MBB: Duke vs Kansas NCAAT E8 (3/25 5:05pm CBS ) Pre-Game and In-Game Thread

[subzero02]

We will need to shoot a good deal better than we did today to beat the Jayhawks. I believe our defense will be more effective than it was during the first 15 minutes against Syracuse. The key to winning this game will be turnovers and not letting Kansas score in transition. I think our zone has a good chance to really handcuff them in the hslfcourt. Clemson waited too long to begin playing elite basketball and it cost them the game.we don't want to give the Jayhawks and their fans an early momentum, a stifling initial defensive effort could really help to set tMBB: Duke vs Syracuse NCAAT S16 (3/23 9:37) Pre-Game and In-Game Threadhe tone for what will likely be a heated contest.

[Dub]

Just from a quick look at KenPom, Kansas has the worst defensive efficiency (46) of any team left in the Elite 8. Duke is still top 10 (9 to be exact). I expect a much more up and down game than today. As long as we force them to shoot contested 3s, I don’t think they can slow us down in the post (even with Azuibuke). I think we grind them down late but I certainly hope we shoot a lot better on Sunday.

[duke4ever19]

Just from a quick look at KenPom, Kansas has the worst defensive efficiency (46) of any team left in the Elite 8. Duke is still top 10 (9 to be exact). I expect a much more up and down game than today. As long as we force them to shoot contested 3s, I don’t think they can slow us down in the post (even with Azuibuke). I think we grind them down late but I certainly hope we shoot a lot better on Sunday.

Yes, our defense dropped a spot, but it looks like our offense went up a tick from No.3 to No.2. Interesting.

[uh_no]

Yes, our defense dropped a spot, but it looks like our offense went up a tick from No.3 to No.2. Interesting.

most of that was purdue dropping. but you're right, on an absolute scale, we performed slightly better than expected.

[pfrduke]

The key to this game will be whether Mykhailiuk and Newman can make plays from the high post. They're the two most logical candidates to operate in the middle of the zone and if we can shut that down, I think KU will have a tough time bombing threes over the defense. Since we've gone zone full time opponents are shooting 26.5% from 3 - Kansas hasn't shot worse than 35% in the last 10 games. I think if we can keep them in the 30s percentage wise we should be in good shape.

[brevity]

This is the third straight Elite 8 for Kansas.

2016: 1 seed Kansas loses to 2 seed Villanova (game is in Louisville).
2017: 1 seed Kansas loses to 3 seed Oregon (game is in Kansas City).
2018: 1 seed Kansas will face 2 seed Duke (game is in Omaha).

As others have pointed out, semi-home games with friendly crowds have not been much of an advantage in this tournament. Michigan State lost in Detroit. UNC lost in Charlotte. Kentucky lost in Atlanta.

While I'm talking history, there sure is something familiar about narrowly beating Clemson and facing Duke two days later.

8225

Connecticut, 1990. The film Reversal of Fortune also came out that year.

[pfrduke]

Also, Mykhailiuk vs. either Carter or Bagley should be a big mismatch for us on the offensive end. Would love to exploit that, including to get Svi in foul trouble - they really don't have a good replacement for him. Extended Jayhawk minutes with both Azubuike and De Sousa on the court would be great for us.

[brlftz]

Also, Mykhailiuk vs. either Carter or Bagley should be a big mismatch for us on the offensive end. Would love to exploit that, including to get Svi in foul trouble - they really don't have a good replacement for him. Extended Jayhawk minutes with both Azubuike and De Sousa on the court would be great for us.

de Sousa played some pretty dang good D tonight, at least while I dropped in on that game. i haven't watched much KU this year, do you think they have a problem when they put those two on the floor at the same time?

[pfrduke]

de Sousa played some pretty dang good D tonight, at least while I dropped in on that game. i haven't watched much KU this year, do you think they have a problem when they put those two on the floor at the same time?

They've played almost no time together this year. They'll probably go to Lightfoot alongside Azubuike if they think they need two bigs. But more broadly, KU has been dangerous this year when they've stuck a bunch of shooters on the floor and spread things out. Anything to reduce the number of three point shooters is an advantage to us.

[Wander]

Just wanted to congratulate our guys on making the Final Four. Duke, Kansas, Villanova, and Texas Tech were powerhouses this season and make up a totally worthy Final Four at the end of the year, and I can't really complain too much about who wins it or losing a close game to any of these teams.

[proelitedota]

Just wanted to congratulate our guys on making the Final Four. Duke, Kansas, Villanova, and Texas Tech were powerhouses this season and make up a totally worthy Final Four at the end of the year, and I can't really complain too much about who wins it or losing a close game to any of these teams.

:confused:

[proelitedota]

Nvm I am still drunk. That totally went over my head.

[dukelifer]

I expect Duval to play better against a more traditional D. Duke is a difficult matchup for any team but this will be about guard play. If the guards play well - Duke should win this but it will be a battle. Kansas is a solid team and if the make up the final 8 is any indication part of tough conference.

[Henderson]

Looks like Duke has opened as a 3.5 pt. favorite in Las Vegas.

There is a lot that worries me about this game. One thing is the experience of the Kansas back court. Devonte' Graham is a 23 year old senior. Mykhailiuk is also a senior with a lot of experience (including in Europe). I think we can handle Newman and Azubuike, but Graham and Mykhailiuk worry me. And Vick, a junior, is no slouch either.

Kansas' ability to shoot 3's over our zone also worries me. Just looking at the stat sheet, it appears as though the Kansas starters are pretty comfortable back there. With Azubuike and DeSousa inside, our perimeter defense is going to have to ensure the Kansas shooters don't go off.

[84Duke]

Just wanted to congratulate our guys on making the Final Four. Duke, Kansas, Villanova, and Texas Tech were powerhouses this season and make up a totally worthy Final Four at the end of the year, and I can't really complain too much about who wins it or losing a close game to any of these teams.

If it's any consolation, I got this one.

[moonpie23]

this is the marquee matchup that everyone has been waiting for.....I'm hoping we can get into a better scoring rhythm than the clunky game we had last night....

kansas aint no joke....we'd better be ready...

[dukelifer]

Looks like Duke has opened as a 3.5 pt. favorite in Las Vegas.

There is a lot that worries me about this game. One thing is the experience of the Kansas back court. Devonte' Graham is a 23 year old senior. Mykhailiuk is also a senior with a lot of experience (including in Europe). I think we can handle Newman and Azubuike, but Graham and Mykhailiuk worry me. And Vick, a junior, is no slouch either.

Kansas' ability to shoot 3's over our zone also worries me. Just looking at the stat sheet, it appears as though the Kansas starters are pretty comfortable back there. With Azubuike and DeSousa inside, our perimeter defense is going to have to ensure the Kansas shooters don't go off.
Probably the best set of players Duke has faced all year. Kansas goes as Graham goes. Thr guard play will determine this one. Need the good Duval tomorrow.

[Bob Green]

Clemson waited too long to begin playing elite basketball and it cost them the game.

Your statement sums up my thoughts exactly. The game was decided more by Clemson sleep walking the first 30 minutes than Kansas being dominant.

Duke must be aggressive on defense and strong with the ball on offense for 40 minutes. Kansas is a talented team so it will take our best effort to win. This is a classic Elite Eight showdown -- #1 versus #2 with the Final Four on the line.

[Billy Dat]

Looking forward to TexHawk’s take...

[Troublemaker]

This will be the 3rd game this season that Kansas has gotten to play a Boeheim-inspired zone, and I remember watching large chunks of of the previous two games back in December.

On Dec 2, KU played Syracuse itself in Miami (as part of one of those non-conference events) and beat the Orange soundly 76-60. Lagerald Vick was mostly used at the FT line area, and my impression was Cuse's zone collapsed towards him way too much, which opened up other opportunities. Devonte' Graham in particular went nuts from outside, hitting 7 threes including a couple deep bombs on the way to 35 points. (But the other story of the game was that Cuse's offense was a disaster, committing 17 turnovers and shooting 6-27 from three).

A few days later, on Dec 6 in Kansas City, KU played Washington which is coached by former longtime Boeheim assistant Mike Hopkins. The Huskies upset KU 74-65. Hopkins had seen on film that Cuse reacted way too strongly towards Vick, and Hopkins decided instead to do the complete opposite: not guard Vick in there, focus on KU's other players (particularly Graham), and allow Vick to try to beat the Huskies by himself. Vick hit 12 shots out of a team-high 21 attempts (nobody else attempted more than 6 shots), but Graham was held to three points.

[Troublemaker]

Looking forward to TexHawk’s take...

Me too, but let's keep in mind how people love to reverse-jinx on this board.

Remember when PackMan97 predicted we'd beat NCSU by 20 in Raleigh?

Don't allow TexHawk's words to soothe us. We should be deeply concerned about playing KU in Omaha. They are soooo due for converting an E8 in to a FF.

[dukelifer]

This will be the 3rd game this season that Kansas has gotten to play a Boeheim-inspired zone, and I remember watching large chunks of of the previous two games back in December.

On Dec 2, KU played Syracuse itself in Miami (as part of one of those non-conference events) and beat the Orange soundly 76-60. Lagerald Vick was mostly used at the FT line area, and my impression was Cuse's zone collapsed towards him way too much, which opened up other opportunities. Devonte' Graham in particular went nuts from outside, hitting 7 threes including a couple deep bombs on the way to 35 points. (But the other story of the game was that Cuse's offense was a disaster, committing 17 turnovers and shooting 6-27 from three).

A few days later, on Dec 6 in Kansas City, KU played Washington which is coached by former longtime Boeheim assistant Mike Hopkins. The Huskies upset KU 74-65. Hopkins had seen on film that Cuse reacted way too strongly towards Vick, and Hopkins decided instead to do the complete opposite: not guard Vick in there, focus on KU's other players (particularly Graham), and allow Vick to try to beat the Huskies by himself. Vick hit 12 shots out of a team-high 21 attempts (nobody else attempted more than 6 shots), but Graham was held to three points.
When Graham was out yesterday- Clemson played better and KU struggled. He makes KU go. He can easily go off so it will not be easy.

[DavidBenAkiva]

This will be the 3rd game this season that Kansas has gotten to play a Boeheim-inspired zone, and I remember watching large chunks of of the previous two games back in December.

On Dec 2, KU played Syracuse itself in Miami (as part of one of those non-conference events) and beat the Orange soundly 76-60. Lagerald Vick was mostly used at the FT line area, and my impression was Cuse's zone collapsed towards him way too much, which opened up other opportunities. Devonte' Graham in particular went nuts from outside, hitting 7 threes including a couple deep bombs on the way to 35 points. (But the other story of the game was that Cuse's offense was a disaster, committing 17 turnovers and shooting 6-27 from three).

A few days later, on Dec 6 in Kansas City, KU played Washington which is coached by former longtime Boeheim assistant Mike Hopkins. The Huskies upset KU 74-65. Hopkins had seen on film that Cuse reacted way too strongly towards Vick, and Hopkins decided instead to do the complete opposite: not guard Vick in there, focus on KU's other players (particularly Graham), and allow Vick to try to beat the Huskies by himself. Vick hit 12 shots out of a team-high 21 attempts (nobody else attempted more than 6 shots), but Graham was held to three points.

Great analysis, as usual Troublemaker.

To add to this, KU played Baylor twice during the regular season. The Bears use a 1-1-3 zone that picks up the ball around halfcourt. The other "1" is a post player with the "3" spread between the wings and the free throw line or top of the key. This prevents open looks from the corner and can cut off the high post, which Duke tends to allow. It's different from the Duke zone but has a similar result. Offenses have trouble with dribble penetration.

KU lost to Baylor in Waco this season by 16 and held on against them in Lawrence by 3. In fact, in the last 6 matchups with Baylor, the margin of victory for KU has been 6 or less (the Baylor win in Waco snapped an 11-game losing streak).

I think the biggest factor for KU is that so much of their offense is dependent upon dribble penetration. The zone really mucks that up. You have to have a player that is comfortable operating out of the high post, either by passing or by shooting the mid-range jump shot (or by passing over the top of it) They have good, smart shooters that can defeat the zone. But it's not their primary approach or skillset. I expect that we will see a few lobs to Azubuike and that Newman, Vick, and Mykhailiuk will all flash into the middle of the zone or move out to the wing. Duke can leave Carter/Bolden in the paint to contend with Azubuike. What we have seen lately is that Bagley and the guards will spread out along the perimeter to prevent the ball from going to the corner. That's going to be key in this game. Kansas is an ok defensive team at best. With Duke's offensive firepower, playing above average defense should put them into a good position. We just need to play smart, mature basketball. Feed the post, get Azubuike in foul trouble, and be methodical. It's not going to be easy, but it's possible. That's all you can ask for at this point in the season. Let's Go Duke!

[arnie]

When Graham was out yesterday- Clemson played better and KU struggled. He makes KU go. He can easily go off so it will not be easy.

Don’t think K will do this, but if game is tight in 2nd half and Kansas O on fire, i’d use Hack-A-Azubuike strategy (maybe with Javin or Vrank). He has one of the worst FT strokes I’ve seen and I trust our bigs to rebound missed FTs.

[53n206]

This will be the 3rd game this season that Kansas has gotten to play a Boeheim-inspired zone, and I remember watching large chunks of of the previous two games back in December.

On Dec 2, KU played Syracuse itself in Miami (as part of one of those non-conference events) and beat the Orange soundly 76-60. Lagerald Vick was mostly used at the FT line area, and my impression was Cuse's zone collapsed towards him way too much, which opened up other opportunities. Devonte' Graham in particular went nuts from outside, hitting 7 threes including a couple deep bombs on the way to 35 points. (But the other story of the game was that Cuse's offense was a disaster, committing 17 turnovers and shooting 6-27 from three).

A few days later, on Dec 6 in Kansas City, KU played Washington which is coached by former longtime Boeheim assistant Mike Hopkins. The Huskies upset KU 74-65. Hopkins had seen on film that Cuse reacted way too strongly towards Vick, and Hopkins decided instead to do the complete opposite: not guard Vick in there, focus on KU's other players (particularly Graham), and allow Vick to try to beat the Huskies by himself. Vick hit 12 shots out of a team-high 21 attempts (nobody else attempted more than 6 shots), but Graham was held to three points.

Great thread – referring to defense. As to offense, simple – decent shooting from outside, and good play from Duval. When Duval plays well we win. I don't mean to put everything on his shoulders, but he penetrates and dishes off so well that it makes our other players rise to the occasion.

[NM Duke Fan]

Great thread – referring to defense. As to offense, simple – decent shooting from outside, and good play from Duval. When Duval plays well we win. I don't mean to put everything on his shoulders, but he penetrates and dishes off so well that it makes our other players rise to the occasion.

Against a very different defense in Kansas, I am looking for a reversion to the mean for Duval, i.e. a much better game of penetrating, dishing, and some assertive dunks!

[CDu]

This is mostly copy/pasted from the Phase VIII thread. But now that we know that (a) we will be playing in the Elite 8 (yay!) and (b) that our opponent will be Kansas (less yay), I've copied it here.

Kansas is an extremely good offensive team and just an okay defensive team. They are not bad defensively, but they definitely get their wins on the offensive side of the ball. They spread you out and shoot the 3 extremely well, and also shoot quite well from 2pt range. They aren't a great offensive rebounding team, but they are extremely efficient at avoiding turnovers and hitting shots at a high percentage. It's a guard/wing-heavy team, as they had some unexpected difficulty in pulling in bigs for this year's team (missing on Ayton, Preston ineligible). They still have some size, but the majority of their rotation is smaller, more athletic, and perimeter-oriented.

Defensively, they are fairly weak on the glass, something we will need to exploit. They don't foul though, and they defend on the perimeter quite well with their bevvy of guards/wings. They will block some shots, but otherwise they aren't terribly noteworthy on that end. The Jayhawks don't play terribly fast, and don't force a ton of turnovers. So I think with our zone this should be a relatively low-possession game.

Centers: Udoka Azubuike (7'0", 280lb sophomore from Nigeria) is the man in the middle. "Dok" is an absolute behemoth inside with good athleticism who has a game-changing presence around the basket. He has no shooting touch whatsoever, but if he gets it near the basket he is very tough to stop. He's shooting 78% from the field, and 42% from the free throw line (no, I don't have those %s backwards). Given his size, Dok is of course a strong rebounder and shotblocker. He can get in foul trouble though, and if he does things get really dicey for the Jayhawks inside. Basically, huge, athletic, and extremely raw sums up Dok. He has been dealing with a knee sprain over the last few weeks, though I am not sure if that will factor in at all tomorrow. The only other center that gets PT is Silvio de Sousa (6'9", 245lb freshman from Angola). De Sousa is another very athletic, very strong kid whose bball game is still catching up to his size/athleticism. De Sousa is a way better shooter than Azubuike, and is a dominant rebounder. But he fouls way too much and the pace of the game still seems ahead of him. He's probably a year or two away, but I think he has the potential to be a real impact player down the road.

Forwards: The Jayhawks really only have one of these, and he is sometimes asked to play center. Mitch Lightfoot (6'8", 210lb sophomore) is a very springy forward who does a lot of the hustle play, dirty work for the Jayhawks. Despite lacking optimal size for a big, Lightfoot leads the team in shotblocking rate, and contributes on the offensive glass too. He's not a great defensive rebounder, in part because he looks for blocks and in part because he just isn't that big. On offense, Lightfoot is athletic and springy, but also a solid shooter with stretch-four capability. He's a really nice role player for the Jayhawks, but gets asked to play up a position fairly often. He's pretty much the only forward on the team.

Wings: The Jayhawks start a trio of these guys, and all are good. Svi Mykhailiuk (6'8", 205lb senior from Ukraine) is deceptively athletic: very capable of finishing above the rim, and quick enough to attack the basket off the dribble. With his height/length and Kansas' lack thereof, Mykhailiuk often gets asked to play PF this year. He's expanded his role this year to be a dynamic scorer at all levels, including 45% from 3 and 80% from the line. He'll almost certainly play in the NBA and is a very dangerous weapon for them. Alongside Mykhailiuk are Malik Newman (6'3", 180lb sophomore transfer from Miss St) and Lagerald Vick (6'5", 175lb junior). Vick is a highly-athletic, long, skilled wing. He's a strong 3pt shooter, a solid rebounder, and an athletic defender. He's very skinny though, but plenty quick and athletic. Very capable of finishing at/above the rim. But most of his looks come from 3. Newman is an interesting case study. He was a top-10 recruit when he went to Mississippi State out of high school. But things went poorly that year, both for the team and for Newman. So, he transferred to Kansas. This year, things have gone much better, although his focus can come and go at times. He's been terrific lately, averaging 22 ppg and shooting 56% from 3 over his past 5 games. He's a terrific shooter for the season (41% from 3, 83% from the line), and a dynamic off-the-dribble scorer and shotmaker. He's not as gifted as a facilitator, mainly because he hunts his shot almost exclusively. But he has the ability to absolutely take over a game as a scorer, and has no conscience out there. The only backup getting meangingful minutes is Marcus Garrett (6'5", 180lb freshman). Garrett is long and athletic, though more smooth than explosive. He's not shot the ball well this year, but he does a little bit of everything well as more of an all-purpose type of wing. Still, of Kansas's guard/wings, he is the one that has done the least damage offensively. Basically all of the other wings can score, while Garrett is all role player at this point in his young career.

Guards: Devonte' Graham (6'2", 175lb senior from Raleigh) is the man that runs the Jayhawk show. He spent the past 3 years playing as a combo guard alongside Frank Lucas, which masked some of his playmaking brilliance. This year, it's his team, no questions asked. Graham isn't a great leaper, but he is quick and tough and a great shotmaker (40% from 3, 83% from the line). He knows how to draw fouls off the dribble, and knows how to get his shot off from anywhere on the court. He's also developed into a terrific passer, averaging 7.5 assists per game at a 2.5 assists to turnovers ratio. Where he has struggled this year is converting on 2pt shots, down from 50% last year to 39% this year. Still, he's the heart of the Jayhawks. Containing him is a big step towards beating them. He is an absolute difference maker, and has the ability to will his team to a win for sure.

I'm interested to see how the zone fares against Kansas. We've done a consistently good job defending 3s, and while Kansas has faced some zone this year, they haven't faced a zone this long and this good paired with a very good offense. It will be quite the test for us, as Kansas can really shoot it. The zone should help limit Kansas' ability to attack off the dribble, which is nice because they have the weapons to do so otherwise.

We will be probably 3-5 point favorites in this one. But Kansas is no joke. We will need to play near our best to win tomorrow. We have the edge in talent, but Kansas has the edge in experience and guard play. Two very contrasting styles for sure. Should be an extremely fun game to watch: much more asthetically pleasing than Duke/Syracuse was or Duke/Clemson would have been. Hopefully we can pull it out. The finish line is getting near!!!

[GeneBanksManCrush]

I saw earlier that Duke opened as 4pt underdogs but now all I see is that we're 3.5pt favorites. The underdog status was probably from an old game.

For what it's worth Nate Silver's 538 has us as 54-46% favorites over Kansas with a 20% chance of winning the whole enchilada. Villanova remains the overall favorite to win it all at 34%.

[CDu]

I saw earlier that Duke opened as 4pt underdogs but now all I see is that we're 3.5pt favorites. The underdog status was probably from an old game.

For what it's worth Nate Silver's 538 has us as 54-46% favorites over Kansas with a 20% chance of winning the whole enchilada. Villanova remains the overall favorite to win it all at 34%.

Torvik has us as slightly bigger favorites: 65% chance of winning tomorrow. But yeah, we will be 3-5 point favorites in this one. My guess is that someone misread the line and Duke actually opened as 4pt favorites.

[jv001]

The two Kansas' players I fear the most on offense are, Graham and Newman. The games I have watched they have been really good on the offensive end.
Trevon will have to play smart in this game and not drive into double teams and not drive to the basket when the Kansas big man is anywhere to be seen. He can block shots. Good passes to our big guys would be ideal.
If we're hot from outside, I think we win the game because it will open up Carter and Marvin. Better zone defense would help also. GoDuke!

[TexHawk]

Don't have a ton of time between now and the game, so some quick thoughts...

--A little interesting (but I'm not surprised) that the focus in this thread is Graham and Dok. Malik Newman has arguably been the best player in the Big12 since the start of February. If any one player "goes as KU goes", it's him. Graham has the ability to positively affect the game if his shot isn't falling. Newman does not. (And he's hot garbage defensively.)

--When Bill Self has a 2nd high-post big like Marcus Morris, Perry Ellis, or Thomas Robinson, KU absolutely barbecues zone defenses. Someone earlier mentioned Baylor, it's no coincidence that they started playing KU closer when KU moved to a 4 guard lineup the last couple years (out of necessity). Next year the Lawson brothers/De Sousa/Dok should have it back to normal. Tomorrow it will be Vick, who has been playing better after a rough patch in early March. De Sousa has the skillset for it, but he's too raw right now. I'm not confident with Vick here, but it could be worse. The Washington game is a good marker, but I don't know if you can count on Graham playing as badly as he did in that one.

--Dok, as menacing as he looks, is actually not that great of a shot blocker or rebounder. He gambles a lot for blocks, which leaves him out of position for defensive boards. I'm guessing both Bagley and Carter will approach double-doubles. That's a weakness that we have all just gotten comfortable with, expecting/hoping our perimeter shooting will win games for us.

--I won't reverse jinx, but clearly KU doesn't match up well here. I think Vegas is probably correct. KU can win, but we'd probably need a better than average 3-point shooting night (and our average is pretty good as it is, 41%, 11th in the country).

Looking forward to it. Best of luck, hope it's a great game.

[CDu]

--Dok, as menacing as he looks, is actually not that great of a shot blocker or rebounder. He gambles a lot for blocks, which leaves him out of position for defensive boards. I'm guessing both Bagley and Carter will approach double-doubles. That's a weakness that we have all just gotten comfortable with, expecting/hoping our perimeter shooting will win games for us.

Minor quibble, but Dok is in the 97th percentile in D-1 in offensive rebounding percentage, 96th percentile in defensive rebound percentage, and 99th percentile in block percentage. So while he might not be as dominant as you'd maybe prefer from a 7-footer, he still rebounds and blocks at a very high rate. His per-game numbers don't jump off the page in part because KU plays slow-ish and in part because he only plays 24 mpg.

[hibby91]

I was surprised that the KU crowd wasn't louder last night. The Duke crowd was better than I expected. I don't think the crowd will affect the players, but I'm concerned that KU may get a favorable whistle in a close game. Graham is going to drive to get fouled and will reach in to get steals.

[Bob Green]

They aren't a great offensive rebounding team...

Defensively, they are fairly weak on the glass, something we will need to exploit.



Cherry picking the above two statements out of your scouting report indicates this is a game where we need to pound the glass to gain an advantage in number of Field Goals Attempted/Field Goals Made.

[CDu]

Cherry picking the above two statements out of your scouting report indicates this is a game where we need to pound the glass to gain an advantage in number of Field Goals Attempted/Field Goals Made.

I think you are spot on here. We should outrebound them, by a lot. If we do not, we will have trouble, because they are a very good shooting team. If we do, they will have trouble, because we are a very good team inside, and that will likely mean we are scoring in the paint.

[MrPoon]

As always, great analysis!

A couple interesting elements to me is the location and Duke’s zone.

Duke’s youth has shown up most often on the road against teams with guards who can shoot the three, especially those who can capitalize on Duke’s transition D. However, some of that statement was true earlier in the year and before the arrival of full time zone. The location will still favor Kansas so it will be important not to be rattled when (and they will) KU makes a couple spurt threes. As good as this season has been, I think Clemson mark’s Duke’s best road win and this will be harder.

The zone is a system defense. Where I think teams have had the best opportunity to beat Duke has been playing Duke’s zone a second time. The familiarity to the zone helped SY (and a longer time to prepare) and helped UNC in the ACC tournament. Kansas has not seen this version before. I am not an expert on Big 12 athletics so this will be a bit of a stereotype but the closest zone to Duke’s is probably Baylor, who plays it full time and typically has length. Baylor gave Kansas fits in both games. Baylor had the lead in Lawrence with 2 to go and lost due to late turnovers (according to the game report, I didn’t see the game) and Baylor won at home by 16 (Duke never lost a game by as many). Kansas has gotten better, especially at center. However, I am greatly encouraged by this. With the short turnaround between games, I think this further exacerbates the problem for Kansas. To me Kansas will not have to be good from three to win, they will have to be great, as in well above their norm because they won’t beat the zone inside the way UNC (especially Pinson) did. Watch how KU tries to exploit the Bagley side of the zone for threes. Maybe their key hope.

Kansas is going to want to run to beat the zone back but I also think they have to be careful because letting Duke run on offense is very dangerous and will get Duval going (a strong game from Duval probably locks in a win).

[Kedsy]

Is Omaha really a "semi-home" game for Kansas? The distance from Lawrence to Omaha is approximately the same as the distance from Durham to Myrtle Beach, SC. If Duke were playing in Myrtle Beach, would we think it was a semi-home game?

[CDu]

Is Omaha really a "semi-home" game for Kansas? The distance from Lawrence to Omaha is approximately the same as the distance from Durham to Myrtle Beach, SC. If Duke were playing in Myrtle Beach, would we think it was a semi-home game?

Depends on the opponent. If we were playing Kansas in SC, I would consider it a semi-home game. If we were playing Clemson, UGa, or SC in SC, I would call it a semi-road game.

[Bob Green]

Is Omaha really a "semi-home" game for Kansas? The distance from Lawrence to Omaha is approximately the same as the distance from Durham to Myrtle Beach, SC. If Duke were playing in Myrtle Beach, would we think it was a semi-home game?

Your analogy is apples to oranges. Kansas is a state school with a large local/regional fan base while Duke is a private school with a dispersed fan base.

A better analogy:

If Carolina were playing in Myrtle Beach, would their fans think it was a semi-home game? I think yes.

[weezie]

Question: Are teams allowed to IV hydrate players during halftime in the locker room?

[Kedsy]

Your analogy is apples to oranges. Kansas is a state school with a large local/regional fan base while Duke is a private school with a dispersed fan base.

A better analogy:

If Carolina were playing in Myrtle Beach, would their fans think it was a semi-home game? I think yes.

I guess my question is whether Nebraska is in the same locality/region as Kansas?

The KU Alumni Association says that "more than 2,000 Jayhawks" live in Omaha. That doesn't sound like so many to me. I bet more than 2,000 Blue Devils live in Philadelphia, and certainly New York. Was the ACC tournament a "semi-home" tournament for Duke?

[freshmanjs]

I guess my question is whether Nebraska is in the same locality/region as Kansas?

The KU Alumni Association says that "more than 2,000 Jayhawks" live in Omaha. That doesn't sound like so many to me. I bet more than 2,000 Blue Devils live in Philadelphia, and certainly New York. Was the ACC tournament a "semi-home" tournament for Duke?

There is no agreed definition of "semi-home" game, so it's hard to answer. There are multiple factors that relate to home court advantage:

- Travel. KU definitely has a significant travel advantage. Short bus ride or very short flight, no time zone change.
- Crowd. I think the crowd will be heavily in favor of KU. It's a very easy trip for the fan base to make. They will show up big-time. Very difficult trip for Duke fan base to make from anywhere on east coast.
- Familiarity with the arena. Probably no advantage.

Will any of this matter? Who knows...so many factors influence the outcome of the game. It will be impossible to say, even after the fact, based on one trial.

[CDu]

I guess my question is whether Nebraska is in the same locality/region as Kansas?

The KU Alumni Association says that "more than 2,000 Jayhawks" live in Omaha. That doesn't sound like so many to me. I bet more than 2,000 Blue Devils live in Philadelphia, and certainly New York. Was the ACC tournament a "semi-home" tournament for Duke?

That's also not really appropriate. Omaha is a city roughly the size of Raleigh (~500K). Of course there could be more than 2,000 Duke grads in Philly or New York. Philly is ~4 times the size of Omaha, and NY is roughly 17 times the size.

Omaha is roughly 2 hours from the border of Kansas. I'd venture that there are a lot more than 2,000 Kansas fans within a short drive of Omaha.

Put another way: Orlando is an hour further from Tallahassee than Omaha is from Lawrence. I'd consider a Duke/FSU game in Orlando to be an edge for FSU.

[Bob Green]

Was the ACC tournament a "semi-home" tournament for Duke?

Tournament games being played in big arenas negate the impact wildly cheering fans can have so this discussion is a bit moot to start with but Duke has lots of fans in the stands for New York City games and Kansas will have lots of fans in the stands tomorrow in Omaha.

[tbyers11]

I guess my question is whether Nebraska is in the same locality/region as Kansas?

The KU Alumni Association says that "more than 2,000 Jayhawks" live in Omaha. That doesn't sound like so many to me. I bet more than 2,000 Blue Devils live in Philadelphia, and certainly New York. Was the ACC tournament a "semi-home" tournament for Duke?

A 3 hour drive is nothing for people in the Midwest. Kansas fans will travel that in a heartbeat.

From experience growing up in Wisconsin, there are also A LOT of residents of a state/region who did not attend college or are alumni of a smaller state school that are diehard fans of State U. Particularly when that State U is always good. There are a lot more Kansas basketball fans in Kansas (and Nebraska - I doubt there are many "casual" Nebraska Ball fans) than there are alumni.

[CDu]

A 3 hour drive is nothing for people in the Midwest. Kansas fans will travel that in a heartbeat.

From experience growing up in Wisconsin, there are also A LOT of residents of a state/region who did not attend college or are alumni of a smaller state school that are diehard fans of State U. Particularly when that State U is always good. There are a lot more Kansas basketball fans in Kansas (and Nebraska - I doubt there are many "casual" NU Ball fans) than there are alumni.

Hell, living in NC should clue folks into that as well. UNC's fan support VASTLY exceeds its alumni base. Same in Florida. Same in Georgia. Same in Alabama, where basically everybody is either rolling tide or warring that damn eagle.

NYC and Philly are kind of anomalies in that they are in an area of the country that is generally without a dominant state school (especially in basketball). Philly does have Villanova, but Villanova is a private school and hasn't been great for long enough to have built a huge base. Pennsylvania does have Penn State on the football side, and that's probably the appropriate analogy here. NYC just doesn't have a clear local fanbase. They probably are split between Syracuse, UConn, Notre Dame, Duke, and St Johns in basketball. All private schools except UConn. But NYC and Philly are much more pro sports towns than college towns, as is probably true of most big cities but especially so in the Northeast.

[Kedsy]

That's also not really appropriate. Omaha is a city roughly the size of Raleigh (~500K). Of course there could be more than 2,000 Duke grads in Philly or New York. Philly is ~4 times the size of Omaha, and NY is roughly 17 times the size.

Omaha is roughly 2 hours from the border of Kansas. I'd venture that there are a lot more than 2,000 Kansas fans within a short drive of Omaha.

Put another way: Orlando is an hour further from Tallahassee than Omaha is from Lawrence. I'd consider a Duke/FSU game in Orlando to be an edge for FSU.

If the arenas are the same size, I'm not sure what the size of the city has to do with it.

Also, Washington DC is an hour further from Pittsburgh than Omaha is from Lawrence. There's no way a Pitt/anybody game in Washington would be an edge for Pitt.

But whatever, I give up. I really was just asking because we seem to be pretty loose with the definition of "semi-home." This doesn't strike me as a South Carolina in Greenville situation.

[CDu]

If the arenas are the same size, I'm not sure what the size of the city has to do with it.

Also, Washington DC is an hour further from Pittsburgh than Omaha is from Lawrence. There's no way a Pitt/anybody game in Washington would be an edge for Pitt.

But whatever, I give up. I really was just asking because we seem to be pretty loose with the definition of "semi-home." This doesn't strike me as a South Carolina in Greenville situation.

I think your perspective is a bit off due to living on the East Coast, where there are A LOT of people and A LOT of competing fan bases. I think Omaha is a lot closer to a South Carolina in Greenville situation than a Pittsburgh to DC situation.

Or more, accurately, I think it's a lot closer to an FSU in Orlando situation than a Villanova in DC situation. The dynamics of the distance are skewed by the population densities and alternative affiliations nearby. We are trying to explain to you the differences, but it seems like you have your mind made up and aren't really interested in hearing any alternative explanations.

[hibby91]

I just got back home to Kansas City (KS side). It's an easy 3 hours. I'm doing the round trip tomorrow with the earlier start time. Of course, KC is crawling with Kansas fans and many of them made the trip. Likely more will tomorrow after all of the orange and tiger fans sold their tickets on the way out.

I was concerned about the KU fans before last night, but I'm not now. It actually seemed worse at the Champion's Classic in Chicago than it did in Omaha last night. Then again, Kentucky fans were in Chicago.

There were a couple of times that it got loud last night, like when they hit 3 straight 3s in the 2nd half and extended their lead. However, that is short lived. Maybe it was because they had a bigger lead and they got satisfied. Then when it got close, they got nervous. I've heard that it is a little the same way at Allen Field house, but they have the students to amp up the excitement. No students section in Omaha.

I'm sure that it can happen again at times Sunday, but I think that Duke would really need to implode for it to be a problem.

The Duke fans were the loudest on defense. I was bummed that Boeheim called a timeout right when we slapped the floor.

Many KU fans were fairly subdued during the Duke game or left shortly after booing Grayson during team introductions.

[DukieInKansas]

If someone wants to give me great tickets to the game, I'll drive up tomorrow and report back. Just to backup hibby91's report. (Who cares if I'm supposed to be at a fundraiser for this summer's mission trip. Somethings are way more important.)

[TexHawk]

I think your perspective is a bit off due to living on the East Coast, where there are A LOT of people and A LOT of competing fan bases. I think Omaha is a lot closer to a South Carolina in Greenville situation than a Pittsburgh to DC situation.

Or more, accurately, I think it's a lot closer to an FSU in Orlando situation than a Villanova in DC situation. The dynamics of the distance are skewed by the population densities and alternative affiliations nearby. We are trying to explain to you the differences, but it seems like you have your mind made up and aren't really interested in hearing any alternative explanations.

This is correct, for many in the area (Nebraska, Kansas, western Missouri, Colorado, parts of Iowa), KU has been the only option for decades if you want to follow a successful hoops team. There just aren't a lot of high quality programs close by. Same situation with Nebraska football. There are a ton of Husker football/KU basketball crossover fans, except when they play each other. Those fans aren't exactly student-level loud and crazy, but they do buy tickets. As we talked about the other day somewhere, there has only been one regional in the area since last century, and that was last year.

I wasn't there last night, but I would guess it was quieter because of relaxing with the 20-point lead, then worrying about blowing the 20-point lead. Our fans can pucker with the best of them. I can almost guarantee that there will be a traffic jam on I-29 north out of KC tomorrow morning.

[Troublemaker]

I just got back home to Kansas City (KS side). It's an easy 3 hours. I'm doing the round trip tomorrow with the earlier start time. Of course, KC is crawling with Kansas fans and many of them made the trip. Likely more will tomorrow after all of the orange and tiger fans sold their tickets on the way out.

I was concerned about the KU fans before last night, but I'm not now. It actually seemed worse at the Champion's Classic in Chicago than it did in Omaha last night. Then again, Kentucky fans were in Chicago.

There were a couple of times that it got loud last night, like when they hit 3 straight 3s in the 2nd half and extended their lead. However, that is short lived. Maybe it was because they had a bigger lead and they got satisfied. Then when it got close, they got nervous. I've heard that it is a little the same way at Allen Field house, but they have the students to amp up the excitement. No students section in Omaha.

I'm sure that it can happen again at times Sunday, but I think that Duke would really need to implode for it to be a problem.

The Duke fans were the loudest on defense. I was bummed that Boeheim called a timeout right when we slapped the floor.

Many KU fans were fairly subdued during the Duke game or left shortly after booing Grayson during team introductions.

Thanks for the report. I don't know if the atmosphere for a Clemson Sweet 16 game is predictive of what it'll be like for a Duke Elite 8 game, though, especially now that KU fans can consolidate even more seats with Clemson and Syracuse exiting the tourney. I'd expect a noticeably pro-KU crowd on Sunday.

That said, I've always been a believer that most of homecourt advantage has to do with being able to sleep in your own beds, playing in the gym that you've practiced/played in hundreds of times, and generally maintaining the routine that you're familiar with for regular season home games. Those factors will not be present for KU. If homecourt advantage is usually 4 points, I'd make what KU gets to enjoy on Sunday 1.5 points or so.

It's a factor but ultimately, whether Duke can make entry passes without turning the ball over will decide the game.

[CDu]

Anyway, getting back to the game itself...

As bad as last night's matchup was for Duval (and it was arguably the worst matchup he could face), tomorrow's game plays in his favor. Kansas isn't a bad defensive team, but that certainly isn't their strength. Plus, they don't play zone defense, which should help him. I'm looking for Duval to have a much better game in this one than he did against Syracuse. Not saying he will dominate (Kansas' guards are VERY good), but I would expect him to be much more of a positive factor tomorrow than he was last night.

As others have noted, it will also be really interesting to see how Kansas handles our two-big lineups. They don't like to play two true bigs period. Lightfoot will probably see a lot of time on Bagley, but despite being an athletic 6'8", he's giving up a lot of height and some athleticism to Bagley. And while Azubuike certainly has size on Carter, I'm not sure he's going to want to defend Carter 12-15 feet from the basket. And if Azubuike gets in foul trouble? Then the size disparity starts to look a lot like it did last weekend.

Now, the difference is that Kansas is way more potent offensively than anyone we've faced in this tournament. That can't be stated enough - they are a fantastic offensive team, whereas we've faced nothing above mediocre offensively in this tournament. So while we should have a much easier time offensively, we're going to have to hope our zone is up to a bigger task than we've faced this side of UNC. UNC is probably the closest comparison, although they don't have the dynamic forward that Pinson was and they don't have a stretch 5 like Maye, and they don't rebound the way UNC was. But they also shoot much better than UNC did.

Should be a really fun game to watch. Can't wait.

[BandAlum83]

I was surprised that the KU crowd wasn't louder last night. The Duke crowd was better than I expected. I don't think the crowd will affect the players, but I'm concerned that KU may get a favorable whistle in a close game. Graham is going to drive to get fouled and will reach in to get steals.

I was definitely surprised watching the game last night that a very vociferous and clearly heard "Defense" chant went up in the second half when Syracuse had the ball.

I sounded like almost the entire arena.

Who was there? What was the crowd really like?

[thesmark]

K is 7-4 all-time vs. Kansas

12/1/1985: Duke 92, Kansas 86 (New York, NY)
3/29/1986: Duke 71, Kansas 67 (Dallas, TX) (NCAA Tournament Semi-Final)
2/20/1988: Duke 74, Kansas 70 (OT) (Lawrence, KS)
4/2/1988: Kansas 66, Duke 59 (Kansas City, MO) (NCAA Tournament Semi-Final)
2/18/1989: Duke 102, Kansas 77 (Durham, NC)
4/1/1991: Duke 72, Kansas 65 (Indianapolis, IN) (NCAA Championship Game)
3/19/2000: Duke 69, Kansas 64 (Winston-Salem, NC) (NCAA Tournament Round of 32)
3/27/2003: Kansas 69, Duke 65 (Anaheim, CA) (NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen)
11/23/2011: Duke 68, Kansas 61 (Maui, HI)
11/12/2013: Kansas 94, Duke 83 (Chicago, IL)
11/15/2016: Kansas 77, Duke 75 (New York, NY)

K is 3-2 vs. Bill Self, 1-2 since Self came to Kansas:

3/14/1999: Duke 97, Tulsa 56 (Charlotte, NC) (NCAA Tournament Round of 32)
11/28/2000: Duke 78, Illinois 77 (Greensboro, NC)
11/23/2011: Duke 68, Kansas 61 (Maui, HI)
11/12/2013: Kansas 94, Duke 83 (Chicago, IL)
11/15/2016: Kansas 77, Duke 75 (New York, NY)

[OldPhiKap]

Your analogy is apples to oranges. Kansas is a state school with a large local/regional fan base while Duke is a private school with a dispersed fan base.

A better analogy:

If Carolina were playing in Myrtle Beach, would their fans think it was a semi-home game? I think yes.

Greenville, SC sure as hell was last year. Agreed.

[ipatent]

Saturday presser, K was great.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXl3u6phe0Q

[killerleft]

There is no agreed definition of "semi-home" game, so it's hard to answer. There are multiple factors that relate to home court advantage:

- Travel. KU definitely has a significant travel advantage. Short bus ride or very short flight, no time zone change.
- Crowd. I think the crowd will be heavily in favor of KU. It's a very easy trip for the fan base to make. They will show up big-time. Very difficult trip for Duke fan base to make from anywhere on east coast.
- Familiarity with the arena. Probably no advantage.

Will any of this matter? Who knows...so many factors influence the outcome of the game. It will be impossible to say, even after the fact, based on one trial.

Quite a few of those Midwesterners may have reason to dislike the Jayhawks, so there's that.

[MChambers]

Some funny quotes from Justin Robinson:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/duke-vs-kansas-two-college-basketball-powers-two-different-elite-eight-histories/2018/03/24/5850e8ae-2fa6-11e8-8688-e053ba58f1e4_story.html?utm_term=.80d500340162

[Duke31122]

Excited about the game tomorrow. The game against Syracuse might not have been our prettiest all year, but that is was Syracuse forces you to do. They play big and force you to grind to win games. I think being able to win that game shows how this team has grown throughout the year.

Tomorrow will be a test for sure, but I believe this team is ready. As we Duke fans know, every time Duke takes the court, our guys get everyone's best shot. I am a firm believer this forces our guys to grow up faster and prepares them for moments like tomorrow. Others have stepped up along the way in Bolden, Delaurier, and O'Connell.

Potential home game for Kansas or not, I still think there will be a good sized Duke crowd in the building. This team is ready for a big moment, and I think they will seize it. You can tell they are becoming a unit, and I am excited to watch them tomorrow.

[NashvilleDevil]

Saturday presser, K was great.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXl3u6phe0Q

Jeff Goodman trying to start another turf war with Duke and Kentucky.

[dukelifer]

Some funny quotes from Justin Robinson:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/duke-vs-kansas-two-college-basketball-powers-two-different-elite-eight-histories/2018/03/24/5850e8ae-2fa6-11e8-8688-e053ba58f1e4_story.html?utm_term=.80d500340162

Johnny had a reverse jam over someone in that game.

[cptnflash]

This is where it goes from easy to hard, at least in expectation. Besides us, the 3 best teams remaining in the field are Kansas, Villanova, and Michigan. Barring a significant upset in one of the games away from us, we’ll have to beat all 3 of them to win the title.

I am officially the biggest Red Raider and Rambler / Sister Jean fan on the planet right now.

[sbroc012]

This is where it goes from easy to hard, at least in expectation. Besides us, the 3 best teams remaining in the field are Kansas, Villanova, and Michigan. Barring a significant upset in one of the games away from us, we’ll have to beat all 3 of them to win the title.

I am officially the biggest Red Raider and Rambler / Sister Jean fan on the planet right now.

If that all comes to fruition, there is no way anyone can say Duke didn't earn it. On the flipside, if any of the teams from the East/Midwest side win the whole thing they will have gone through a three game gauntlet to do so.

Which is how everyone would like to see the tournament be. Unlike the other side of the bracket where it looks like Michigan was handed a national title game appearance.

[Dev11]

Which is how everyone would like to see the tournament be. Unlike the other side of the bracket where it looks like Michigan was handed a national title game appearance.

Eh, people said the same to some extent about Virginia/Kentucky/UNC at different points. Loyola isn't a pushover.

As for the crowd, my impression last night was that KU had by far the most fans, but they didn't get as rowdy as a typical UNC crowd in the Carolinas would be. The arena also struck me as too big for the number of seats, so the sound kind of disappeared. My guess is that KU will still pretty heavily outnumber Duke tomorrow, but it won't feel overwhelming. I saw a lot of Creighton apparel in the building, which I suppose would represent the generic college basketball fan in Omaha, and I can't imagine those people have any particular rooting interest. Worry about Malik Newman and Devonte Graham, not the crowd.

[gam7]

Sometimes instant classics sneak up on us when no one is looking. This is not one of those times. The programs, the talent, the contrast in styles, the coaches involved, the stakes, the craziness of this particular tournament... I sense a classic coming on.

[whereinthehellami]

Can Duke capitalize on their advantage in the post without turning the ball over? Will Allen play loose? Those are the questions on my mind for the game this afternoon.

I think I saw up thread someone saying that Malik Newman was the key to how KU plays. I agree with that and think if Duke can shut him down, then they should be right there at the end but if he goes off then Duke could be in trouble unless Allen is going off as well.

The experience of Kansas (2 seniors, 1 junior, 2 sophomore) is not in Duke's favor either, especially if Allen is playing tight.

Go Duke! Play tough and together!

[Troublemaker]

Can Duke capitalize on their advantage in the post without turning the ball over?

Yeah, the entry passing will be the biggest key, imo. Duke will almost certainly seek to pound the ball inside, so it's just about whether the passes reach the Duke players or not. When KU is playing our bigs from behind, we can't allow them to sneak around and tip away the pass. And when KU is fronting our bigs, we can't misfire and throw the ball off the backboard or slow lob it into heavy traffic where it gets intercepted or tipped away. Make mistakes and KU will rain threes and layups on us in transition.

[WillJ]

All the strategy talk is great, but I have a more fundamental problem that I need help with. During the game my son and I will be on a 4-hour Southwest flight that my wife scheduled and that I foolishly agreed to. My son is, shall we say, not happy with me. Hell, I'm not happy with myself. So...is there anyway we can watch the game en route? I don't fly much, so I'm surely behind the times in familiarity with in-flight technology.

[NM Duke Fan]

Yeah, the entry passing will be the biggest key, imo. Duke will almost certainly seek to pound the ball inside, so it's just about whether the passes reach the Duke players or not. When KU is playing our bigs from behind, we can't allow them to sneak around and tip away the pass. And when KU is fronting our bigs, we can't misfire and throw the ball off the backboard or slow lob it into heavy traffic where it gets intercepted or tipped away. Make mistakes and KU will rain threes and layups on us in transition.

Yes, entry passes ... and hopefully Duval reverting to the mean against a more standard defense and either dunking or dishing to Bagley, Carter, et al. If Duval and Allen can play with both discipline and confidence at the same time,Trent is up to at least his average in shooting percentage, and the entry passes are above average, I see Duke exceeding the spread. If not ... could be a real nail biter.

[Ballboy1998]

All the strategy talk is great, but I have a more fundamental problem that I need help with. During the game my son and I will be on a 4-hour Southwest flight that my wife scheduled and that I foolishly agreed to. My son is, shall we say, not happy with me. Hell, I'm not happy with myself. So...is there anyway we can watch the game en route? I don't fly much, so I'm surely behind the times in familiarity with in-flight technology.

If the flight has WiFi - a 4 hour flight likely does - you should at least be able to follow the gamecast/play-by-play, but it likely won’t be fast enough to get a clean video stream. I would try for WiFi and then give the official March Madness app or website a try to see if the connection is fast enough to stream the live feed.

[oakvillebluedevil]

All the strategy talk is great, but I have a more fundamental problem that I need help with. During the game my son and I will be on a 4-hour Southwest flight that my wife scheduled and that I foolishly agreed to. My son is, shall we say, not happy with me. Hell, I'm not happy with myself. So...is there anyway we can watch the game en route? I don't fly much, so I'm surely behind the times in familiarity with in-flight technology.

Southwest usually lets you stream live tv to your devices for free. Instructions on how to watch are here:

https://www.southwest.com/html/travel-experience/in-the-air.html

You'll need to download the airtime player app for any device before boarding (tablets / phones)...knock on wood but the connection's been decent enough to be able to watch in my experience

[BluDvlsN1]

All the strategy talk is great, but I have a more fundamental problem that I need help with. During the game my son and I will be on a 4-hour Southwest flight that my wife scheduled and that I foolishly agreed to. My son is, shall we say, not happy with me. Hell, I'm not happy with myself. So...is there anyway we can watch the game en route? I don't fly much, so I'm surely behind the times in familiarity with in-flight technology.

Just tagging on to previous posters suggestions, there is a link here for streaming once your device is set up as suggested.

Good luck, safe travels.
Go DUKE

https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/bracket-beat/march-madness-dates-tournament-schedule

[aseb1986]

All the strategy talk is great, but I have a more fundamental problem that I need help with. During the game my son and I will be on a 4-hour Southwest flight that my wife scheduled and that I foolishly agreed to. My son is, shall we say, not happy with me. Hell, I'm not happy with myself. So...is there anyway we can watch the game en route? I don't fly much, so I'm surely behind the times in familiarity with in-flight technology.

As a frequent Southwest traveler, let me tell you - you're in luck the game is on CBS as it's one of the free channels offered by the inflight entertainment. If the connection is good, you'll have no problem watching the game during the flight. The way to access it is to connect to Southwest's wifi once you get on board, then go to getconnected.southwestwifi.com, follow the prompts for live tv and select CBS.

[Dev11]

Just tagging on to previous posters suggestions, there is a link here for streaming once your device is set up as suggested.

Good luck, safe travels.
Go DUKE

https://www.ncaa.com/news/basketball-men/bracket-beat/march-madness-dates-tournament-schedule

Southwest wifi doesn't give you enough bandwidth to stream things outside the Southwest/Airtime system, so that link won't work even if OP has wifi in-flight. The Airtime app is all you need. Download it before flying and then open southwest.com for in-flight entertainment, which should appear for you on the homepage. I've done this numerous times for sporting events, including Super Bowl 50 a few years ago while half of the passengers on my flight to Denver were streaming the Broncos, too.

[BluDvlsN1]

Southwest wifi doesn't give you enough bandwidth to stream things outside the Southwest/Airtime system, so that link won't work even if OP has wifi in-flight. The Airtime app is all you need. Download it before flying and then open southwest.com for in-flight entertainment, which should appear for you on the homepage. I've done this numerous times for sporting events, including Super Bowl 50 a few years ago while half of the passengers on my flight to Denver were streaming the Broncos, too.

Perfect, and thanks for the correction!

[BandAlum83]

Johnny had a reverse jam over someone in that game.

So glad, 30 years later, it is legendary: "As the game developed, a different kind of spectator activity formed, that of Duke fans chanting at Navy, “Abandon ship!”"

I was there with my fiance, Mrs. BandAlum83. We got married 3 months after that. :)

[ndkjr70]

My memory is failing me a bit. Duke will obviously be in road-blue or road-Black uniforms tonight. Should duke be fortunate enough to come away with a win tonight...when was the last time Duke cut down their regional nets NOT wearing a white jersey? Not in 2015, not in 2010... can’t remember 2004.

[pfrduke]

My memory is failing me a bit. Duke will obviously be in road-blue or road-Black uniforms tonight. Should duke be fortunate enough to come away with a win tonight...when was the last time Duke cut down their regional nets NOT wearing a white jersey? Not in 2015, not in 2010... can’t remember 2004.

In the 90s. We haven’t beaten a team seeded above us since 1994. 0-4 in those games since.

[-jk]

In the 90s. We haven’t beaten a team seeded above us since 1994. 0-4 in those games since.

A remarkably low number of opportunities.

Let's reverse that trend!

-jk

[MrPoon]

In the 90s. We haven’t beaten a team seeded above us since 1994. 0-4 in those games since.

As mentioned in the latest podcast! Interesting because K isn’t 0-4 on much of anything. It’s why Kansas doesn’t have a chance tonight. Reversion to the mean. :rolleyes:

Not related to this thread per se but every time Carter has a great play the commentator has to say he is being overshadowed by Bagley, every time. While that may be true, you can make the same comment about Bolden. His minutes have been really valuable contributions for about a month. There isn’t enough room for him to play more than about 8 a game, but if it weren’t for the best interior in basketball, Bolden would be playing more than twice that. Really impressive growth despite the injuries slowing his career. Depending on how the game is called tonight, Bolden vs Azubuike means Duke can keep Bagley out of the middle of the zone and that too could be big and I don’t fear that match up on either side of the floor.

[ndkjr70]

In the 90s. We haven’t beaten a team seeded above us since 1994. 0-4 in those games since.

Without googling... 2016 vs Oregon, 2013 vs Louisville.... and then I’m drawing blanks. 2009 vs Villanova?

[tbyers11]

Without googling... 2016 vs Oregon, 2013 vs Louisville... and then I’m drawing blanks. 2009 vs Villanova?

Arkansas in the 1994 National Championship game (1 vs 2)
Kansas in the 2003 Sweet 16 (2 vs 3)

Duke was 2 and Villanova 3 in 2009

[MrPoon]

Don’t bother tuning in today. Seth Greenberg, Clark Kellog and Kenny Smith all picked Kansas.
Kenny said the only way Duke wins is playing at least 5 mins of man to man, hope K was watching and taking notes. Of course they all said MSU would also win the entire thing.

No one mentioned that Self almost always ends March in March.

[uh_no]

Don’t bother tuning in today. Seth Greenberg, Clark Kellog and Kenny Smith all picked Kansas.
Kenny said the only way Duke wins is playing at least 5 mins of man to man, hope K was watching and taking notes. Of course they all said MSU would also win the entire thing.

No one mentioned that Self almost always ends March in March.

that bodes well for us.

[CDu]

Arkansas in the 1994 National Championship game (1 vs 2)
Kansas in the 2003 Sweet 16 (2 vs 3)

Duke was 2 and Villanova 3 in 2009

Worth noting that this will likely be the first time Duke is actually favored in a game against a better seed. Surely they weren’t favored in 2003, and they weren’t favored in 2013 or 2016.

It is conceivable that they were favored over Arkansas in 1994, but probably not.

This is sort of a wonky scenario.

But yeah, when you are almost always a 1 or 2 seed, you aren’t going to get many chances to play a better seed opponrnt.

[Native]

that bodes well for us.

Barkley picked us, though. It's over.

[BandAlum83]

I play drums at church on Sundays. I have to arrive at 4:30 for rehearsal before mass. Mass begins at 6:00, and ends around 7:15. It takes 45 minutes to get home.

Of course, I'll be recording the game.

My question for the group out here is: Would you rather know the score of the game before you have an opportunity to watch the game, or would you want to watch it without knowing the outcome?

[richardjackson199]

I play drums at church on Sundays. I have to arrive at 4:30 for rehearsal before mass. Mass begins at 6:00, and ends around 7:15. It takes 45 minutes to get home.

Of course, I'll be recording the game.

My question for the group out here is: Would you rather know the score of the game before you have an opportunity to watch the game, or would you want to watch it without knowing the outcome?

Watch without knowing. But if it's a disaster like Duke-Cheats Friday ACC Tourney Semifinals, then have someone text you Not to watch the game and save those 2 hours of your life and avoid the misery. Not a text for any loss, but just for a disaster. In that case just delete the recording without watching.

[sbroc012]

Barkley picked us, though. It's over.

Welp, don't even play the game. The Kansas puppy won, game over.

[BandAlum83]

Watch without knowing. But if it's a disaster like Duke-Cheats Friday ACC Tourney Semifinals, then have someone text you Not to watch the game and save those 2 hours of your life and avoid the misery. Not a text for any loss, but just for a disaster. In that case just delete the recording without watching.

I completely understand your point, but "disaster" is purely subjective. A one point loss in overtime is a disaster in my mind. It could be a classic, but if we end up on the losing side, I would have rather saved myself from those 2 hours of my life. In reality, I would rather not watch a loss, but it is so much more enjoyable to win and watch without knowing the outcome.

During the regular season if this would happen, I'd find out the score and then decide whether or not to watch. This is the Elite 8, though, so it's different.

I'm torn.

[Rich]

I completely understand your point, but "disaster" is purely subjective. A one point loss in overtime is a disaster in my mind. It could be a classic, but if we end up on the losing side, I would have rather saved myself from those 2 hours of my life. In reality, I would rather not watch a loss, but it is so much more enjoyable to win and watch without knowing the outcome.

During the regular season if this would happen, I'd find out the score and then decide whether or not to watch. This is the Elite 8, though, so it's different.

I'm torn.

Gotta watch without knowing. Being a true fan you have to experience the pain as well as the elation. They go hand in hand. Can’t experience one and avoid the other.

I have a predicament today too. I’m vacationing in Costa Rica and there’s no CBS where I am. Comcast on my iPad is blocked outside the US too. I’m stuck watching the gamecast unless someone wants to FaceTime the game on their TV with me.

[Bay Area Duke Fan]

I completely understand your point, but "disaster" is purely subjective. A one point loss in overtime is a disaster in my mind. It could be a classic, but if we end up on the losing side, I would have rather saved myself from those 2 hours of my life. In reality, I would rather not watch a loss, but it is so much more enjoyable to win and watch without knowing the outcome.

During the regular season if this would happen, I'd find out the score and then decide whether or not to watch. This is the Elite 8, though, so it's different.

I'm torn.

Maybe you could take sick leave, stay home and watch live.

[nmduke2001]

Gotta watch without knowing. Being a true fan you have to experience the pain as well as the elation. They go hand in hand. Can’t experience one and avoid the other.

I have a predicament today too. I’m vacationing in Costa Rica and there’s no CBS where I am. Comcast on my iPad is blocked outside the US too. I’m stuck watching the gamecast unless someone wants to FaceTime the game on their TV with me.

I think all the games are streaming live on cbs.com or their app.

[Rich]

I have a predicament today too. I’m vacationing in Costa Rica and there’s no CBS where I am. Comcast on my iPad is blocked outside the US too. I’m stuck watching the gamecast unless someone wants to FaceTime the game on their TV with me.

The good news for everyone is that the last time I watched a whole game on gamecast was when I vacationed in Costa Rica, at the same hotel, during the NCAA tournament, in 2015.

[ns7]

In the 90s. We haven’t beaten a team seeded above us since 1994. 0-4 in those games since.

While we weren't a lower seed, we did beat Wisconsin as an underdog in 2015.

[Avvocato]

No one mentioned that Self almost always ends March in March.

Of course, next a Saturday is March 31. Let’s end their season today. Let’s go Duke!

[Dr. Rosenrosen]

Don’t bother tuning in today. Seth Greenberg, Clark Kellog and Kenny Smith all picked Kansas.
Kenny said the only way Duke wins is playing at least 5 mins of man to man, hope K was watching and taking notes. Of course they all said MSU would also win the entire thing.

No one mentioned that Self almost always ends March in March.
He’s such a dolt. Why would you ever say before the game that a team MUST play a certain type of defense for at least a certain number of minutes in order to win? Cheater education.

[MrPoon]

He’s such a dolt. Why would you ever say before the game that a team MUST play a certain type of defense for at least a certain number of minutes in order to win? Cheater education.

Charles strongly disagreed with him. I just thought it was nuts to suggest that Duke would have to do something it hasn’t done in over a month. And that it HAD to.

[slower]

He’s such a dolt. Why would you ever say before the game that a team MUST play a certain type of defense for at least a certain number of minutes in order to win? Cheater education.
Kenny Smith is the WORST of the UNC homers. What a POS.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

*deep breath*
.
.
.
*deep breath*
.
.
.
*exhale*

[BigZ]

Rebound !!!

[Bob Green]

Kenny Smith is the WORST of the UNC homers. What a POS.

In Kenny's defense, he did say "I know who is the better team I just would never admit it."

[WHOneedsSOX]

In Kenny's defense, he did say "I know who is the better team I just would never admit it."

Aren't these guys supposed to be as unbiased as possible?

[jipops]

I know kenpom says otherwise, but I think Kansas has the advantage on offense. We have to keep the pace pretty slow. And controlling the boards and limiting turnovers is indeed a must. Can’t give these guys extra possessions.

[duke79]

*deep breath*
.
.
.
*deep breath*
.
.
.
*exhale*

LOL, yea, I know that feeling! Frankly, this game worries me. Duke has to play REALLY well (and better than against Syracuse) to pull this one out. My thought, on offense, is to get the ball in to Bagley and Carter early and try to get Kansas' big man in foul trouble and we have to play tighter defense. Youth against experience.....and let's hope youth wins!

[riverside6]

Live tempo-based stats for Duke/Kansas...

https://www.scacchoops.com/duke-at-kansas-basketball-live-stats-32518

[WHOneedsSOX]

Duke looks nervous. Need to settle down.

[duke79]

Duke looks nervous. Need to settle down.

Yea.....freshman jitters
Need to calm down and play some smart ball

[WHOneedsSOX]

Yea....freshman jitters
Need to calm down and play some smart ball

They'll be fine. Just need to settle into the game. Game is close too which helps them not press even more than they need to.

[rsvman]

Pathetic shooting, much? Wow.
Need to settle down.

Seems like refs are calling it tight.

[ice-9]

Kansas basically running what Syracuse did, taking advantage of our extended zone on the perimeter to create 2-on-1 situations in the post vs. Carter for easy alley oops. Jayhawks almost had two just minutes into the game.

Please, please adjust Duke team. You've seen this already just two days ago.

[dukelion]

Azubuike looks exhausted already....hard t see him play 30 mins today.

Bottom line for us....Allen, Trent and the bigs need to make their wide open threes.....Kansas looks ok with us taking them.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Azubuike looks exhausted already...hard t see him play 30 mins today.

Bottom line for us...Allen, Trent and the bigs need to make their wide open threes....Kansas looks ok with us taking them.
They're basically ignoring Duval which is going to make things tough inside. No lanes to drive.

[dukelion]

Kansas basically running what Syracuse did, taking advantage of our extended zone on the perimeter to create 2-on-1 situations in the post vs. Carter for easy alley oops. Jayhawks almost had two just minutes into the game.

Please, please adjust Duke team. You've seen this already just two days ago.

Dunno...we've stopped it each time.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Zone is moving a lot better today. More of a matchup zone. Allen seems to be defending wherever the open guy is regardless of where that guy is and the rest of the team adjusts around him.

[AGDukesky]

Duke should be up 7 if it wasn’t for missed wide open 3s and bad 3s made by Kansas

[dukelion]

Bolden has been huuuge so far......great to see.

[kako]

GHill totally right. When they double off him, Duval should head to the hoop.

Bolden again giving good minutes.

Trent getting that runner in the lane was probably good for his mental state.

Allen should hunt his shot if they keep doubling the paint.

[ice-9]

Dunno...we've stopped it each time.

We are now, whatever Coach K said at timeout seemed to have worked.

But first one was basket interference.

Second one was a missed dunk.

Neither had anything to do with our stopping ability.

[rsvman]

What an idiotic comment by the announcer. He said, "Kansas, in control" as they went to break, but we are up one. Lol

[ncexnyc]

Hope we find our shooting touch soon.

[Steven43]

Refs terrible so far. How was that not a foul on the guy who hit Carter in the face?

[arnie]

What an idiotic comment by the announcer. He said, "Kansas, in control" as they went to break, but we are up one. Lol

That was Grant Hill - strange comment

[WHOneedsSOX]

Going to need Trent to hit a couple 3's today.

Hope Kansas keeps running plays for their big guy. Keep draining his energy.

[rsvman]

I hope Gary relaxes and starts making some shots soon.
Grayson looking good out there.

[ice-9]

The good news is we're leading without shooting well.

The bad news is that we're not shooting well.

[ncexnyc]

Going to need Trent to hit a couple 3's today.

Hope Kansas keeps running plays for their big guy. Keep draining his energy.

I'll settle for anyone hitting some 3's.

[kako]

I hope Gary relaxes and starts making some shots soon.
Grayson looking good out there.

Trent can still score going midrange. Allen and AOC could draw D outside.

[rsvman]

I'll settle for anyone hitting some 3's.

It would be nice, but I'll settle for starting ahead for the entire game.

[jipops]

Javin the lineup with 2 other bigs is never good. K needs to stop trying this. Javin doesn’t have the skill.

[kako]

If I was KU I'd go into the low post to try and get the 3rd on Carter...

[WHOneedsSOX]

Ugh terrible foul... Just give that up Carter.

[rsvman]

Bad call

[downeastdad]

If I was KU I'd go into the low post to try and get the 3rd on Carter...

Nice call! Stop it!!

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Kansas is missing a lot of open shots and killing us on the boards. We're going to have to clean up the defense and rebounding very soon or is this going to go south on us. We're lucky we're not down more right now.

[kako]

Nice call! Stop it!!

I take no pleasure with that. But I wondered why to bring Carter back in with Bolden holding down the fort.

[WHOneedsSOX]

I take no pleasure with that. But I wondered why to bring Carter back in with Bolden holding down the fort.

Bolden probably needed a breather and Delaurier is kind of useless.

[AGDukesky]

If we don’t start making open shots this game will get away from us soon

[rsvman]

I take no pleasure with that. But I wondered why to bring Carter back in with Bolden holding down the fort.

It was a bad idea, but coach K often does that kind of thing in big games.

[Utley]

Really bad last 5 minutes. Keep it close at half. No idea why Carter was in.

[ncexnyc]

Bolden needs to come out a step or two and not be parked underneath on defense
.

[wavedukefan70s]

Jayhawks camping in the lane smh

[ice-9]

Game so far is a good showcase why in the college game it's hard to have just two 3-point shooters.

Kansas doing a good job of doubling the post and sagging off of Duval. Duval can't really drive in because the post is packed. He can pass it to a teammate but that teammate is being guarded by someone. He's got to take the shot, but he hesitates because he doesn't really want to, which gives the defense enough time to put a hand up. Then he really doesn't want to take the shot and our offense is stalled.

Wondering with Carter out due to foul trouble, whether we want to put AOC in for more shooting.

[kako]

Bolden probably needed a breather and Delaurier is kind of useless.

Maybe. But then try DeLaurier? Carter's too valuable.

[arnie]

Trent can still score going midrange. Allen and AOC could draw D outside.

Prob going to need AOC as a shooter. They’re doubling Bagley leaving others wide open. We have to hit a few threes or we’re toast.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Give Bagley more post touches. That guy is too small to guard him. At worst it opens up shots for other guys.

[jmck214]

2004 vs UCONN all over again. I guess K didn't learn from having Sheldon and Shavlick pick up their 3rd in the 1st half

[jipops]

Carter has now been rendered ineffective for this game. We need the best of the season from Bolden. And he have to hit 3’s or KU will soon go up big.

[WHOneedsSOX]

I hate how they call that foul on Trent but then let others go on both teams. Call it consistently or don't call it at all. Every drive there's contact like that on both teams.

[kako]

Dean Smith used to ALWAYS sit a starter when he got his 3rd foul. 9F 9F 9F but it wasn't a bad strategy.

[rsvman]

2004 vs UCONN all over again. I guess K didn't learn from having Sheldon and Shavlick pick up their 3rd in the 1st half

I sure hope you are wrong.

[Spanarkel]

Agree that Mykhailuk can’t guard MB3: iso

[HateCarolina]

Hey guys I think we need to calm down on here. I think we’re playing pretty well and just have to adjust to the inside game and now it’s going to be called. Bolden went up for a block but De Sousa had him pulled down with his other arm and Bagley has gotten hounded a couple of times too.

Of course the ticky tack foul on Gary Trent was surprising.

[AGDukesky]

2004 vs UCONN all over again. I guess K didn't learn from having Sheldon and Shavlick pick up their 3rd in the 1st half

Who and who?

[ice-9]

2004 vs UCONN all over again. I guess K didn't learn from having Sheldon and Shavlick pick up their 3rd in the 1st half

If we lose it won't be because of that.

1) We have post depth in Bolden and Javier.

2) Kansas scores with their guards, not bigs.

If we lose it's because we can't make outside shots, which allows them to pack the lane. Long 3-point shots hit the rim which allows Kansas to go on the fast break.

[oldnavy]

Azibuki was in the lane for a 10 second count...

[Mabdul Doobakus]

One of these teams is gonna start making their 3's.

[HateCarolina]

Duval is playing well at least. Wow on the driving dunk!!

[kako]

Graham caught looking... Duval's best O is when he attacks the hoop.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Duval has had a really strong half. Bagley will probably come alive again in the 2nd. Going to come down to Trent and Allen hitting shots I think.

[ncexnyc]

HUGE break KU whiffed that lay-up.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

So many easy misses for Kansas. Poor outside shooting on both sides. Duval pretty much carrying Duke right now.

[ice-9]

Graham caught looking... Duval's best O is when he attacks the hoop.

When he attacks the rim, the bigs have to clear out.

If they can move in concert it works.

If they can't, Duval doesn't have the lane or the bigs end up out of position.

Aside from the fastbreak, so far this does seem to generate our best offense.

[Rich]

I’m watching on a TV that is in Spanish. What did K say in the halftime interview?

[dukelion]

Thought we played slightly below average yet up three at the half......I'll take it.

[WHOneedsSOX]

I’m watching on a TV that is in Spanish. What did K say in the halftime interview?

Both teams playing hard and Duke needs to clean up it's defensive rebounding.

[jjredickrules]

I’m watching on a TV that is in Spanish. What did K say in the halftime interview?

We need to get defensive rebounds. Our bigs have 0.

Both teams playing their butts off.

I agree with both of his points.

EDIT: Got beat to the response.

[jipops]

That last miss by Bolden is what will keep him in Durham next season.

Great game by Duval right now. He is playing to his strengths

[kako]

If they have to respect Duval's drives more, that frees up the bigs. He needs to be sharp when he drives and dishes.

Bagley will get his in the 2nd half.

Still hate Carter having his 3rd. Bolden should start 2H.

Trent is playing well. We'd like him to hit more 3s, but I'll take his 2's like he has.

Still waiting for Allen to hunt his shot.

[rsvman]

If Trent were shooting his usual percentage, we'd be up 10.
I hope we warm up in the second half.
But overall, I'm pretty pleased.

[SCMatt33]

I think both teams played a pretty good first half outside of each missing some good looks. I'm loving Duval not settling and getting into the lane for the most part. I complained about the number of threes last game, but for the most part, these have been ones we really needed to take, especially with the way Kansas has doubled the post.

[whereinthehellami]

Both teams can play better. Duke still has the higher ceiling though. It all comes down to who wants to make a play, so far Duval has stepped up for Duke.

[anonj]

Getting outrebounded badly and shooting poorly from 3 - yet still up at the half. I’ll take it!

[53n206]

Does anyone else think these CBS announcers are Kansas biased?

[WHOneedsSOX]

If they have to respect Duval's drives more, that frees up the bigs. He needs to be sharp when he drives and dishes.

Bagley will get his in the 2nd half.

Still hate Carter having his 3rd. Bolden should start 2H.

Trent is playing well. We'd like him to hit more 3s, but I'll take his 2's like he has.

Still waiting for Allen to hunt his shot.
Carter's 3 fouls is the biggest worry. He's their best defensive rebounder and interior defender. Going to be hard for him on those 2 on 1's with his foul problem.

[kako]

God I hate listening to Kenny Smith talking about Duke. He always says what can be done against Duke.

But at least he's honest in his Duke hate.

9F

[darthur]

2004 vs UCONN all over again. I guess K didn't learn from having Sheldon and Shavlick pick up their 3rd in the 1st half

You mean the game where UConn had a big man that Duke just couldn't deal with, and who played only 22 minutes due to foul trouble fears, but then ended the game with just 3 fouls? I'll take Duke's strategy thanks.

Obviously risks sometimes don't work out, but that doesn't mean you should stop taking them.

[kako]

Does anyone else think these CBS announcers are Kansas biased?

CBS wants Duke-Nova for the late game on Saturday. Much higher ratings than KU-Nova.

GHill suffers from trying to be balanced. All Duke alums do.

[duketaylor]

"I’m watching on a TV that is in Spanish. What did K say in the halftime interview?"

K said they're playing really fast and well, and we are too. Gonna be a tough second half. Or something to that effect.

[Utley]

I also said we need to defensive rebound better

[drummerdevil]

If Trent hits shots and we defensive rebound, it could be easier. If they start hitting their threes or Carter gets a fourth early, it could get ugly. Marvin needs to be able to pass out of doubles.

[ncexnyc]

Javin has been given several shots to show what he can do, but hasn't delivered. Can we please give Jack a shot to show what he's capable of. He's a stout defender and more than willing rebounder.

[rsvman]

"I’m watching on a TV that is in Spanish. What did K say in the halftime interview?"

K said they're playing really fast and well, and we are too. Gonna be a tough second half. Or something to that effect.

"It's a helluva game."

[CrazyNotCrazie]

We need to start hitting open threes (easier said than done). I know Bolden was having endurance issues not long ago - I hope that has improved as we might need big minutes from him.

Refs have not really impacted the game but if anything, I think we have had a few go in our favor.

[Ima Facultiwyfe]

I want to see the Slim Reaper in there to liven up things! We should be getting rebounds and running, wearing out that big center. He's in awful shape. I don't think he could keep up very long.
Love, Ima

[WHOneedsSOX]

Javin has been given several shots to show what he can do, but hasn't delivered. Can we please give Jack a shot to show what he's capable of. He's a stout defender and more than willing rebounder.

Completely forgot about Jack. Agree he should be given a minute or two over DeLaurier in the second half. Just a more confident player too.

[El_Diablo]

Trent and Allen have two defensive rebounds each. Duval and DeLaurier have one each. Carter, Bagley and Bolden have zero. Yikes.

[millerecu]

Is CBS the Kansas slant and I just can’t find the Duke slant?

[Acymetric]

Bagley had 0 boards period in the first half last game...not a great trend.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Someone will hit threes in the second half. Hope it is us.

[Billy Dat]

20 minutes to San Antonio - let’s go!!!!!

[jmck214]

You mean the game where UConn had a big man that Duke just couldn't deal with, and who played only 22 minutes due to foul trouble fears, but then ended the game with just 3 fouls? I'll take Duke's strategy thanks.

Obviously risks sometimes don't work out, but that doesn't mean you should stop taking them.

Yes but 5 of Okafer' s 22 minutes were the last 5 minutes when UCONN erased a 9 point deficit while nick Horvath tried to guard him.

I'd much rather have my key big in for the last 5 minutes of the game then the last 5 of the half

[WHOneedsSOX]

Bagley had 0 boards period in the first half last game...not a great trend.

Gets sucked out to the 3 point line on defense and doesn't pursue the rebound once the shot goes up. Just stands and watches mostly.

[Steven43]

Getting outrebounded badly and shooting poorly from 3 - yet still up at the half. I’ll take it!
That ‘strategy’ won’t hold up for another half. Duke MUST start playing better on offense, both inside and out, or it’s ‘see you later’ time. Can’t believe the sheer number of very makeabie shots that Duke has missed. This game is ripe for the taking, but Devils should be up by 8-10 right now,

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Five first half turnovers. If we keep that number under eleven, we should win.

[rsvman]

Is CBS the Kansas slant and I just can’t find the Duke slant?

Seems like it sometimes.

I'm ok with them pointing out over and over how Kansas is carving up our defense as long as we keep winning.

[Utley]

Bagley and Grayson need to play like the best players in the country

[whereinthehellami]

Lets go Duke. Play tough and together for the second half!

[Wildling]

I was just texting with a fellow Duke fan. We didn't shoot the 3 well. Didn't rebound very well. Carter and Bolden both played like crap. And we are going into the 2nd half with the lead.

I'll take it!

[ncexnyc]

That ‘strategy’ won’t hold up for another half. Duke MUST start playing better on offense, both inside and out, or it’s ‘see you later’ time. Can’t believe the sheer number of very makeabie shots that Duke has missed. This game is ripe for the taking, but Devils should be up by 8-10 right now,

Sadly missing shots has been the story of this weekend to date. On Friday night the excuse was, because the zone pushed us out a step or two. I'm not sure what today's excuse is.

[Troublemaker]

HUGE break KU whiffed that lay-up.

Javin just needed to wait a couple of seconds before inbounding the ball (a Battier special), and KU wouldn't have had that final chance.

Pretty happy with what I've seen so far, considering that the rebounding almost has to be a fluke. I think we'll show up on the boards in the second half, so if no other aspect of our game deteriorates...

[Steven43]

Duval keeping us in this. He’s bold and has nerve. He tries to take it rather than waiting for someone to give it to him.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Zone is getting carved up.

[jipops]

It’s getting away now

[AGDukesky]

We look like garbage

[Troublemaker]

We modified the zone needlessly...

[ncexnyc]

Team looks clueless.

[subzero02]

This is no good... Kansas is moving the ball too easily

[kako]

The next loss is Allen's last game. It could be this one. He needs to step up and lead this team now. I want to see the fire that was there against Wisconsin. If that can happen, it will be his legacy.

It's his time, he should take it.

[rsvman]

We look really sluggish on offense now.
Mostly standing around.

[LasVegas]

The sky is falling.

No it’s not. Relax.

[WHOneedsSOX]

This is no good... Kansas is moving the ball too easily

Any shot they want they get wide open.

[dukelion]

Well.....another disappointing start to a half.

Allen, Trent, Bagley and Carter all with terrible games so far......never thought that would happen but I'll give Bill Self a lot of credit. Kansas' game plan much better than our own.

[rsvman]

We modified the zone needlessly...

Agree. It was working pretty well despite what the announcers were saying.

[downeastdad]

Nothing wrong with Duke that a little defense wouldn't cure. Or offense.

[rsvman]

That's four!

[WHOneedsSOX]

And now Carter is done for the next 12 minutes. Yikes.

[rsvman]

Not over, but we need to dig deep.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Kansas has been getting good shots all game. Could see this swing coming a mile away. Doesn't help that we can't hit outside shots.

[ncexnyc]

Who wants to be the man? Who is going to step-up for Duke?

[dukelion]

5/44 last two games from three.....11%.

[luvdahops]

And now Carter is done for the next 12 minutes. Yikes.

He has been a step slow and out of sorts all game. The team has played better when Bolden's been in. Sure hope it continues now.

[WakeDevil]

Game. Set. Match.

[ncexnyc]

This is unreal. Trevon is the only Blue Devil to show-up today.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Dont think Kansas has scored against the normal zone yet this half. No idea why they switched it.

[ncexnyc]

Does the patient still have a pulse? It appears he does.

[barjwr]

Yes! Now more of the same down the stretch. Get Bagley the ball!!!

[kako]

Who wants to be the man? Who is going to step-up for Duke?

My guess would not have been Duval and Bagley for 3. That prob won't continue.

They need to force it to Bagley down low. He can then kick out if need be.

[dukelion]

Dont think Kansas has scored against the normal zone yet this half. No idea why they switched it.

Agreed...it worked fine in the first half.....no reason to get too cute.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Kansas is gonna live with all the Duval and Bagley 3's we want to throw up there. Trent killing us.

[Mak P]

Kansas is gonna live with all the Duval and Bagley 3's we want to throw up there. Trent killing us.

And so is Allen. Atleast trent got some floaters

[Mabdul Doobakus]

And so is Allen. Atleast trent got some floaters

True. Allen's been largely passive, which is a problem given his experience level relative to the rest of the team.

[downeastdad]

My guess would not have been Duval and Bagley for 3. That prob won't continue.

They need to force it to Bagley down low. He can then kick out if need be.

But then he gets mugged with no call.

[whereinthehellami]

Weather the storm, keep it close! Bags trying to step up. Follow his lead.

[WHOneedsSOX]

True. Allen's been largely passive, which is a problem given his experience level relative to the rest of the team.

Hated that Euro step he tried early in this half when the Kansas defender was under the basket. Drive straight at his chest and dunk or over him or draw the foul.

[kako]

Where's the fire, Allen????

If he can't get it going, then it looks like Duval needs to lead?

But the 4th on their big could be really meaningful.

[Mabdul Doobakus]

Just no resistance. So easy for Kansas to work the ball within 5 feet of the basket and then minimal resistance once there.

Nice play by Trent.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Rebound!!!

[HateCarolina]

Game. Set. Match.

Which game are you watching?

[Mak P]

The focus next season should be on depth. Some shooters off the bench

[dukelion]

Kansas just looks more poised and organized....like a veteran team should.

[rsvman]

Got back to tied and then took our foot off the gas again.

Now is the time to step it up. It's now or never.

[ncexnyc]

Something wrong with Bolden? Javin is painful on the offensive end of the court.

[WHOneedsSOX]

Kansas just looks more poised and organized...like a veteran team should.

They're getting easy shots. Duke's working so hard for theirs. Need Allen to get going, either scoring or creating for others.

[dukelion]

The focus next season should be on depth. Some shooters off the bench

Hate to break it to you but it's gonna look a lot like this year......but without a senior leader.

[ice-9]

5-23 from 3-point this game so far.

5-26 last game.

10-49! Unreal.

[Utley]

Biggest 4 minutes of the season. O has to sizzle

[AGDukesky]

We take good shots and miss they throw something up it seems to either go in or they get the rebound

[whereinthehellami]

Kansas hitting bigger shots. duke doesn't have an identity right now. There is alot of standing around on offense, hero ball type plays. On defense Duke is too reactionary.

Keep it close, keep coming at them.