I'll be in attendance or anything. I'm not that connected.

I will, however, be throwing a fairly elaborate party. The first challenge is trying to clean up the place; my fastidious nature ordinarily clashes with my slovenly roommate. But even he is willing to keep the place looking sparkly for our guests. We brought in this rock band willing to perform the National Anthem -- apparently they made a big impression last weekend in Daytona. We've set up a regulation hoop in the driveway for Miles and Mason Plumlee. Also scheduled to attend are actress Lauren Graham, actor Kevin Bacon, and New Zealand author Eleanor Catton.

The invitation cards were large, so we're calling it the Oscar Madison Rising Stars Hollow Man Booker Prize Weekend.

More.

After all, we have all week.

- Chillin

Dukehky
02-26-2014, 03:20 PM
This season, Wake is 13-3 playing at home and 2-10 when not playing at home. Last season Wake was 11-5 at home and 2-13 when not at home.

We're certainly the favorite in the game, but I wouldn't coast if I were you.

I'll be sure to get some extra jump-shots in before the game then.

Note: I actually do go to the Y and shoot before big games. Apologies for going to the UNC game last week, didn't get a chance to get in the gym. That one is on me guys.

Indoor66
02-26-2014, 08:06 PM
Mrs. Davekay1971 and I will be getting away from our dearly beloved progeny, ditching them with Grandma while we fly our tired rear-ends to Paradise Island for some well deserved weekend R&R. The fact that we're not missing a Duke game to do it is a happy coincidence, but I'll take it.

I won't be contributing to the "ymmm...beer" thread this weekend, but I will be contributing to a "Why is the rum gone?" thread if anyone wishes to start one.

Should that be "Where has all the rum gone?"

-jk
02-26-2014, 08:07 PM
Should that be "Where has all the rum gone?"

Hic!

LBF
02-26-2014, 08:25 PM
We are stuck in 2012/13. I'd like us to turn the page on always trying to take a charge. The refs are not going to call it anymore (except one relatively recent important call of note) I'd like see us actively trying to defend in the lane. It's a very low proposition bet these days and we are most likely getting called with the block anyway so why not get aggressive? I know the charge is a Duke staple but it's history now. Time to move on. ACC defense is no longer about standing still with your hands on your junk, waiting for someone to smash into you.

Saratoga2
02-27-2014, 09:27 AM
I had a chance to go back and read coach K's quotes and found it interesting to note that he specifically mentioned how Amile was pretty bruised up and the rest would do him some good. Amile played a lot of minutes against big and strong opponents and did well, but it was a grind for him, and having Marshall emerge in the last few games has been a godsend. I would imagine the same kind of thing could be said about our other players racking up major PT during that period. Certainly Jabari was banging inside every night and both Rasheed and Tyler stick their nose in and get banged around but they don't usually face 250 pound centers. Rodney also could be in that list, but again, he is not as much of a banger. All-in-all, the rest is much needed.

The other hope is that Quinn will return from the rest closer to his very good earlier form. He played like he was either tired or hurt. Andre is more of a puzzle. He hasn't had that many minutes and yet he hasn't been able to contribute his scoring. His defense is still not that well thought of. Is it a lack of confidence with him or is something else going on? I know others who watched him shoot in the VT game said he was not off a lot, so maybe he will contribute more going forward. When Andre can come in and get 12 points with 6 shots, it makes the team very hard to beat.

Will Matt see more time going forward? I would think the ACC tournament with so many games close together would be an ideal place to use him. His defense is good and we can forego a lot of offense from him. I doubt if we see a lot of Josh, since his play has not been that solid and Semi is intriguing but he is not likely to be used much during the tournament.

jv001
02-27-2014, 11:58 AM
We are stuck in 2012/13. I'd like us to turn the page on always trying to take a charge. The refs are not going to call it anymore (except one relatively recent important call of note) I'd like see us actively trying to defend in the lane. It's a very low proposition bet these days and we are most likely getting called with the block anyway so why not get aggressive? I know the charge is a Duke staple but it's history now. Time to move on. ACC defense is no longer about standing still with your hands on your junk, waiting for someone to smash into you.

It's going to be interesting to see how the block/charge is going to be called in our games going forward. Will the refs remember the JB dance and call block 90% of the time? GoDuke!