MBB: Duke vs. Wake Forest (Mar 5, 7pm, ESPN2) Pre-Game and In-Game Thread

[JBDuke]

Put your pre-game and in-game thoughts here.

[dukelifer]

Put your pre-game and in-game thoughts here.

I expect early rust. Wake fans will be pumped and thus Wake will make it a game for a half. Hopefully Duke gets back to hitting threes.

[CDu]

Wake Forest is in a tailspin right now. They've lost 8 of their last 9, including 4 of their last 5 at home. Those home losses include losses to GT and BC. They're reeling.

We will be well-rested and should win this by 10+. Maybe not immediately, but this game should not be close down the stretch.

As for Wake's team, they have a talented but inconsistent guard (Miller-McIntyre) and a talented big man who seems to enjoy playing against the better teams (Thomas). McKie is another threat due to his athleticism, but he won't have an edge in size like he often does. Cavanaugh is a very poor man's version of Ryan Kelly.

They have just two guys who shoot well from 3pt range (Williams and Jones). But they are a really bad offensive team and not that good defensively either.

They upset UNC back in early January and they recently beat Clemson. But aside from that, they've done nothing to suggest that they should threaten us.

I want to see a well-rested Duke team come out, hit some early threes, and build a comfortable cushion against an inferior opponent. I'm hoping that our recent cold stretch offensively was due to fatigue from a grueling stretch of the schedule. If we hit our 3s at even a reasonable clip, I don't think Wake can stay with us.

[jv001]

Senior night for Wake's Travis McKie and Coron Williams, a grad student transfer from Robert Morris. The Deacons usually play Duke tough at home and I expect it to be a hard fought game. The Deacs are coming off a tough loss to BC. I think they will be focused on winning this game for the two seniors. Codi-McIntyre-Miller leads the team in scoring at 13.3 ppg. His FG% is .43% but he only makes .212% of this threes. The best three point shooter is Coron Williams who makes .370% of his 3s. The other senior, McKie averages 11.1 ppg (.435% FG) and makes .327% of his 3s. The leading rebounder is Devon Thomas at 7.7rpg. Adala Moto averages 5.2 rpg, however he suffered a knee injury in the first half in the BC game, but he came back to play 11 minutes in the 2nd half. BC coach Steve Donahue in his post game presser said that Wake spreads you out and runs an efficient offense. He said they had a hard time playing man to man against Wake's offense. BC out rebounded Wake by 15 and shot 34 foul shots in the 2nd half. If the Blue Devils can stop dribble penetration, they should come out on top. If Duke's going to foul, then Thomas(51%) and CMM(65%) are the worse free throw shooters. Don't foul Coron Williams(83%) or Travis McKie(80%). I hope Duke doesn't take Wake lightly. I hope the Devils come out hot and keep the Deacs from getting early confidence. GoDuke!

[slower]

I'm hoping that our recent cold stretch offensively was due to fatigue from a grueling stretch of the schedule.

Haven't you heard? These are college kids - they never get tired. At least, that's what so many around here are fond of arguing. :p

[BlueDevilBrowns]

The Deacons usually play Duke tough at home and I expect it to be a hard fought game.

I think they will be focused on winning this game for the two seniors. I hope the Devils come out hot and keep the Deacs from getting early confidence. GoDuke!

Agreed. This is Wake's "Super Bowl" as they have nothing else to play for. The key is Duke coming out HOT from the start and taking control early. If this stays close with 10 minutes left, I'll be nervous.

Individually, I'm looking for improvement from Cook in his quickness and decision making(this would tell me his struggles were more due to injury issues than mental lapses) and a better shooting stroke from Dawkins(compared to recent games).

I would imagine the bench will be shorter(8 men) with Jones, Hairston, and Semi seeing extended(if any) time only if we're up a bunch in the 2nd half.

This is Duke's dress rehearsal for Post-Season play, let's hope the intensity is ramped up!

GO DUKE!

[Troublemaker]

Things I'm hoping to see:


Good 3-pt shooting from us
Quinn and Andre playing well off the bench, a point of emphasis for Coach K in his previous postgame presser. Especially Quinn. He's sort of the key to the season right now (although the key always seems to change as one player goes into a slump as another comes out of it). It's tough to imagine Duke doing big things without Quinn playing well in 25 min/gm. Sheed's emergence as a PG alternative just means we don't need Quinn for 35 min/gm.
Jabari getting the ball inside and scoring more efficiently than he did against VaTech when he got the ball inside. Often, Jabari will have 6'6" Adala-Moto guarding him. Punish that.
Avoid foul trouble. This one is sort of icing on top, but the one thing Wake does well is relentless drive the ball to draw fouls. They are the best ACC team in FTRate, and they shot 32 FTs in the previous meeting in Cameron. If we can defend their drives well without fouling them, then I would consider that to be an overachievement from us and a huge sign of progress defensively when you can take away an opponent's strength.

[TruBlu]

If we have several days in a row off: We will be rusty.

If we don't have several days in a row off: Our legs are tired.

(Is this covered in Throatybeard's manifesto?)


Mainly, I did not like seeing this thread on page 2.

[grad_devil]

This has been the longest break between games. Ever. Feels almost like the off season.

As a fan, I got spoiled by the 5 games/11 days or whatever. I know it wasn't necessarily great for the players, but it seemed like I got to watch a game every other day. Well, more than "seemed like".

Looking forward to seeing our guys play Wake - need to shake the rust off early! I would love to see a breakout game defensively/offensively from Cook - we're going to need the good Quinn if we hope to make a serious run in the upcoming tournaments.

[Mike Corey]

Will be particularly interested in seeing what our rotation is like in this game.

Most specifically, I'm curious to see how much burn Marshall gets.

[moonpie23]

how many of our starters will be fouled out with 6 min to go?

[Kedsy]

Today marks the 7th day in a row in which Duke's men's team has not played a basketball game. Believe it or not, going back all the way to 1983-84, this is the first time we've had a 7 or more day layoff after January 1.

We have had several 6-day layoffs, though. If you're interested, I wrote an article at BDN about it (http://bluedevilnation.net/2014/03/rest-relaxation-duke-plays-long-layoff/).

[peterjswift]

I might be really late to the party with this question and expose my ignorance with scheduling, but why is there such a long break? Doesn't Coach K usually schedule a non-conference game in this void? Is it because there is a longer conference schedule than normal?


Since 2001, Duke's regular season record vs. Wake is: 15-5. All 5 losses were on the road, by an average of 8 points. Wake definitely plays Duke closer at home than they do in Cameron. The difference is actually staggering. Avg. margin for away games @ Wake is 4.2; avg margin for home games is 18.6 pts. So whoever said that WF plays Duke close at Wake is right. Worst loss @ Wake was by 14. Best win @ Wake was by 29.

Anyhow, not that the past years is any indication of tomorrow's game, but it is interesting how much closer the games are @ Wake over the same time period.

[peterjswift]

Today marks the 7th day in a row in which Duke's men's team has not played a basketball game. Believe it or not, going back all the way to 1983-84, this is the first time we've had a 7 or more day layoff after January 1.

We have had several 6-day layoffs, though. If you're interested, I wrote an article at BDN about it (http://bluedevilnation.net/2014/03/rest-relaxation-duke-plays-long-layoff/).

That was an interesting article. I think it would be more interesting to expand it to shooting percentages during those games. Sure Duke won them, but how well was the rust shaken off? Were they shooting okay? What about first half to second half comparisons for those games? But, that just satisfies the stat nerd in me....probably doesn't have much applicable purpose.

I think I'm with everyone else in that I hope Duke jumps out to an early lead so Duke can use this game to "practice" sets against another team. But given that it is an ACC game on a hostile court on Senior night, I think it will be a challenge and a blowout is very unlikely.

[CDu]

I might be really late to the party with this question and expose my ignorance with scheduling, but why is there such a long break? Doesn't Coach K usually schedule a non-conference game in this void? Is it because there is a longer conference schedule than normal?

The answer is yes: Duke used to always have a non-con game wedged in there. And on the rare cases in which we did schedule an "off-day", the schedule would simply work out that we'd have no more than a 6-day layoff.

With the introduction of the 18-game schedule and the introduction of the games on Mondays and removal of games on Thursdays, we now have the opportunity to see a longer layoff in between games.

[Troublemaker]

Today marks the 7th day in a row in which Duke's men's team has not played a basketball game. Believe it or not, going back all the way to 1983-84, this is the first time we've had a 7 or more day layoff after January 1.

We have had several 6-day layoffs, though. If you're interested, I wrote an article at BDN about it (http://bluedevilnation.net/2014/03/rest-relaxation-duke-plays-long-layoff/).

I agree with your conclusion (quoted below):


So what does it all mean leading into tomorrow’s game against Wake Forest? Probably not very much. But I’m leaning toward the side that says the non-opponent-related practice time and allowing our bruises and minor injuries to heal can only help Duke in the long run.

I know that NFL teams prefer their bye weeks to be later rather than earlier (although I haven't read a study demonstrating whether that really is an advantage or not.) I think the same logic applies here. A bye week, then a game to knock off any rust (I don't believe we're really going to be rusty anyway), then Carolina, then postseason play. Seems like a good sequence to me.

[Furniture]

Just bought some tickets! Do you think there will be many Duke fans there?
I would have thought so....

[g-money]

BUMP

Focus, people!

[g-money]

My personal hope for tomorrow's game is that Coach K has tuned up the offense a bit during the break. It would be great to see more ball movement for wide open threes or layups instead of contested mid-range jumpers.

Oh yeah, a win by 10+ points would be nice too. From a blood pressure perspective.

[Bob Green]

Current consensus has Duke favored by 12 points. On top of a win, a couple of things I hope to see tonight are:

1. The team focused for 40 minutes
2. Dawkins' shooting returning to form
3. Continued improvement from MPIII
4. Quinn Cook running the offense and distributing the basketball rather than jacking up 3-pointers

Bench production will be important in the upcoming tournaments so items 2, 3 and 4 are vital to our long term success.

[jv001]

Current consensus has Duke favored by 12 points. On top of a win, a couple of things I hope to see tonight are:

1. The team focused for 40 minutes
2. Dawkins' shooting returning to form
3. Continued improvement from MPIII
4. Quinn Cook running the offense and distributing the basketball rather than jacking up 3-pointers

Bench production will be important in the upcoming tournaments so items 2, 3 and 4 are vital to our long term success.

Bob, you pretty much covered how I feel about tonight's game. Quinn was quoted by one of the Triangle's newspapers saying that Coach K had the team working on their man to man offense, as Wake plays mostly man to man. He also said they worked on defense and rebounding, commenting that's what wins championships. I will throw in this, Duke comes out hungry and knocks Wake back a bit. Destroy any confidence they have(senior night) right away. Also no offensive droughts first half or second half. Keep pouring it on. I would love to see an easy victory for a change at Lawrence Joel. GoDuke!

[DukeDevil]

1. The team focused for 40 minutes
2. Dawkins' shooting returning to form
3. Continued improvement from MPIII
4. Quinn Cook running the offense and distributing the basketball rather than jacking up 3-pointers

All focal points I agree with. I'd like to see us take the wind out of Wake's sails early and keep it that way, no letting them crawl back into it. I'd be very happy with a boring blowout where the commentators have gone through all their "filler material" with 10 minutes left in the game.

[Selover]

What's the over/under on Plumlee dunks tonight?

[pfrduke]

What's the over/under on Plumlee dunks tonight?

I'd set it at 1.5

[flyingdutchdevil]

I'd set it at 1.5

Taking the over. What do I get if I win? ;)

[pfrduke]

Taking the over. What do I get if I win? ;)

The esteem of your peers? (That may be too sweet a pot...)

[flyingdutchdevil]

The esteem of your peers? (That may be too sweet a pot...)

:(

Warren Buffet doesn't have a $1 billion bet on Plumlee dunks?

[-jk]

What's the over/under on Plumlee dunks tonight?

Is that with or without a back-door lob?

-jk

[phaedrus]

Wait, the season's still on?

[Bob Green]

The spread is now 12.5 points with the over/under set at 143 so Vegas is looking for a score in the neighborhood of 78-65.

[Furniture]

Lots of Duke blue at the game!

[riverside6]

Live tempo-based stats for Duke/Wake, starters posted...

http://www.scacchoops.com/ViewHDGame.asp?hSchedule=20152

[rhynelander]

Two Marshall FTs are duke's opening points. Who'd a thunkit?

[jipops]

So much for getting out to a good start. Our offense still looks rough.

[Dukehky]

Making lay-ups would sure be a nice change of pace. I feel like our defense has been good, and they've lucked into a few long threes.

[pfrduke]

Making lay-ups would sure be a nice change of pace. I feel like our defense has been good, and they've lucked into a few long threes.

Including by a guy who hadn't previously made one all season.

[ChrisP]

Not liking the refs so far. How is tackling Quinn on the fast break NOT a foul? And then the Wake player just grabbed Rasheed's arm and ball goes flying but...no call. Nothing to see here, folks :(

[jipops]

Not liking the refs so far. How is tackling Quinn on the fast break NOT a foul? And then the Wake player just grabbed Rasheed's arm and ball goes flying but...no call. Nothing to see here, folks :(

I think it was more the lack of poise on Quinn's part.

[jipops]

Are we sure Wake wasn't favored by 12.5?

[pfrduke]

If I never see another zone defense against us this year, I'll be happy. It's not that we struggle against it - we've seen it enough to play pretty good zone offense - but it's just tiring to watch.

I know my wish is not likely to be granted.

[Dukeface88]

I have to rant for a second: I loathe the "(Team) has not scored a FG in X minutes" graphic. It conveys no information about the game whatsoever and shows up all the time.

[Karl Beem]

OMG! What was that supposed to be?

[NYBri]

If for going to hoist up 1,000,000 3 point shots, why don't we have our best three-point shooter in the game?

I'm really curious as to why Andre Dawkins hasn't gotten more minutes.

[pfrduke]

Not the prettiest of halves. The offensive execution has been generally good (some sloppy turnovers) but we are missing 3s and layups. I think defensive execution has generally been alright too - a little trouble in transition and getting lost on some off ball screens, but the pressure has been high - although definitely room for improvement on that front.

[kshepinthehouse]

If for going to hoist up 1,000,000 3 point shots, why don't we have our best three-point shooter in the game?

I'm really curious as to why Andre Dawkins hasn't gotten more minutes.

I agree. I must have missed something. I'm not are why he only gets a few minutes and then disappears to the bench the rest of the game. That had happened for about 5 games in a row.

[dahntaysdawg]

If for going to hoist up 1,000,000 3 point shots, why don't we have our best three-point shooter in the game?

I'm really curious as to why Andre Dawkins hasn't gotten more minutes.

It's got all the makings of the classic "he's injured and if won't come out till the offseason" situation.

[arnie]

If I never see another zone defense against us this year, I'll be happy. It's not that we struggle against it - we've seen it enough to play pretty good zone offense - but it's just tiring to watch.

I know my wish is not likely to be granted.

Well that was ugly. Hard to see Cook playing much in 2nd half and if Jones can't finish or shoot throws, he won't play. Parker will need to dominate and I bet that's how we win.

[snewman92]

I know Quinn brings a great deal to the court and was on the + side of +/- for the first half. But his indecision when on the ground with that loose ball and esp. that terrible performance on the last possession of the half really makes me worry about what might happen with him in control in a close game with more serious consequences.

[NYBri]

I agree. I must have missed something. I'm not are why he only gets a few minutes and then disappears to the bench the rest of the game. That had happened for about 5 games in a row.

I've got no problem if Andre doesn't play if our offense isn't centered around the three point shot. But if we insist on taking 22 Bazilian three-point shots, then he should be part of that. Am I missing something?

We have the most deadly three-point shooter in the conference. We take a bunch of three-point shots. The best three-point shooter in the conference is sitting on the bench. Someone explain to me the logic.

[DBFAN]

What on earth was that mess, why can we not play well against a freakin zone. Are we not practicing for it. Our PG play is regressing I understand being a little rusty, but this is the end of the season and there really isn't any excuse for this anymore. Missing free throws, not getting to the loose balls, missed lay ups,..etc. ugh just look like we did at the beginning of the year.

[CLW]

Quinn continues to just drive me NUTS during games. HORRIBLE shooting and poor defense. Lucky to be only down 3 and that's due in large part to how PATHETIC Wake is as a basketball team.

[Cameron]

I just wanted to echo the Why The Hell Is Our Best Three Point Shooter On The Bench sentiment.

The substitution pattern of this team sometimes makes me want to lunge for something sharp within reach and poke a hole in my eye.

[jipops]

Quinn poor play has coincided with our poor offensive execution. We just aren't the same team on offense anymore

[oakvillebluedevil]

I just wanted to echo the Why The Hell Is Our Best Three Point Shooter On The Bench sentiment.

The substitution pattern of this team sometimes makes me want to lunge for something sharp within reach and poke a hole in my eye.


Looks like the only thing that drives the board crazier than an 8 day layoff is 20 minutes against a 2-3 zone :)

And I'm completely on board with the craziness. We look very indecisive on offense - lots of hesitations mid-shot throwing off our rhythm. I'm okay with the threes if we step in confidently and let it go.

And can someone get a defensive rebound??

sheeeeeesh - here's hoping we turn it around with a more confident showing this half

[pfrduke]

15 points in the first 5 minutes. Better.

[duke4ever19]

Funny sequence with Hood and Parker there.

[snewman92]

is sick. I can't imagine many other players in the NCAA who could react that quickly to a missed dunk. I'd figure 99% of folks would be momentarily stunned by the missed jam. He hoovers up the rebound and doesn't miss a beat. Loved that!

[gumbomoop]

Two missed thunder-dumbs in first 5 minutes of 2d half. Hope we don't need those 4 easy points at the end.

[Cameron]

Looks like the only thing that drives the board crazier than an 8 day layoff is 20 minutes against a 2-3 zone :)

And I'm completely on board with the craziness. We look very indecisive on offense - lots of hesitations mid-shot throwing off our rhythm. I'm okay with the threes if we step in confidently and let it go.

And can someone get a defensive rebound??

sheeeeeesh - here's hoping we turn it around with a more confident showing this half

Great point re the right and wrong threes to take. In the first half, seldom did we take a shot from outside that we stepped into or caught with the intent to fire. The last two threes by Rasheed were things of beauty. He was ready to step in and shoot upon each delivery. Those are the looks we want.

Good start here early. Time to step on the pedal.

[snewman92]

ANOTHER terrible play by Quinn at the point, leading to Rodney's 4th. I'm not sure what to say.

[CR9]

How many time is that corner 3 gonna be open? They're letting Wake hang around. Don't like it.

[Selover]

Let's get Jon out there to handle the ball.

[Selover]

They could have called that push on the board a long time ago.

[FerryFor50]

Nice flop, Cavanaugh.

[CR9]

No stall ball plz.

[dukeSF]

Cavanaugh has been exaggerating contact the entire night.

[Dukeface88]

You know, it's games like this when I really appreciate the 2010 team. Up by 6 with less than 5 minutes was basically an insurmountable lead for them.

[jwillfan]

Word

[Selover]

How has McKie not been called for a player control foul? Every time he lowers his head and hopes for contact as shown by his face plant when our defender stepped back.

[CR9]

Dreadful.

[jwillfan]

12-0 run. Wow.

[Karl Beem]

What a collapse!

[duke4ever19]

Did Quin Cook just foul??

[jwillfan]

I've seen our team play better.

[ChrisP]

I rarely say this about a Duke team but...this is just a huge choke job. Foul trouble hasn't helped, for sure, but man, have we made a TON of boneheaded plays tonight!!!

[Gmadaduke]

Wow. Just wow. Wow. How are we this unfocused this late in the season?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

[Karl Beem]

How has McKie not been called for a player control foul? Every time he lowers his head and hopes for contact as shown by his face plant when our defender stepped back.

Duke's gotten its last call till Saturday.

[CLW]

SAD effort = SAD result. This team simply cannot stop ANYONE from scoring 125.4 defensive "efficiency" against the 183rd best O in the country. IF they team doesn't hit 3s we won't survive the 1st game in the tourny.

[FerryFor50]

Did Quin Cook just foul??

Must have. I mean, only one team is fouling tonight, apparently (21-12 foul count now).

[arnie]

12-0 run. Wow.

It's actually so bad that its funny. Wake is a horrible team, and we've completely folded. Don't have much confidence going into Saturday

[Dukehky]

This has been horrendous. This is the dumbest Duke team I can remember watching. They have so much talent, but they play like straight idiots sometimes. Rodney fouling on that lay-up attempt for his 4th foul was the worst offense.

There is no excuse for this kind of performance.

[CR9]

They've wanted it more than Duke all game. Piss poor coaching.

[richardjackson199]

Very disappointing. We looked better against the zone with Dawkins on the floor.

[Gthoma2a]

We are about to lose to Wake Forest going into the game against UNC. I don't believe it.

[Sixthman]

They've wanted it more than Duke all game. Piss poor coaching.

Literally.

[18258]

All this so called great offense, and that cant score the dang ball, been a problem for awhile, they look so lost. Great game K

[dbowen]

Bench quinn cook

[Karl Beem]

Why was Hood closing out? You want them to take a 3.

[buddy]

Overrated!

[arnie]

Duke's gotten its last call till Saturday.

It's not about the refs- it's about horrid play by our guards.

[CLW]

I cannot remember a year where we lost to 3 REALLY bad teams like this. Losing to Zona, Cuse, Kansas UNC is one thing. Wake, Notre Dame Clemson - is another. K's rotation is an absolute MESS and the team just has no fire.

[Dukehky]

We may have just saved bzdelik's job tonight by gifting Wake Forest this win. We gave this away.

[18258]

UNC licking their chops now

[Cameron]

Score, Wake, score.

[dbowen]

Bench Quinn Cook

[duke4ever19]

UNC licking their chops now

I know several UNC fans who did NOT want this scenario. Duke coming off a loss playing at home.

Still, this sucks.

[FerryFor50]

Oh look... another court storming. :rolleyes:

[CLW]

Woooo...... lets act like morons and storm the court.

[18258]

another long drought without a field goal, some things never change

[Gthoma2a]

Woooo...... lets act like morons and storm the court.

There is an easy way to keep anyone from ever storming the court against us. Win. They're not the problem. We're the problem. The scenario is completely preventable.

[CLW]

going to give up 80 to wake in 60 something possessions.

[Dukehky]

Can we not foul and just take our beating and go back to Durham? Tyler Freaking Cavanaugh, the new spokesperson for ProActiv destroyed us in this game.

[bbosbbos]

Noticed that several times Wake attacked us very easily when Amile pairing with Hood. Two slim bigs at the same time? I do not know why.

[jipops]

We're just bad on both sides of the court

[CR9]

UNC game all over again. But, like, 10x worse. Parker in the middle of the defense has gotten either a bucket or a foul and he didn't get a touch there in the last 10 minutes.

[Gmadaduke]

I try to be positive about things, but there is nothing redeeming about this. No focus. No effort. I don't get it. WAKE STINKS! I just don't get it.

[duke4ever19]

Well, it's too bad that we couldn't get to watch our starters a bit more, what with several them sitting on the bench with foul trouble for long stretches and all...

It's tough to see our guys sit on the bench, letting this team hand around.

[Ky-Dukie]

Thank goodness Thornton is graduating ! No defense by anyone. Missed FT's. Parker hasn't touched the ball since getting back in the game.

[dbowen]

Bench Quinn Cook

[Duke76]

There is an easy way to keep anyone from ever storming the court against us. Win. They're not the problem. We're the problem. The scenario is completely preventable.

2 and 3 are a mess turnovers and horrible shooting and way too much dribble, dribble, dribble

[dbowen]

When does Tyus step foot on campus? Can't wait.

[duke4ever19]

I don't get it... they were just humming along by 6-7 points and then it just unravelled. It almost seemed to happen within 30 seconds.

[Selover]

Great offensive foul call on sheed.....

[18258]

Heartless team right now, reminds me of unc earlier this year, two totally different teams at this point