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View Full Version : Duke MBB v. Virginia post-game thread



throatybeard
01-13-2008, 10:08 PM
10 characters

dukestheheat
01-13-2008, 10:10 PM
we're looking GOOD and I love the daggers on intensity and defense in that second half.

also, demarcus was stellar and my boy nolan smith played well also.

dth.

dukelifer
01-13-2008, 10:10 PM
So much to like tonight. For me, this game was highlighted by excellent passing by Paulus and others and the growing confidence of Nolan Smith. Duke also pressured the ball very well and forced some turnovers into easy baskets. The rebounding was excellent- very few second chance points by Virginia. The midrange and inside game looked much better tonight. Virginia is not very big so that helped- but still there were a lot better looks from the short range than in the last few games- and many more in the flow of the offense. Singler down low can be automatic with some good ball movement and passing. Duke only had that little stretch in the first half when they went cold. Nolan Smith had some really nice moments – passing, shooting, defending and driving and his spelling Paulus helps to keep Gregg fresh, limiting his mistakes late. When Smith starts playing like this on the road- Duke will be much better. Henderson was much more himself tonight- played very much under control throughout. King struggled with his shots in one stretch but he is more than just a shooter and makes contribution- he is a natural rebounder and sees the floor very well. Scheyer is still struggling with the wide open threes but he was very active and never really lets his misses get to him. All in all- a very nice way to start the ACC season- got to love those easy wins.

dukestheheat
01-13-2008, 10:13 PM
dukelifer,

i agree with your comments on nolan smith needing to play well on the road; when he's in the game, we seem to move well. hopefully, the coaches are still on him to assert and attack, because it's totally clear that he can attack that basket and we are much better when he is attacking versus just tossing the ball around the key.

dth.

captmojo
01-13-2008, 10:16 PM
Singler spent as much time horizontal as he did vertical. Great hustle! Smith was in on this act as well. May god help this team stay healthy.

The best things are still happening when Henderson is on the floor. His leaping abilities are more than making up for a lack of team height.

Singletary couldn't have had a lot to woof about tonight.

Saratoga2
01-13-2008, 10:21 PM
So much to like tonight. For me, this game was highlighted by excellent passing by Paulus and others and the growing confidence of Nolan Smith. Duke also pressured the ball very well and forced some turnovers into easy baskets. The rebounding was excellent- very few second chance points by Virginia. The midrange and inside game looked much better tonight. Virginia is not very big so that helped- but still there were a lot better looks from the short range than in the last few games- and many more in the flow of the offense. Singler down low can be automatic with some good ball movement and passing. Duke only had that little stretch in the first half when they went cold. Nolan Smith had some really nice moments – passing, shooting, defending and driving and his spelling Paulus helps to keep Gregg fresh, limiting his mistakes late. When Smith starts playing like this on the road- Duke will be much better. Henderson was much more himself tonight- played very much under control throughout. King struggled with his shots in one stretch but he is more than just a shooter and makes contribution- he is a natural rebounder and sees the floor very well. Scheyer is still struggling with the wide open threes but he was very active and never really lets his misses get to him. All in all- a very nice way to start the ACC season- got to love those easy wins.

I could see it was a solid win from game tracker, but you get no real sense of the game that way. I noticed, that will the exception of DeMarcus and Greg, we rained threes but weren't hitting well. Were they zoning us or what?

phaedrus
01-13-2008, 10:26 PM
i loved nolan in the second half. there was just no way he was ever going to walk the ball up the court, whether off a turnover, defensive rebound, or uva basket (until we went into stallball). i hope paulus can play that way too.

msdukie
01-13-2008, 10:29 PM
BTW, all ACC Sunday Night Hoops games are also available on Fox College Sports (usually Atlantic) for those of you that suffer local blackouts. Just need to to order your digital cable's sports pak.

dukelifer
01-13-2008, 10:29 PM
I could see it was a solid win from game tracker, but you get no real sense of the game that way. I noticed, that will the exception of DeMarcus and Greg, we rained threes but weren't hitting well. Were they zoning us or what?

They were playing man- and a bunch of threes trys were from King about 10 feet from the line and a number in transition and kickouts.

JBDuke
01-13-2008, 10:50 PM
I could see it was a solid win from game tracker, but you get no real sense of the game that way. I noticed, that will the exception of DeMarcus and Greg, we rained threes but weren't hitting well. Were they zoning us or what?

We had a lot of penetration and kick-outs. I believe we ended up with 21 assists on 34 FGs...

VaDukie
01-13-2008, 10:56 PM
I thought overall we looked good, but we did have our fair share of sloppy stretches. It seems like on a number of possessions we'd have 3 or 4 good passes and then settle for an average shot. The fact that we went 11-31 from 3 and still won by 22 is a pretty good sign.

mapei
01-13-2008, 11:04 PM
I thought we played great, especially 1st half defensive intensity. The lapses were few and far between. Everybody contributed.

southgater
01-13-2008, 11:04 PM
Didn't get to see the game - I'm curious who defended Singletary - was it Nelson or Smith or someone else? Seems like he had good but not great night.

mapei
01-13-2008, 11:05 PM
There was a lot of switching, so it usually started with Nelson on Singletary but didn't necessarily stay that way. We were very disruptive, but he's good enough that he got his points.

Zeb
01-13-2008, 11:18 PM
We stayed aggressive and didn't give up our lead. Won the first half by 12, the second half by 10. That was a nice win by the devils.

Am I the only person who thinks King is more accurate when he's taking a bad shot? I'm rooting for him, but his game is weird. (I also thought the traveling call against him off the offensive board was bogus--replayed it at home and it looked like a single step.)

billybreen
01-13-2008, 11:22 PM
Great game, coming off 2.5 games that didn't look quite so great. Nice way to start the ACC season.

Dukefan4Life
01-13-2008, 11:25 PM
I think we played an all around good game, I would still like to see us rebound way better than we did tonight, plus we need a scorer in the post and who can defend in the post

delfrio
01-13-2008, 11:28 PM
Am I the only person who thinks King is more accurate when he's taking a bad shot?

Yes. I think most of his misses were on bad shots. If he gets his feet set, he is money, but if not... I was also impressed by the general passing game, but sometimes it goes too far. More than once, I've seen Greg pass up a good shot for a cross-court pass.

dukestheheat
01-13-2008, 11:28 PM
zeb-

on king being more accurate when he's taking a bad shot?........I don't think i've seen him take too many bad shots this year. By that I mean he's got terrific range and I just wait for him to shoot it; IF they're going in, Duke is going to win the game. He's 6'6" so he can get off the shot without having to have a pick. guaranteed when he comes into the carolina game 'ol roy puts his best defender on him and then they hold their breath.

that one player can bring Duke back from the brink of death.

dth.

Jumbo
01-13-2008, 11:30 PM
The rust is gone. The concerns can disappear for a while. This was a vintage Duke performance in an ACC opener. We jumped all over an inferior opponent and the game was never in doubt. The teamwork was great, the subs came fast and frequently and the defensive pressure was fantastic. Last year's visions of quick point guards routinely getting to the rim should be gone by now -- yes, Singletary had 18, but they were tough shots and not easy layups. All of Duke's perimeter defenders were excellent, with the lone exception of Paulus, who got beat a few times. But there were so many things to like that I hope people can enjoy this win for a couple days.

loran16
01-13-2008, 11:33 PM
Ah , it feels good to be back at a duke game. Now the semester has definitely started.

My god, forget the play in this game, the chants that went on felt like it did from 2005-06 and before. It was brilliant.

For Taylor King after he nailed a 3: T.K.O!

For the bulked up white guy whose body looked unnatural: H-G-H! H-G-H!

For the guy with the braids: SPREE-WELL! SPREE-WELL!

(Note, none of these were on the given out cheer sheets).
Cameron was awesome tonight, like it should have been all last year.

delfrio
01-13-2008, 11:55 PM
What was with the keys at the end of the first half - I didn't have audio (I'm hoping something better than a start the bus cheer)?

mepanchin
01-14-2008, 12:13 AM
I thought we rebounded really well actually. Keep in mind Virginia came in as statistically one of the most impressive rebounding teams on both sides of the ball - as the 12th best offensive rebounding team and the 4th best defensive rebounding team. Duke held them below their average on both substantially.

KandG
01-14-2008, 12:22 AM
This was a lot of fun to watch...the intensity was awesome and we matched up very well with Virginia. Even when we had one of our lulls in the first half, it seemed like we were able to snap out of it faster, and our defense mostly remained tenacious even when the offense wasn't clicking. Mcclure and King continue to grow more comfortable with their roles, and the passing on offense seemed much crisper and more purposeful.

It's always tough to tell from TV, but Cameron sounded loud and the Crazies seemed in excellent form. I assume Nolan is OK after diving for a steal and tripping over the ball and bopping his nose/face -- if there are no lingering effects, he'll probably get a lot of (playful) grief from his teammates who will replay the video for his "entertainment". Nice hustle play, his fall looked very awkward on replay.

I still wonder what's up with Lance and how serious his respiratory issues are, but he looked more involved and engaged tonight than he has in a while.

I'm curious to see how we do against a tougher, more physical team like Clemson, but it looks like we have our legs now after the last two ugly games, and this was an excellent start to the ACC season.

OZ
01-14-2008, 12:28 AM
I thought Herb did an excellent job riding the surfboard.

DBFAN
01-14-2008, 12:41 AM
Where has this kind of play been lately. I was so excited to watch them play tonight, just felt like those days of old, when we are suppose to beat a team, and we never let them in it. Great job tonight Devils.

Bob Green
01-14-2008, 05:01 AM
I think we played an all around good game, I would still like to see us rebound way better than we did tonight, plus we need a scorer in the post and who can defend in the post

We outrebounded Virginia 35-34 so I'm not sure why you think we need to rebound "way better than we did tonight." We won the battle on the boards and beat our opponent by 22 points.

whereinthehellami
01-14-2008, 08:22 AM
Duke looked good but I think it should be put in context with how bad Virginia is. UVA is in trouble. They did not respond well after being blown out by Xavier by 38 ten days ago. Leito might be losing this team. There was no team chemistry, toughness. In the second half Singletary started his own "And 1" team and Leito let him go. That sends a nice message to the team.

gw67
01-14-2008, 08:25 AM
What’s not to like about last night - great team defense, sharing the ball, strong rebounding and productive offense. Some specific thoughts:
• Nelson and Smith made Singletary work for his points but more importantly was the excellent team defense on the other players and on Singletary when he either went around screens or beat his man.
• 21 assists may be one of the highest totals this year. The team was sharing the ball and the point guard play on offense was exceptional (17 points, 8 assists and only 2 TO’s).
• Nelson continues to play at a high level. He threw away a couple but he is looking to pass when covered on his drives and he is joining Scheyer as an excellent passer from the wing.
• The Devils outrebounded one of the best rebounding teams in the ACC. McClure, Thomas and Singler really fought on the boards. I really like the aggressiveness of Singler down low but I could see him becoming an unpopular player around the ACC for the extensive use of his elbows.
• Smith continues to remind me of Ewing during his freshmen year. He is an aggressive offensive player who can hit the jumper from outside as well as mid-range, take the ball to the hoop and he may be the best on the team at finishing on the fast break. He is also above average on defense. He is a good backup for Paulus at this time but he is also getting some minutes at the off guard which, IMO, appears to be his best position at this time.
• The outside shooting was OK (one more made shot and they would have been near 40%). The only negative that I can come up with from this game was the outside shooting of players other than Paulus and Nelson.
• Many have concluded that CIS is the best homecourt advantage in the country. This team plays with a confidence at home and I don’t expect to see them lose a home game this year.

Some additional thoughts. Who is going to score for Virginia next year and the Devils need to show that they can dominate the bad teams on the road.

gw67

devildeac
01-14-2008, 08:31 AM
The rust is gone. The concerns can disappear for a while. This was a vintage Duke performance in an ACC opener. We jumped all over an inferior opponent and the game was never in doubt. The teamwork was great, the subs came fast and frequently and the defensive pressure was fantastic. Last year's visions of quick point guards routinely getting to the rim should be gone by now -- yes, Singletary had 18, but they were tough shots and not easy layups. All of Duke's perimeter defenders were excellent, with the lone exception of Paulus, who got beat a few times. But there were so many things to like that I hope people can enjoy this win for a couple days.

Yea, but...

But, OTOH...

However...

Jumbo is right. We played REALLY well last PM. If we record another 1 or 2 three point baskets(and we could have easily as a couple were in and out), I think there would be VERY few complaints about shutting down the 'hoos and our excellent offensive efficiency. On to fsu-let's erase some bad recent memories from down there.

yancem
01-14-2008, 09:07 AM
For the older crowd: Was anyone else reminded of Dawkins when Smith pulled up for the 12 footer on the break? Man, I remember Dawkins running full speed on the break and then stop out of no where, elevate about 2 feet and nail the 10-12 foot jumper. It was a thing of beauty (and tough as hell to actually do).

If Smith can consistently knock down that shot he is going to be quite a weapon on the break. Few players pull up like that anymore and when you have to not only guard against the drive and the dish but also the pull up, that's tough to defend!

DukeUsul
01-14-2008, 09:38 AM
What was with the keys at the end of the first half - I didn't have audio (I'm hoping something better than a start the bus cheer)?

I'm assuming that's for the Harris Teeter halftime thing. You wave your Harris Teeter VIC card on your key chain and they come pick random people to compete in a halftime event.

sandinmyshoes
01-14-2008, 09:57 AM
Superb defense was the tale of that game. Harrassing, helping and hammering, that's the way to do it.

mus074
01-14-2008, 10:16 AM
First, as said above, our 2 PGs, in 35 minutes, combined for 8 assists and just one TO. Virginia is actually quite poor at causing turnovers (just 19.8% of possessions, ranking 269th). However, they make up for this defensive shortcoming with strong rebounding, ranking 4th in defensive rebounding and 12th in the nation in offensive rebounding.

Last night the difference was Duke's rebounding and shooting. Duke got lightly more offensive boards that Virginia (35.8% vs. 35.2%). That was UVa's bread and butter, and Duke won the battle. For the season, Duke ranks 135th in offensive rebounding and 75th in defensive boards.

Finally, Duke's eFG came back up to respectable levels. Duke's 59.0 eFG improves markedly upon the recent 45.5, 49.2 and 41.0 of the last three games. Prior to those three games, Duke's average was 59.0 and they had only one game below 50 (49.3). This team clearly rises and falls with how well the shots go down. And obviously, they seem to go down better with ball movement and the attack mentality.

fogey
01-14-2008, 10:33 AM
Superb defense was the tale of that game. Harrassing, helping and hammering, that's the way to do it.
Indeed. Coming out of a time-out in the 2nd half we went to a suffocating half court press, absolutely overwhelmed UVA. Very impressive. They were fortunate to actually get a shot off, and SS was gassed and shaken when he finally launched the 3 that badly missed. Team depth is a luxury that allows K to sic the dogs like this, something we could not do last year as we had to save energy.

Bryan
01-14-2008, 01:46 PM
During the Pitt and Cornell games I thought the starters played too many minutes. I really liked the extensive use of the non-starters last night, very effective in keeping all the players fresh and able to play aggressive defense.

Bryan

Classof06
01-14-2008, 03:15 PM
The team I saw last night was the team I saw up until the 2nd half of the Pitt game. This was the kind of game I was waiting for. Obviously UVA isn't a top 10 team, but I loved every aspect of our performance. The best part about it was the energy; I could tell how the game was going to go after watching the first 45 seconds. The intensity was there and we just seemed to be clicking again.

I would like to see this momentum carried into the FSU game as FSU is a team that always gives Duke fits (we lost last year). I think this FSU game is very important in that regard.

gw67
01-14-2008, 03:43 PM
The FSU game will be a good test for the freshmen and Henderson as they did not play particularly well in the away game against Temple. However, the Devils wil have several things in their favor. FSU is very small and likes to play four guards; although they are a guard-oriented team, they don't value the ball or pass well; and they are not a strong defensive team. Unless the Noles bring their "A" game and the Devils have an off night on a foreign court (possible), I see the Devils winning.

It will be interesting to see who lines up against Nelson and Henderson. Duke should have a significant advantage on the offensive end at these two positions.

gw67

Devil in the Blue Dress
01-14-2008, 04:12 PM
The FSU game will be a good test for the freshmen and Henderson as they did not play particularly well in the away game against Temple. However, the Devils wil have several things in their favor. FSU is very small and likes to play four guards; although they are a guard-oriented team, they don't value the ball or pass well; and they are not a strong defensive team. Unless the Noles bring their "A" game and the Devils have an off night on a foreign court (possible), I see the Devils winning.

It will be interesting to see who lines up against Nelson and Henderson. Duke should have a significant advantage on the offensive end at these two positions.

gw67

Don't forget: FSU is where the students exercise the crowd control. They can flood the court at will and security can only watch. The point is that the unexpected can occur there and be unrelated to which five FSU players are on the court. The last time this happened, I watched in horror and prayed that none of our players got hurt. Coach K sent the starters on to the dressing room, a rare thing before the end of the game.

Duvall
01-14-2008, 04:16 PM
Don't forget: FSU is where the students exercise the crowd control. They can flood the court at will and security can only watch.

You mean just like Cameron?

I can think of an effective way for Duke to prevent the FSU students from rushing the floor.

Devil in the Blue Dress
01-14-2008, 04:35 PM
You mean just like Cameron?

I can think of an effective way for Duke to prevent the FSU students from rushing the floor.
No, what happened at FSU was not like what happens at Cameron if the students rush on the floor. Dick Vitale and other TV analysts have commented about the danger at FSU.

Of course, the best way to prevent such an event from occurring again is to win the game and head to the dressing room.

weezie
01-14-2008, 04:57 PM
I'd like to hope that the refs at FSU don't allow the hard fouling to get so quickly out of hand like they did last night. Duke shouldn't always be penalized for intense, pressing defense when the other team gets thrown off balance. The nastiness of the kicking, tripping and slapping by our opponents goes ignored while Duke Blue blood is actually being shed.
The final dust-up between Singletary and Paulus caused the ref to single out Greg for a little lecture when instead both of them could have been pulled aside together and spoken to. The ACC really needs to figure out when it is appropriate to intercede before something ugly happens. It's a little scary making out there.

DukieInBrasil
01-14-2008, 07:28 PM
YES!!! The ACC season has finally started, and what a nice way to welcome it in. I was so impressed with this win, more so than any other game. The only other game that impressed me even close to this much would be the championship game in Maui. As in that game, Duke answered lots of questions about its character in a positive way. The Marq. game showed us that this Duke team has a steelier nerve than last year's team, while this win showed that the team has evolved even further. They rebounded from a string of unimpressive performances with a resounding answer that, yes, this team has character.

The Good
• Ballhandling - Paulus and Smith combined for the best performance from the PG position so far this year, 8 ast to 2 TOs is outstanding against any team, but especially against a team with a good backcourt. We'll win most any game that Paulus and Smith combine to score 17 pts and 8 asts to go with 3rebs and 3 steals. Beyond our PGs, the team handled the ball well and we ended the game with a huge +9 in the a/to dept while causing the Wahoos to have a -10 a/to.
• The Captain - Demarcus played a statement game, re-asserting that he in fact is the leader of this team. Nelson's play has been very productive all season, doing a bit of everything (as he did last night) even though he wasn't as assertive with his offense as he could have been. Dropping 20 pts on 12 shots is sweeeeeet!!!! When I said above that this game showed character, I think that is highly reflective of their Captain. Last year's leaderless team left the 4 current So. with little idea of what Duke is supposed to play like in the ACC, with only (currently) 3 players who have tasted what it feels like to announce to the league that "We've come to win!" Demarcus showed them today what it looks like to play for real in the ACC.
• Rebounding - We out-rebounded the team that out-rebounds its opponents by a wider margin than everybody else. Thank you Dave and welcome back Lance. Though I would like to see more than 1ppg from the two, 11rebs is good work, and something Duke has missed mightily of late.
• Balance - The offense was only mildly explosive, but with great balance. We had a dominant scorer in Nelson who led 6 players to score 8 or more points. Dave and LT scored but 1 pt., while the other 7 scored 84. Rebounding and handing out assists were also well balanced with nearly everyone doing at least a little of both.
• The Freshmen - Singler had an excellent game, actually right at an average game for him so far. I can't remember how many of his makes were post shots but he made 5 from inside the stripe. I have already raved about Smith's play but his progression as a player is starting to really blossom at exactly the right time. Taylor's play was alright, his shooting was a bit off, but 2-6 from 3 is respectable. Chuck in 4 boards, a steal and a block and vςila, he had a productive game. 27 pts from our Fr. class will go a long way to helping Duke excel in the ACC this year.
• 3pt Shooting - Once, again Duke shot productively from 3, or better said, Paulus and Nelson shot lights out from 3 while everyone else shot <25% from deep.


The Mediocre
• FT shooting - 67% from the stripe is nothing to cry about, but it could be costly in a tighter game.

The Bad• _____________

Virginian
01-14-2008, 08:23 PM
As a native Virginian, Virginia resident and brother to two UVA grads, I LOVED this game. We played great. We ran, we scored, we blocked, we fought, we rebounded, we soared.

It was SWEET.

Okay, I know people here have substantive critiques and sagacious comments. I'm taking them all in. But I just wanted to say I'm a very, very happy Duke alum/fan today.

Please, Paulus and friends, keep it up.

Thanks.

mayrer
01-15-2008, 11:35 AM
So much to like tonight. For me, this game was highlighted by excellent passing by Paulus and others and the growing confidence of Nolan Smith. Duke also pressured the ball very well and forced some turnovers into easy baskets. The rebounding was excellent- very few second chance points by Virginia. The midrange and inside game looked much better tonight. Virginia is not very big so that helped- but still there were a lot better looks from the short range than in the last few games- and many more in the flow of the offense. Singler down low can be automatic with some good ball movement and passing. Duke only had that little stretch in the first half when they went cold. Nolan Smith had some really nice moments – passing, shooting, defending and driving and his spelling Paulus helps to keep Gregg fresh, limiting his mistakes late. When Smith starts playing like this on the road- Duke will be much better. Henderson was much more himself tonight- played very much under control throughout. King struggled with his shots in one stretch but he is more than just a shooter and makes contribution- he is a natural rebounder and sees the floor very well. Scheyer is still struggling with the wide open threes but he was very active and never really lets his misses get to him. All in all- a very nice way to start the ACC season- got to love those easy wins.

Good game, good defense leads to better offense, fewer scoring droughts. Re: Henderson, a lot of very good players have played poorly in their first games back in their hometowns, distractions, pressure to perform, etc. He's constantly improving.

Tomorrow night is Duke's first game on an opponent's home floor, and that always is a challenge, esp. for a young team.