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View Full Version : How NOT to beat Duke this year!



dukestheheat
02-02-2008, 09:49 PM
So far, I believe we have seen two ways that teams haven't been successful at beating Duke this year. They are:

1) Relying very heavily on their inside strength versus Duke's lack of inside strength, experience or depth, and
2) Trying to intimidate Duke with extreme physical play: cuts, body shots, hockey chucks, blood-lettings, amputation attempts and 'FIRST DOWN' (football) plays.

This year, I think we've seen some teams come at Duke with a great will to kill us inside the paint, and other teams have worked to combine a paint war along with physical intimidation; Duke is just not backing down on either account this year, apparently.

Most teams we've played this year have worked oh so very hard to gain a true advantage over Duke inside the paint; with our ability to get out and run and score we've at least neutralized that strategy by every team except Pittsburgh. In my opinion, that Pitt game was Duke's to give away and we did so not because Pitt beat us in the paint so much, but because of poor shot selection, poor ball control and decision-making and poor field goal percentage and free throw percentage. I actually think we gained confidence in looking at HOW we lost that game!

Also, several teams in the ACC, including Virginia Tech, NC State and especially Miami today have worked overtime to play the butcher versus Duke, trying to see if we'd cower. Our own have even lauded freshman Kyle Singler as 'Iron' because of his toughness; many times he's taken abuse and great body blows and he's bounced back each time (pun intended). Other guys so far this year have had more cuts than they've had the whole time they've been at Duke.

So, Duke looks to be fully absorbing a couple strategies employed by opponents this year. This team has really shown us great heart, resilience and character and they are just so much fun to watch. Are you seeing these or others I may be missing?

dth.

Ben63
02-02-2008, 10:12 PM
To beat Duke a team needs an inside presence, good guards who can shoot, and great team defense. Look at Pitt. DaJaun Blair inside, Levance Fields and Ronald Ramon ouside, and great defense. Pitt has fallen apart w/ injuries, but they had the correct template/protocol to beat Duke.

I see UNC fitting this description as well, but all goes out the window when these 2 suit it up.

Uncle Drew
02-02-2008, 10:58 PM
Excellent post DTH and very observant. I do think teams are trying to "punk" out physical Duke more this year than any year I've seen in my lifetime. That IMO is due to last years collapse and the blueprint for beating past Due teams, Duke traditionally has been more finesse than physical. A couple of points......

1. As physical as the games were against Miami, VT and Pitt, there is a VERY good chance we haven't seen anything like we might see Wednesday night. As stated when UNC and Duke play you can throw records out the window. But I think we all know THIS game is going to take on a more personal nature. The first game since the Henderson / Hans incident, the high expectations for them / low expectations for us, the fact we are leading the ACC, their home floor. I have no doubts the refs working the game have already been debriefed on last years incident (like anyone with a TV or PC missed it) and me thinks they may call things close, especially early. In fact the calls may be "ticky tack" to start out with due to the emotions stemming from last year carrying over.

2. Duke has far exceeded my expectations for dealing with questions at center so far. But unless we face Georgetown or perhaps UCLA (and that wouldn't be on their home floor) this will be THE test to use as a measuring stick on how well Duke has and will continue to be able to deal with lack of size. I have a feeling though Duke always wants to beat UNC, Coach K is even more intrested in seeing how Duke matches up and taking notes for games against future opponents. Some of us fans almost rate a seasons success on how many times we beat UNC, I've been guilty of it in past seasons myself. If you'd told me we would be 18-1 (with that one loss to a highly ranked team at the time) and ranked 2nd in the nation ahead of UNC in the nation and ACC going into the UNC game I'd of said, "I'll take it".

3. I think UNC matches up better with Duke than any team they have played thus far. However there are obvious mismatches for both teams. Whichever team exploits the other teams flaws the most should win. Chances are the obvious players will get theirs and it will come down to whomever gets more out of their secondary players. I like Dukes chances with our more ballanced attack, but if they get too comfortable shooting the three and aren't hitting it could be a long night.

4. I never bet on Duke, EVERY time I have ever bet on Duke they have either lost or didn't cover the spread. (Yes you can blame ME for Hansblubblub and company beating JJ and Sheldon on senior night. It was my fault!) And I wouldn't wager my ex-wife on THIS game either. But win or lose I'm already proud as (insert your own curse word) of this team and I love how they play. This may be the best TEAM Duke has had since J Dawkins & company in 1986, but even tougher and more attitude. :o

CatfiveCane
02-02-2008, 11:03 PM
So far, I believe we have seen two ways that teams haven't been successful at beating Duke this year. They are:

1) Relying very heavily on their inside strength versus Duke's lack of inside strength, experience or depth, and
2) Trying to intimidate Duke with extreme physical play: cuts, body shots, hockey chucks, blood-lettings, amputation attempts and 'FIRST DOWN' (football) plays.

This year, I think we've seen some teams come at Duke with a great will to kill us inside the paint, and other teams have worked to combine a paint war along with physical intimidation; Duke is just not backing down on either account this year, apparently.

Most teams we've played this year have worked oh so very hard to gain a true advantage over Duke inside the paint; with our ability to get out and run and score we've at least neutralized that strategy by every team except Pittsburgh. In my opinion, that Pitt game was Duke's to give away and we did so not because Pitt beat us in the paint so much, but because of poor shot selection, poor ball control and decision-making and poor field goal percentage and free throw percentage. I actually think we gained confidence in looking at HOW we lost that game!

Also, several teams in the ACC, including Virginia Tech, NC State and especially Miami today have worked overtime to play the butcher versus Duke, trying to see if we'd cower. Our own have even lauded freshman Kyle Singler as 'Iron' because of his toughness; many times he's taken abuse and great body blows and he's bounced back each time (pun intended). Other guys so far this year have had more cuts than they've had the whole time they've been at Duke.

So, Duke looks to be fully absorbing a couple strategies employed by opponents this year. This team has really shown us great heart, resilience and character and they are just so much fun to watch. Are you seeing these or others I may be missing?

dth.

We beat teams like Maryland and Miami... and you're beating your chest?

A team with great inside and guards can beat Duke.... exactly what UNC has.

ugadevil
02-02-2008, 11:08 PM
We beat teams like Maryland and Miami... and you're beating your chest?

A team with great inside and guards can beat Duke.... exactly what UNC has.

Although some people will continue to wait on perfection, the majority of Duke fans are very excited about how the season has gone so far. I'm always proud when Duke wins, no matter who it's against. When you lose it or don't have pride in your team, take a walk.

DukeDevilDeb
02-02-2008, 11:11 PM
We beat teams like Maryland and Miami... and you're beating your chest?

A team with great inside and guards can beat Duke.... exactly what UNC has.

A great inside presence and great guards can make it difficult for Duke... but unless UNC plays defense like it hasn't all year, we have a chance!

dukestheheat
02-02-2008, 11:16 PM
CatfiveCane-

A point here is that no, Miami beat Duke (to death, physically) tonight and we stood up and made it through it; despite this strategy employed by Miami, to control Duke and to work to exert its will on Duke, we pushed through that and won handily.

I don't believe last year's team could do that well at all and I'm fairly certain that with last year's team AT Maryland this year, we lose that game; so, bottom-line we see a couple benefits to this year's team already this year in terms of character and resilience. These are carrying Duke this year, imo and yeah, I'm beating my chest.

dth.

stals
02-02-2008, 11:40 PM
It didn't take long for Catfive to show up..the troll is here!

Troublemaker
02-02-2008, 11:44 PM
We beat teams like Maryland and Miami... and you're beating your chest?

A team with great inside and guards can beat Duke.... exactly what UNC has.

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: Oh, no. You mean it's possible for Duke to lose??? Nobody told me that.

Man up, dude.

Cameron
02-02-2008, 11:52 PM
If DeMarcus and Nolan can put the type of pressure out front on Lawson and Ellington that they have all year long against opposing guards, then we have a great chance to beat Carolina. The Heels may have a better inside game, but, if we can limit the touches and good looks they get inside to Hansbrough by harassing their guards out top, it would at least equalize our deficiency.

I don't think Lawson and Ellington will be ready for the amount of pressure they will be given on Wednesday. Duke will be something quite new for them, IMO. I'm sick and tired of watching Ellington stand around shooting three-pointers every time I turn on Carolina, and it's about to stop. That's one thing we have always been so good at here at Duke, defending the triple timer. We have held our last three opponents--Maryland, NC State, and Miami--to a combined 11 for 32 three-point shooting. Folks, we went 12 of 30 from beyond the arc by ourselves today. Moral of the story, we don't allow open threes to be taken and our perimeter defense can really rattle opposing guards' confidence.

We have only allowed one team to hit more than six triples on us this season, and that was Davidson who went 8 of 24. Now, as a team, Carolina may not be a three-point chucking machine (and they certainly are not) but Ellington can be dangerous when he gets hot. In the games I have watched Carolina play, especially in their close contests, it's either Hansbrough or Ellington who go off and carry the team big offensively. If our pressure defense out front can not only disrupt Carolina's entry passes inside to Hansbrough, but also take away their second greatest weapon in Ellington's outside stroke, then we will have something great.

Also, for us to win against Carolina, I think we'll need to hit at least ten triples. That's my magic number. Our court spacing will have to be as good a we've instrumented it all season, in Chapel Hill. It will be very important, obviously, for us to keep Hansbrough from clogging up the interior on defense. If we keep him lurking outside, worrying about deep corner triples when Kyle and Taylor are in the game (this is a game when I think Taylor could be quite useful playing more minutes, as Hansbrough could have a field day guarding Lance, IMO), then we leave more room for DeMarcus and Gerald to do their thing.

Ok, I have babbled on about nothing for far too long. I'm going to leave the game planning to guys like Jumbo and ACCBballFan. At least they know what they are talking about;) I just like to listen to myself type most of the time.

loran16
02-03-2008, 12:28 AM
UNC Duke will be an incredible game. Duke's defense is clearly better, but UNC's O is most certainly better.

That said, both teams have their weaknesses. There's no need to rehash on either teams' weaknesses. And both teams have the same x-factor which can result in them being unbeatable (3 point shots...if ellington isnt missing for UNC, if duke's combo of King/Paulus/Scheyer/Singler from 3 isnt missing etc.).

What does this add up to? Well it's a toss-up. personally, if we had to play 100 games against UNC, i think UNC would win 55, and we'd win 45. Or maybe 60-40 them. But it's close enough that either team can win any game.

heyman25
02-03-2008, 12:48 AM
Hopefully Henderson will have a great game. He wasn't bad today but his shooting percentage was awful from the floor and the foul line.If Duke stays sharp and focused it will be a very competitive game.There may be 20000 red faced wet eyed basketball fans at the end of the game.

Cameron
02-03-2008, 01:07 AM
but UNC's O is most certainly better

I'm not so sure about "most certainly." I would agree that UNC's offense is probably a lick more potent than ours, especially considering they have a very solid inside game, but I don't think it's by much.

What makes our offense so incredible is that we have SIX guys who could explode for 20 plus. Where Carolina tops us in interior play, we trump them in perimeter shooting, and it's not even close. We average just under nine triples per contest and, at times, have a legitimate lineup of five guys who can knock down the triple try. (If a team can put solid pressure on Ellington and Lawson, Carolina's outside game drops off almost entirely.) And with our tremendous floor spacing, along with the great penetration ability of Gerald, DeMarcus, and Nolan, opposing defenses just can't stop our long ball. It becomes almost impossible to guard, especially when we have guys who can stretch defenses out to 22, 23 feet on a regular basis.

When we are rolling, I think our offense is every bit as good, and maybe even better, than the Heels'. Carolina might be better on average, however. At any rate, we are both in the nation's top four in team scoring, so it's really a toss up. One could even suggest that Carolina averages more points than Duke (around 91 PPG to our 85 or so) because of the fact that Roy never usually takes his foot off the peddle, whereas Coach K often institutes a deliberate slow down offense with as much as eight, nine minutes remaining when we are ahead by 15 or more points. (I'm not saying I have been completely against this method this season, because it has worked every time Coach has gone to it. There is nothing wrong with that:) I'm just pointing out that we could easily be averaging over 90, 91 per game. Easily.)

Until we meet on Wednesday, it's all pretty subjective.

loran16
02-03-2008, 02:00 AM
I'm not so sure about "most certainly." I would agree that UNC's offense is probably a lick more potent than ours, especially considering they have a very solid inside game, but I don't think it's by much.

What makes our offense so incredible is that we have SIX guys who could explode for 20 plus. Where Carolina tops us in interior play, we trump them in perimeter shooting, and it's not even close. We average just under nine triples per contest and, at times, have a legitimate lineup of five guys who can knock down the triple try. (If a team can put solid pressure on Ellington and Lawson, Carolina's outside game drops off almost entirely.) And with our tremendous floor spacing, along with the great penetration ability of Gerald, DeMarcus, and Nolan, opposing defenses just can't stop our long ball. It becomes almost impossible to guard, especially when we have guys who can stretch defenses out to 22, 23 feet on a regular basis.

When we are rolling, I think our offense is every bit as good, and maybe even better, than the Heels'. Carolina might be better on average, however. At any rate, we are both in the nation's top four in team scoring, so it's really a toss up. One could even suggest that Carolina averages more points than Duke (around 91 PPG to our 85 or so) because of the fact that Roy never usually takes his foot off the peddle, whereas Coach K often institutes a deliberate slow down offense with as much as eight, nine minutes remaining when we are ahead by 15 or more points. (I'm not saying I have been completely against this method this season, because it has worked every time Coach has gone to it. There is nothing wrong with that:) I'm just pointing out that we could easily be averaging over 90, 91 per game. Easily.)

Until we meet on Wednesday, it's all pretty subjective.

I'm just saying that in running a complete offense (including inside game), they are better. But yes, we can put up just as many points the way we play.

Lavabe
02-03-2008, 02:08 AM
We beat teams like Maryland and Miami... and you're beating your chest?

A team with great inside and guards can beat Duke.... exactly what UNC has.

Not beating my chest, dude, but one important thing to remember:

UNC can't beat their chests and say that they beat Maryland and Miami.:D

Cheers,
Lavabe

SeattleIrish
02-03-2008, 04:58 AM
1. As physical as the games were against Miami, VT and Pitt, there is a VERY good chance we haven't seen anything like we might see Wednesday night. As stated when UNC and Duke play you can throw records out the window. But I think we all know THIS game is going to take on a more personal nature. The first game since the Henderson / Hans incident, the high expectations for them / low expectations for us, the fact we are leading the ACC, their home floor. I have no doubts the refs working the game have already been debriefed on last years incident (like anyone with a TV or PC missed it) and me thinks they may call things close, especially early. In fact the calls may be "ticky tack" to start out with due to the emotions stemming from last year carrying over. :o

Latta and I are usually on the same page, but I just don't see UNC playing us nearly as physically as VT, Miami, or Pitt. The knock on UNC is the same one Duke has had throughout the years - "finesse team - pound on 'em a bit and they'll fold!".

This year's Duke team is about as gutsy as I've seen, and I don't think anyone can now question their toughness (the cuts on Singler and D-mark seem more like "Fight Night" than hoops!). But I'm not so sure about UNC's toughness.

Hans plays a very physical game, and he's a tough kid (I'm a fan of his, oddly enough). But the rest of the Heels? I just don't see it. I'm not saying Duke can come in and push the Heels around in CH, but I am saying I don't see UNC coming out and trying to "Big East" us the way the three above-listed teams did.

I think it will be a hell of a game - I have no idea who will win.

s.i.

p.s. - props to Miami tonight - they had no where near our talent and they played us VERY tough. It sure didn't feel like a double-digit win.

dukerev
02-03-2008, 09:36 AM
"A team with great inside and guards can beat Duke..."

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't a team with great inside play AND great guards a pretty good if not great team? Usually when a team has great talent at eveyr position then they're pretty decent. Except, of course, when they don't play as a team. But I digress...

There just aren't a lot of teams in college basketball that have a great post presence (lots with good post presence, but not with a great post presence) and with guards who can handle on-ball pressure, penetrate, make good decisions and hit open jumpers and with athletic wings who can create offense on their own, and all of these players who play tough defense. There aren't many of those teams. There are a few teams that have some of these parts. Kansas is a pretty complete team. UCLA when healthy is a pretty complete team. Most everybody else is working with what they have. What separates the teams that win consistently in the regular season and who go deep in the tournament is not the collection of talent, but the use of the talent that they have (as a team) in imposing their will on the other team.

Can UNC beat us? Of course! UNC is really freakin' good. LOTS of talent (lots of the right pieces) with a really good coach - and - they play well as a team.

Is there anyone who we can't beat? I doubt it - especially in a one game scenario. But I do agree with the first post - trying to get in our head with physical play is probably not the way to get it done. That being said, when a team knows that it doesn't have the talent to beat Duke and knows they don't have the team to beat Duke, applying another strategy is the only way to go.

9F, 9F, 9F, 9F

CatfiveCane
02-03-2008, 11:20 AM
You guys are proving my point exactly.

We use Miami, Virginia Tech, and Maryland as examples that we can "withstand" tough interior games. My point: who are these teams? None are top 25 teams. Maybe 1-2 make the NCAA Tournament.

So it's silly to say Duke can't be beaten by a tough physical team that concentrates in the interior. That's just retarded. We just haven't played a high enough caliber team (like UNC).

So you're "theory" has how to NOT beat DUke this year.... maybe 100% wrong.

CatfiveCane
02-03-2008, 11:23 AM
Although some people will continue to wait on perfection, the majority of Duke fans are very excited about how the season has gone so far. I'm always proud when Duke wins, no matter who it's against. When you lose it or don't have pride in your team, take a walk.

I've seen some "bad" wins.... and some "good" loses.

BTW, the majority of Duke fans can't even name more than 2-3 players on the team. What does that mean? It means I don't follow the mob... I try to watch the games and make my own opinions.

ugadevil
02-03-2008, 11:27 AM
That's just retarded.


I'd ask that you watch the words you use. Some people find that term offensive and are not comfortable with how it's used. Please come up with a better phrase.

Devil in the Blue Dress
02-03-2008, 11:42 AM
BTW, the majority of Duke fans can't even name more than 2-3 players on the team. What does that mean? It means I don't follow the mob... I try to watch the games and make my own opinions.
Don't know which Duke fans you've met. The fans I know are pretty versed in such matters as players' names.

ugadevil
02-03-2008, 11:54 AM
We use Miami, Virginia Tech, and Maryland as examples that we can "withstand" tough interior games. My point: who are these teams? None are top 25 teams. Maybe 1-2 make the NCAA Tournament.

So it's silly to say Duke can't be beaten by a tough physical team that concentrates in the interior.



What do Clemson and Wisconsin count as?

Papa John
02-03-2008, 12:16 PM
BTW, the majority of Duke fans can't even name more than 2-3 players on the team. What does that mean? It means I don't follow the mob... I try to watch the games and make my own opinions.

My child's adolescent friends don't know the names of the players on their favorite teams, either... But you're talking to adults here, Catfive... I suspect we all know who the players are and what their relative strengths and weaknesses are...

As for the beating our chests comment, I think you fail to comprehend the simple point that is being made... A classic strategy that an overmatched team has often pursued in college basketball is to play a very physical, bruising game, thereby trying to win a war of attrition against a foe who's skill set exceeds theirs... That is what we saw with the Miami, VaTech, and to some extent Maryland games--overmatched teams who tried to muscle Duke out of the game... Our boys held their ground and showed toughness and resilience in all of these games, winning handily in each... I would argue that last year's version of the Blue Devils might have lost each of these games, as they simply didn't have the level of toughness this group has demonstrated...

In the case of Pitt, which at the time we played them had exactly what you indicate is a danger to our team--great interior play with solid guards--we also held our own... The only reason we lost that game [if you would like to go back and watch the tape] is because we couldn't hit a free throw to save our life in the end...

I suspect you are a follower of the Brent, who couldn't go 30 seconds yesterday without mentioning that "Duke doesn't have a 5"... My response--we don't need a 5... For reference, check out the Shelden Williams, Carlos Boozer, and Elton Brand led Duke teams--none of those guys were a natural "5"... also recall the Duke team that played a 6'6" wing/SF on the NBA All-Star/MVP Tim Duncan-led Demon Deacons--and won...

The key to the college game when you have like levels of skill [e.g., two top-tier teams] going head-to-head is to make sure that you are better at creating and exploiting the mismatches that arise during the game... All teams at the college level have holes and weaknesses--the challenge is to play to your strengths and cover up your weaknesses... We've been doing that quite well thus far...

A-Tex Devil
02-03-2008, 12:36 PM
You guys are proving my point exactly.

We use Miami, Virginia Tech, and Maryland as examples that we can "withstand" tough interior games. My point: who are these teams? None are top 25 teams. Maybe 1-2 make the NCAA Tournament.

So it's silly to say Duke can't be beaten by a tough physical team that concentrates in the interior. That's just retarded. We just haven't played a high enough caliber team (like UNC).

So you're "theory" has how to NOT beat DUke this year.... maybe 100% wrong.

I think you are missing the point. What people are saying is teams can't push Duke around and knock them off their game like some past Duke teams (see last year). Any team can try these tactics regardless of talent, and sometimes it's successful in bridging the talent gap (e.g last year's Duke team).

The holes bring the best offensive post player we've seen all year on Wed night. We may not be able to stop him. But **I THINK** the point of this thread is that hard fouls, brutish play, etc. aren't going to be what beats us, and the more teams continue to try, the more they'll see it's useless.

That all being said, I agree with the posters that say UNC likely won't be as physical as MIami/UMd/Pitt. They'll just be more offensively efficient inside than those other three teams.

I would **LOVE** a hard foul on Hansblabla by LT early on, though. NOthing dirty, no bloody noses. But Clemson took Hansblabla off his game early. I think we gotta try to do the same thing. I mean, LT is going to foul out in 15 minutes anyway so he might as well make the most of them.(not to denigrate LT's game, but Tyler's game and LT's game and propensity for fouls are like a perfect storm for him not lasting long on Wed.)

Classof06
02-03-2008, 01:07 PM
As far as Pitt having the blueprint to beat us, I think it's also fair to note that Pitt escaped by the skin of their teeth. They won, and I'm not trying to take anything away from them but I'm not sure another team can point to what Pitt did because it took a very fortunate set of circumstances for Pitt to win that game.

I don't expect UNC to be a game as physical as the past 3 games because UNC, in my opinion, is a finesse team (besides Hansbrough). I'm also of the opinion that UNC has not seen defense like Duke is going to bring on Wednesday night. And again with the matchups, Duke definitely has matchup problems with Carolina but Carolina will have their share of matchup problems with Duke.

This is going to be a great game. I cannot wait.

dukestheheat
02-03-2008, 01:54 PM
You guys are proving my point exactly.

We use Miami, Virginia Tech, and Maryland as examples that we can "withstand" tough interior games. My point: who are these teams? None are top 25 teams. Maybe 1-2 make the NCAA Tournament.

So it's silly to say Duke can't be beaten by a tough physical team that concentrates in the interior. That's just retarded. We just haven't played a high enough caliber team (like UNC).

So you're "theory" has how to NOT beat DUke this year.... maybe 100% wrong.

catfivecane,

couple points:

1) the 'knock' against Duke this year is 'weak inside game'.
2) every team we've played this year has worked to exploit that (to win).
3) we've played many teams already this year with heralded inside players.
4) no team has been successful beating Duke this year employing ONLY 1-3!

couple other points:

a) we're guard-heavy; not a lot of bigs; paulus has taken flak for being weak.
b) Duke winning frustrates others; they start swinging and playing the brute.
c) they really hope this intimidates Duke and we'll back down and pack it in.
d) we haven't; in fact, we've been strengthened!

so, the RESULTS of this season have shown us that so far, with what we've faced as I've noted, Duke is rising to meet challenges inside the paint and versus brute force/intimidation: paint losses haven't meant Duke losses and painful cuts or amputation attempts have not put more Duke guys in Duke North or more points on the opponent's side of the board.

it matters not that we haven't faced UNC in any of this; two points in the paint for UNC will count the same as two points in the paint that Maryland put up. If UNC hopes to kill Duke inside the paint (where they have the advantage just like all other teams we've faced this year), based on the results we've seen so far they're going to need to do several other things to help their cause. Same with any type of physical game they could put up; they're going to need some other stuff going on to put Duke down this year.

We really are a tough group of Devils and this team is fun to watch.

dth.

Uncle Drew
02-03-2008, 03:02 PM
Latta and I are usually on the same page, but I just don't see UNC playing us nearly as physically as VT, Miami, or Pitt. The knock on UNC is the same one Duke has had throughout the years - "finesse team - pound on 'em a bit and they'll fold!".

This year's Duke team is about as gutsy as I've seen, and I don't think anyone can now question their toughness (the cuts on Singler and D-mark seem more like "Fight Night" than hoops!). But I'm not so sure about UNC's toughness.

Hans plays a very physical game, and he's a tough kid (I'm a fan of his, oddly enough). But the rest of the Heels? I just don't see it. I'm not saying Duke can come in and push the Heels around in CH, but I am saying I don't see UNC coming out and trying to "Big East" us the way the three above-listed teams did.

I think it will be a hell of a game - I have no idea who will win.

s.i.

p.s. - props to Miami tonight - they had no where near our talent and they played us VERY tough. It sure didn't feel like a double-digit win.



SI I agree with you. I didn't say UNC would try to mug Duke and take their wallet a la VT, FSU. But down low I know they will be physical, UNC always is. I don't think UNC has the type of players to be physical with our guards and as we've seen with incidents against Nelson and Paulus it's probably not a good idea to tick them off. But rebounds are going to be hard fought for (offensive and defensive) and when our guards take it in the paint look for contact whether it gets called or not.

"But I'm not so sure about UNC's toughness."

I agree, especially on D this season. But on their court, against Duke they will play as tough as they have played all year. Duke gets everyones best shot. We will see "you inn see" play as hard as they have played this far. It's why the game will be THE measuring stick to rate how good this team truly is right now and how far they have come. Win or lose I'm damn proud (can we say damn?) of this team. But I suspect I will have to tak a valium as always just to keep my nerves and blood pressure on an even keel.


If Lawson IS hurt for the game, it benefits Duke. But I wouldn't count my chickens before they hatch. We lost Boozer and everyone thought UNC would run Duke into the ground that game. At least we know when UNC sends a tape to the ACC home office complaining about physical play something WILL be done about it, lol. :D

Uncle Drew
02-03-2008, 03:09 PM
Don't know which Duke fans you've met. The fans I know are pretty versed in such matters as players' names.

For what it's worth, DITBD can name players way back and has a history of Duke university and athletics filed away in her head. She knows more about Duke basketball than a lot of the guys on here. (Most even) And IMO Duke fans can usually name most if not all of this years team and name players from A Abdelnaby (even if we can't spell it!!) to Z Zoubek. And for the record we're also VERY good at being able to name past players from other schools particularly ACC schools. Not tooting our own horns, but Duke fans are some of the most knowledgable fans in college basketball.