Phase V: Clemson through UNC (the rest of the regular season)

[CDu]

Well, we're coming down the home stretch of the regular season. Five games left in our quest to finish #2 in the regular season. We can lose two and still finish 3rd, but it'd be great to get the #2 spot. Here we go:

Health: We are down to just 8 scholarship players available (for games; 9 for practice). Aside from (MAYBE) one of Grayson Allen and Matt Jones, we can't afford to lose anyone to injury/illness. So let's stay healthy. Please.

Whither Amile Jefferson? Jefferson had a really nice game against UNC (13 points, 5 rebounds, 6 blocks), but for the previous several games had been pretty much nonexistent (3.8 ppg and 4.2 rpg over the previous 6 games). Was the UNC game a blip on the radar, or was it a sign of things to come? We could certainly use his production to take the pressure off the rest of our offense. I don't expect him to start making jumpers or posting guys up, but if he can find open spaces, slash when the lane is there, and finish with confidence, that would be a huge help.

Consistency of focus: All season long, we've seemed to coast when we get a big lead and then put the foot on the gas when things get tough. Frankly, that's the sign of a young team, lacking in discipline. And that is a recipe for a loss, and come tourney time that is a no-no. We have a series of four games in which we should win. Can our guys keep the focus up in those games and win convincingly?

Quinn Cook, shutdown defender? It sure sounds weird, but Cook has taken on the toughest guard assignment each game of late, and he's done a fabulous job. He completely dominated Paige and Grant, two of the best scorers in the conference. Paige went just 2-11; Grant went 3-10. Can he keep it up? His next two assignments won't be elite scorers, but he'll have to chase Cooney around again when Syracuse comes to town, and then he'll get Miller-McIntyre next, followed by a rematch against Paige in Chapel Hill.

Tyus Cook: We have, in my opinion, the best pair of playmaking guards in the country in Tyus Jones and Quinn Cook. They are such a steadying influence. When they are focused and patient, they are very hard to rattle. They score inside and out. They hit free throws. They find the open man. They are averaging a combined 2.74 assists per turnover, and both shoot well over 85% from the line. They are a HUGE advantage down the stretch of close games.

Free throw shooting: Really, this applies to two guys (Jefferson and Winslow). Can these guys get to around 60% from the line? Because right now they are a liability late in games.

New faces Part 1 (vs Clemson): Frankly, I'm relieved we don't have to go to Littlejohn. For some reason, they really play us well there. Getting Clemson (a vastly inferior team to us) at home is a break after such a tough game tonight against UNC. Clemson is a rough-and-tumble team. Their guards are physical. Their forwards are physical. They shoot poorly, but they rebound well. Hall is at times a capable slashing PG. He is very strong and athletic and can score at the rim. Blossomgame is not typically a good shooter away from the basket, but he has been known to get hot (against us). Nnoko is a terrific defensive big man. But really, this game screams "zone."

New faces, Part 2 (vs VT): IF you're going to have to go to Blacksburg, this is the year to do it (before Buzz Williams gets his system up and running. VT is sort of the anti-Clemson. They aren't terribly big or athletic, but they have several terrific shooters (six guys shooting 35% or better). So this game screams opportunity to work on our man-to-man defense. We are better, but this is a game where we can't fall asleep (they almost nipped UVa at home earlier this year).

Familiar faces to close the season: We get 3 straight rematches to end the season. Two of them will be at home, one on the road. We struggled to win each of the first matchups with these teams. Some of that was lack of focus, some was the opponent playing really well. Our only other rematch this season went okay (90-60 over Notre Dame). Now that we've seen what they can do, can we adjust and win more comfortably?

Versus Wake: gotta be smart with the ball and contain Miller-McIntyre and Thomas.

Versus Syracuse: patience and smart passes on offense, keep track of Cooney and Christmas, force Gbinije and others to beat us.

Versus UNC: Four keys to slowing UNC on offense:
1. Get back in transition (we struggled with this for much of the second half tonight)
2. Don't lose track of Paige (mission accomplished in game 1)
3. Don't get beat on the backdoor lob play (again, no issues in game 1)
4. Box out (we struggled here, too).

Do those four things, and UNC is pretty manageable. Struggle with those four things and UNC will make you pay.

[MCFinARL]

Well, we're coming down the home stretch of the regular season. Five games left in our quest to finish #2 in the regular season. We can lose two and still finish 3rd, but it'd be great to get the #2 spot. Here we go:

Health: We are down to just 8 scholarship players available (for games; 9 for practice). Aside from (MAYBE) one of Grayson Allen and Matt Jones, we can't afford to lose anyone to injury/illness. So let's stay healthy. Please.

Whither Amile Jefferson? Jefferson had a really nice game against UNC (13 points, 5 rebounds, 6 blocks), but for the previous several games had been pretty much nonexistent (3.8 ppg and 4.2 rpg over the previous 6 games). Was the UNC game a blip on the radar, or was it a sign of things to come? We could certainly use his production to take the pressure off the rest of our offense. I don't expect him to start making jumpers or posting guys up, but if he can find open spaces, slash when the lane is there, and finish with confidence, that would be a huge help.

Consistency of focus: All season long, we've seemed to coast when we get a big lead and then put the foot on the gas when things get tough. Frankly, that's the sign of a young team, lacking in discipline. And that is a recipe for a loss, and come tourney time that is a no-no. We have a series of four games in which we should win. Can our guys keep the focus up in those games and win convincingly?

Quinn Cook, shutdown defender? It sure sounds weird, but Cook has taken on the toughest guard assignment each game of late, and he's done a fabulous job. He completely dominated Paige and Grant, two of the best scorers in the conference. Paige went just 2-11; Grant went 3-10. Can he keep it up? His next two assignments won't be elite scorers, but he'll have to chase Cooney around again when Syracuse comes to town, and then he'll get Miller-McIntyre next, followed by a rematch against Paige in Chapel Hill.

Tyus Cook: We have, in my opinion, the best pair of playmaking guards in the country in Tyus Jones and Quinn Cook. They are such a steadying influence. When they are focused and patient, they are very hard to rattle. They score inside and out. They hit free throws. They find the open man. They are averaging a combined 2.74 assists per turnover, and both shoot well over 85% from the line. They are a HUGE advantage down the stretch of close games.

Free throw shooting: Really, this applies to two guys (Jefferson and Winslow). Can these guys get to around 60% from the line? Because right now they are a liability late in games.

New faces Part 1 (vs Clemson): Frankly, I'm relieved we don't have to go to Littlejohn. For some reason, they really play us well there. Getting Clemson (a vastly inferior team to us) at home is a break after such a tough game tonight against UNC. Clemson is a rough-and-tumble team. Their guards are physical. Their forwards are physical. They shoot poorly, but they rebound well. Hall is at times a capable slashing PG. He is very strong and athletic and can score at the rim. Blossomgame is not typically a good shooter away from the basket, but he has been known to get hot (against us). Nnoko is a terrific defensive big man. But really, this game screams "zone."

New faces, Part 2 (vs VT): IF you're going to have to go to Blacksburg, this is the year to do it (before Buzz Williams gets his system up and running. VT is sort of the anti-Clemson. They aren't terribly big or athletic, but they have several terrific shooters (six guys shooting 35% or better). So this game screams opportunity to work on our man-to-man defense. We are better, but this is a game where we can't fall asleep (they almost nipped UVa at home earlier this year).

Familiar faces to close the season: We get 3 straight rematches to end the season. Two of them will be at home, one on the road. We struggled to win each of the first matchups with these teams. Some of that was lack of focus, some was the opponent playing really well. Our only other rematch this season went okay (90-60 over Notre Dame). Now that we've seen what they can do, can we adjust and win more comfortably?

Versus Wake: gotta be smart with the ball and contain Miller-McIntyre and Thomas.

Versus Syracuse: patience and smart passes on offense, keep track of Cooney and Christmas, force Gbinije and others to beat us.

Versus UNC: Four keys to slowing UNC on offense:
1. Get back in transition (we struggled with this for much of the second half tonight)
2. Don't lose track of Paige (mission accomplished in game 1)
3. Don't get beat on the backdoor lob play (again, no issues in game 1)
4. Box out (we struggled here, too).

Do those four things, and UNC is pretty manageable. Struggle with those four things and UNC will make you pay.

Good analysis. Props to you for even being able to think coherently this soon after the game.

[Kedsy]

Wow, that was quick. You score very high points for both speed and content. Nice job, CDu.


Free throw shooting: Really, this applies to two guys (Jefferson and Winslow).

OK, I'll bite. Why doesn't this apply to Jahlil?

[Duvall]

Playing a not that bad Clemson team after this game, when Okafor may not even be able to play? Scary.

[Bob Green]

Now is the time to stay focused on the big picture. If Okafor is hobbled by the ankle, sit him down and get him healthy! Coach K can manipulate the small line-up plus give Plumlee significant playing time and the chance to shine. Getting Okafor back to 100 percent healthy has to be priority number one.

[Saratoga2]

Well, we're coming down the home stretch of the regular season. Five games left in our quest to finish #2 in the regular season. We can lose two and still finish 3rd, but it'd be great to get the #2 spot. Here we go:

Health: We are down to just 8 scholarship players available (for games; 9 for practice). Aside from (MAYBE) one of Grayson Allen and Matt Jones, we can't afford to lose anyone to injury/illness. So let's stay healthy. Please.

Whither Amile Jefferson? Jefferson had a really nice game against UNC (13 points, 5 rebounds, 6 blocks), but for the previous several games had been pretty much nonexistent (3.8 ppg and 4.2 rpg over the previous 6 games). Was the UNC game a blip on the radar, or was it a sign of things to come? We could certainly use his production to take the pressure off the rest of our offense. I don't expect him to start making jumpers or posting guys up, but if he can find open spaces, slash when the lane is there, and finish with confidence, that would be a huge help.

Consistency of focus: All season long, we've seemed to coast when we get a big lead and then put the foot on the gas when things get tough. Frankly, that's the sign of a young team, lacking in discipline. And that is a recipe for a loss, and come tourney time that is a no-no. We have a series of four games in which we should win. Can our guys keep the focus up in those games and win convincingly?

Free throw shooting: Really, this applies to two guys (Jefferson and Winslow). Can these guys get to around 60% from the line? Because right now they are a liability late in games.

New faces Part 1 (vs Clemson): Frankly, I'm relieved we don't have to go to Littlejohn. For some reason, they really play us well there. Getting Clemson (a vastly inferior team to us) at home is a break after such a tough game tonight against UNC. Clemson is a rough-and-tumble team. Their guards are physical. Their forwards are physical. They shoot poorly, but they rebound well. Hall is at times a capable slashing PG. He is very strong and athletic and can score at the rim. Blossomgame is not typically a good shooter away from the basket, but he has been known to get hot (against us). Nnoko is a terrific defensive big man. But really, this game screams "zone."




Yes, we are short of players who can make a meaningful contribution and the loss of any of Jahlil, Quinn, Tyus or Justise would seriously impact our chances going forward. Since Jahlil rolled his ankle last night, we can only hope that it is not too serious and he will be able to continue to play or if not that his return can happen quickly.

Amile did play bettter last night and there is hope that he will continue to add more to our team. His role offensively is to be an option if they double team Jahlil and he has reasonable moves around the basket. He is not the banger type and has trouble scoring under pressure. His defense was also good last night. With him, I think his confidence was low recently and perhaps this game will help him get going.

One point you didn't make is the improved play of Grayson. He is emerging and a trustworthy sub should we get into foul trouble or it someone needs a rest. This kid has a lot of talent and just needs the experience to learn what he can do effectively. Having him available is a plus for this team's depth.

Our transition defense following missed shots has been weak for much of the season. Against good rebounding teams who send players our defense becomes a big liability. When we shoot from the corner or we drive the lane, one or more of our players are not in a position to get back. Jahlil is a great kid but he can't be expected to get back iin time to make a difference. We are going to continue to shoot from the corner and drive the lane so all we can hope for is a quicker recognition of the situation by players not involved in shooting or driving. Our consistency is also impacted when we put Marshall and others into situations where we get comfortably ahead only to see a loss of momentum. I thought that happened last night in the first half. Once lost, momentum is hard to get back.

Free throw shooting will continue to be an issue, however, I think Justise has shown improvement. Last night the guys were getting pretty tired and even Quinn and Tyus made uncharacteristic misses. The two guys who need to improve are Jahlil and Amile. Jahlil still has good form and perhaps last night was a symptom of him being tired and later hobbled. Amile went through a good period and then regressed. He needs more arc on the ball and last night seemed to be trying to get that into his shot.

Clemson is the kind of high energy physical team that can give us problems. They are a good team so this is nno slam dunk. Zone might work against them while our high power offense shoould be able to outscore them.

[CDu]

Wow, that was quick. You score very high points for both speed and content. Nice job, CDu.



OK, I'll bite. Why doesn't this apply to Jahlil?

Brainfart. Should have been Jefferson and Okafor. Winslow has been a bit better of late it seems. I just typed the wrong freshmen (oops!).

[CDu]

One point you didn't make is the improved play of Grayson. He is emerging and a trustworthy sub should we get into foul trouble or it someone needs a rest. This kid has a lot of talent and just needs the experience to learn what he can do effectively. Having him available is a plus for this team's depth.

Clemson is the kind of high energy physical team that can give us problems. They are a good team so this is nno slam dunk. Zone might work against them while our high power offense shoould be able to outscore them.

The only reason I didn't include Allen (or Plumlee for that matter) is because I feel pretty confident that they will continue to be 5-10mpg players (barring injury or foul trouble) in close games. But he is playing a bit better in his bit minutes, so I'm less terrified at the prospect of him having to play significant minutes if need be.

I think that the Okafor injury might be a blessing in disguise. For one thing, if he sits out it will give us another opportunity to learn how to compete/win without him on the floor. We've actually played very well in the times he has sat due to foul trouble, and there is always the chance (in fact, it's probably a given) that at some point in the tourney he'll be saddled with foul trouble. So the more chances we get to practice that scenario, the better off we should be down the road. The other way it might be of benefit is that it may trigger the rest of the guys to play with more focus. As I mentioned in the opening post, this team has a tendency toward the lackadaisical at at times. But when they feel threatened, they seem to step it up a notch. Well, maybe not having their security blanket inside will cause guys like Winslow and Tyus Jones to go into "go time" mode more consistently. And just maybe we'll be less likely to stub our toe in that game on Saturday.

[davekay1971]

Now is the time to stay focused on the big picture. If Okafor is hobbled by the ankle, sit him down and get him healthy! Coach K can manipulate the small line-up plus give Plumlee significant playing time and the chance to shine. Getting Okafor back to 100 percent healthy has to be priority number one.

Talented team with a short bench, young NBA talent in the starting lineup, one senior leader in an otherwise young team, a starting center with a late-season ankle injury, with our only legitimate backup big man very big, but very raw?

It's over. That situation could NEVER lead to a championship!

[jv001]

Talented team with a short bench, young NBA talent in the starting lineup, one senior leader in an otherwise young team, a starting center with a late-season ankle injury, with our only legitimate backup big man very big, but very raw?

It's over. That situation could NEVER lead to a championship!

Carlos Boozer injury. I hope it works out as well this season. But I'm hoping Jahlil does not miss much time if any. GoDuke!

[peterjswift]

Is there an easy way to figure out how many times Duke has been forced to come from behind in previous seasons? How does this season compare? By my eye test (which is not objective, nor does it have a good memory), it seems like this Duke team is unique in the way they manage comebacks.

I can't remember a recent season where Duke has managed to pull together comebacks the way they have this season. Obviously, this might partially be because Duke is rarely behind...but in previous seasons, I felt a lot less comfortable, as a fan, with small leads or playing the second half with any sort of deficit. This year, however, Duke has shown their ability on several occasions to work through adversity and continue to bring defensive and offensive intensity, even with a deficit to fight through. This makes this team incredibly entertaining to watch and follow.

I think this is especially impressive considering how dependent Duke is on Freshman! There doesn't seem to be any quit in this team, and the harder it gets, the harder they play. Bouncing back from consecutive losses against a strong opponent earlier in the season is impressive as well. I see a lot of the current play and the drive to finish games based in part from the learning experiences from the bad losses earlier in the season - K and the coaching staff certainly didn't waste those losses!

There are definitely many areas to improve on with this team - especially on the defensive end, but it really seems like their attitude and ability to give max effort at all times is there. Not to beat a dead horse, but it would be interesting to be a fly on the wall in the locker room before and after Rasheed's dismissal to see if there is a palpable difference in the general attitude of the team, because on the court, it certainly seems like this team is significantly more mature than their age shows, and the coalescing of Quinn Cook and Tyus Jones is, perhaps, my favorite part of this entire season. They really do seem to have a strong connection on and off the court. I know everyone has been gushing over Quinn Cook all year, but his leadership really seems to be a huge part of this team's success.

I can't wait to see the rematches in the coming weeks.

[AIRFORCEDUKIE]

Is there an easy way to figure out how many times Duke has been forced to come from behind in previous seasons? How does this season compare? By my eye test (which is not objective, nor does it have a good memory), it seems like this Duke team is unique in the way they manage comebacks.

I can't remember a recent season where Duke has managed to pull together comebacks the way they have this season. Obviously, this might partially be because Duke is rarely behind...but in previous seasons, I felt a lot less comfortable, as a fan, with small leads or playing the second half with any sort of deficit. This year, however, Duke has shown their ability on several occasions to work through adversity and continue to bring defensive and offensive intensity, even with a deficit to fight through. This makes this team incredibly entertaining to watch and follow.

I think this is especially impressive considering how dependent Duke is on Freshman! There doesn't seem to be any quit in this team, and the harder it gets, the harder they play. Bouncing back from consecutive losses against a strong opponent earlier in the season is impressive as well. I see a lot of the current play and the drive to finish games based in part from the learning experiences from the bad losses earlier in the season - K and the coaching staff certainly didn't waste those losses!

There are definitely many areas to improve on with this team - especially on the defensive end, but it really seems like their attitude and ability to give max effort at all times is there. Not to beat a dead horse, but it would be interesting to be a fly on the wall in the locker room before and after Rasheed's dismissal to see if there is a palpable difference in the general attitude of the team, because on the court, it certainly seems like this team is significantly more mature than their age shows, and the coalescing of Quinn Cook and Tyus Jones is, perhaps, my favorite part of this entire season. They really do seem to have a strong connection on and off the court. I know everyone has been gushing over Quinn Cook all year, but his leadership really seems to be a huge part of this team's success.

I can't wait to see the rematches in the coming weeks.

As far as i can remember the only team I remember which had such comebacks is that 2001 team. Twice against Maryland, I remember an early season ooc game being a come back win. And correct me if I am wrong we had to come back to beat Carolina at their place that year. Hopefully this season ends with the same end results.

[peterjswift]

As far as i can remember the only team I remember which had such comebacks is that 2001 team. Twice against Maryland, I remember an early season ooc game being a come back win. And correct me if I am wrong we had to come back to beat Carolina at their place that year. Hopefully this season ends with the same end results.

I agree with the "results" - but I'm hoping for a method more akin to the 82-50 game...

[CDu]

Well, since the regular season is over and Phase VI is now up and running, it is time to put Phase V to bed. So I'll do my due diligence and summarize the phase:

1. Health: we survived relatively unscathed. Several ankles got tweaked and one back spazzed out. But thankfully nobody missed significant time. We are only 8, but we remain a strong and (relatively) healthy 8.

2. Whither Amile Jefferson? Jefferson continued his disappearance for much of the phase, but man did he show up for the second UNC game. He didn't score much, but his defense on the point of the press was helpful in disrupting UNC's offense. And he had several key rebounds. Furthermore, he did a great job filling the screener role and was decisive when he got the ball. Hopefully he can fill this role with similar success moving forward. If he can, we may have just seen another evolution of this team.

3. Consistency of focus: Still a work in progress. It seems like this team (and a few players in particular) seem to doze off at times when the competition isn't there. We're at the point in the season where that can't happen any more. It's up to Cook and Jefferson to keep these guys focused the rest of the way. We clearly have the talent to beat anyone. We also have the capability of getting caught with our pants down. Let's hope we avoid the latter.

4. Quinn Cook, shutdown defender? Well, this didn't really continue, as Cook didn't have any truly noteworthy defensive performances in this phase. But he was stellar offensively, and continues to be the heart of the team.

5. Tyus Cook: Yeah, best backcourt in the country. Still true. All the more evident on Saturday night. Those boys good. Those boys real good.

6. Free throw shooting: Still a problem for Okafor and Jefferson, less so for Winslow, not an issue at all for the others.

7. New faces Part 1 (vs Clemson): I'd consider our performance in the Clemson game strong to quite strong. Without Okafor, we simply dismantled them. Our defense was fabulous, and we didn't struggle offensively.

8. New faces, Part 2 (vs VT): Yikes. As good as we looked defensively against Clemson, we looked as bad against VT. They spread us out, and really showed Okafor's limitations defensively (i.e., the guy just doesn't like to venture out of the paint area at all). They shot really well (in no small part due to the fact that they took a TON of wide open 3s and are a good shooting team to begin with). Thankfully, our guys found their games just in time (a recurring, and scary, theme).

9. Familiar faces to close the season:

9a. Versus Wake: We came out early and just steamrolled them in the first half. Like, first half of the Notre Dame game style (and Newton_14 and I weren't even at this one! ;)). In the second half we got complacent, but the game was never in doubt. A HUGE coming out party for Grayson Allen, who outscored Wake in the first half. Big-time kudos to him and his expanding role.

9b. Versus Syracuse: Syracuse just couldn't shoot. At all. As such, we made it look easy.

9F. UNC: I said going in that the four keys to slowing UNC on offense were:
1. Get back in transition
2. Don't lose track of Paige
3. Don't get beat on the backdoor lob play
4. Box out

Do those four things, and UNC is pretty manageable. Struggle with those four things and UNC will make you pay. We did a really good job on managing 1, 3, and 4, but Paige had a big night. Of course, UNC had to go and have one of the two best shooting nights of their season, and as such made it a really close game until late. But the difference was that we didn't give them their easy points (offensive rebounds and fast breaks) and forced them to beat us the hard way. And even though they seemingly couldn't miss, they couldn't keep up with our offense that way.

[sagegrouse]

Well, since the regular season is over and Phase VI is now up and running, it is time to put Phase V to bed. So I'll do my due diligence and summarize the phase:

1. Health: we survived relatively unscathed. Several ankles got tweaked and one back spazzed out. But thankfully nobody missed significant time. We are only 8, but we remain a strong and (relatively) healthy 8.

2. Whither Amile Jefferson? Jefferson continued his disappearance for much of the phase, but man did he show up for the second UNC game. He didn't score much, but his defense on the point of the press was helpful in disrupting UNC's offense. And he had several key rebounds. Furthermore, he did a great job filling the screener role and was decisive when he got the ball. Hopefully he can fill this role with similar success moving forward. If he can, we may have just seen another evolution of this team.

3. Consistency of focus: Still a work in progress. It seems like this team (and a few players in particular) seem to doze off at times when the competition isn't there. We're at the point in the season where that can't happen any more. It's up to Cook and Jefferson to keep these guys focused the rest of the way. We clearly have the talent to beat anyone. We also have the capability of getting caught with our pants down. Let's hope we avoid the latter.

4. Quinn Cook, shutdown defender? Well, this didn't really continue, as Cook didn't have any truly noteworthy defensive performances in this phase. But he was stellar offensively, and continues to be the heart of the team.

5. Tyus Cook: Yeah, best backcourt in the country. Still true. All the more evident on Saturday night. Those boys good. Those boys real good.

6. Free throw shooting: Still a problem for Okafor and Jefferson, less so for Winslow, not an issue at all for the others.

7. New faces Part 1 (vs Clemson): I'd consider our performance in the Clemson game strong to quite strong. Without Okafor, we simply dismantled them. Our defense was fabulous, and we didn't struggle offensively.

8. New faces, Part 2 (vs VT): Yikes. As good as we looked defensively against Clemson, we looked as bad against VT. They spread us out, and really showed Okafor's limitations defensively (i.e., the guy just doesn't like to venture out of the paint area at all). They shot really well (in no small part due to the fact that they took a TON of wide open 3s and are a good shooting team to begin with). Thankfully, our guys found their games just in time (a recurring, and scary, theme).

9. Familiar faces to close the season:

9a. Versus Wake: We came out early and just steamrolled them in the first half. Like, first half of the Notre Dame game style (and Newton_14 and I weren't even at this one! ;)). In the second half we got complacent, but the game was never in doubt. A HUGE coming out party for Grayson Allen, who outscored Wake in the first half. Big-time kudos to him and his expanding role.

9b. Versus Syracuse: Syracuse just couldn't shoot. At all. As such, we made it look easy.

9F. UNC: I said going in that the four keys to slowing UNC on offense were:
1. Get back in transition
2. Don't lose track of Paige
3. Don't get beat on the backdoor lob play
4. Box out

Do those four things, and UNC is pretty manageable. Struggle with those four things and UNC will make you pay. We did a really good job on managing 1, 3, and 4, but Paige had a big night. Of course, UNC had to go and have one of the two best shooting nights of their season, and as such made it a really close game until late. But the difference was that we didn't give them their easy points (offensive rebounds and fast breaks) and forced them to beat us the hard way. And even though they seemingly couldn't miss, they couldn't keep up with our offense that way.

Thanks for taking on Phase V. It looks like you had the right questions.

[superdave]

2. Whither Amile Jefferson? Jefferson continued his disappearance for much of the phase, but man did he show up for the second UNC game. He didn't score much, but his defense on the point of the press was helpful in disrupting UNC's offense. And he had several key rebounds. Furthermore, he did a great job filling the screener role and was decisive when he got the ball. Hopefully he can fill this role with similar success moving forward. If he can, we may have just seen another evolution of this team.


I love this wrinkle. I have wanted Duke to press and trap more and more the last few years with all of our guards and wings. But it turns out to be a mobile guy who can really do it. Amile at the point on the full court trap is fun to watch and really gets a team out of any offensive rhythm. I hope to see it for stretches going forward. Any time you can rely on a curveball like this - K switched to a couple of minutes into the second half, Roy didnt counter, Unc didnt recover - you are dictating the terms of the fight and that is a really good thing.,

[CDu]

I love this wrinkle. I have wanted Duke to press and trap more and more the last few years with all of our guards and wings. But it turns out to be a mobile guy who can really do it. Amile at the point on the full court trap is fun to watch and really gets a team out of any offensive rhythm. I hope to see it for stretches going forward. Any time you can rely on a curveball like this - K switched to a couple of minutes into the second half, Roy didnt counter, Unc didnt recover - you are dictating the terms of the fight and that is a really good thing.,

Yeah, I (like you) was thrilled to see it happen, and I was thrilled with how well it worked on Saturday. It has been a long time since we've pressed with any success. When I was in school ('97-'01) we pressed quite a bit. Chappell and Battier were often the point man on the press my freshman year. Battier was the point man after that. But after Battier graduated, we really haven't seen much of it, nor has it been very successful when we have done it. And I'm not really sure why, because we seem to have had at least one guy who could fill Jefferson's role over most of those years. Luol Deng could have done it; maybe Dunleavy before him. Lance Thomas could have done it, but he was a spazz for his first three years and we didn't have the depth to do it his senior year. Parker and Hood should have been able to do it, but we tried to press early last year and it went REALLY badly. But with Jefferson and Winslow/Matt Jones on the court, we certainly have the right type of guys to press occasionally. And I love seeing it work against UNC.

[NYBri]

I love this wrinkle. I have wanted Duke to press and trap more and more the last few years with all of our guards and wings. But it turns out to be a mobile guy who can really do it. Amile at the point on the full court trap is fun to watch and really gets a team out of any offensive rhythm. I hope to see it for stretches going forward. Any time you can rely on a curveball like this - K switched to a couple of minutes into the second half, Roy didnt counter, Unc didnt recover - you are dictating the terms of the fight and that is a really good thing.,

Absolutely. The press can be beat, but you have to be ready for it and have a plan in place to beat. Best way to get the pressing team to stop is to burn it a couple of times.

Glad that we brought it out when we did because it took ol' Roy completely by surprise and they hadn't practiced a plan to beat it with Amile at the point of thrust.

We've shown our hand now and I bet teams will try to be ready for it, but with such a short turnaround at tournament time, it's a good tool to have in our pocket.