MBB: Duke 90, Indiana 69 Post-Game Thread

[uh_no]

On point with the "throw the chair" chant.

Way off point with the "overrated" and "I U sucks" or whatever that was...

[jipops]

Funny how you can feel disappointed when this team plays a top 25 team and only wins by 21. First half was very impressive, including the defense. Zion was amazing on both ends and Tre was also very good, especially on defense.

I really wish Javin could get his foul rate down, because he's really, really good on defense. This team's ceiling is higher when he's on the floor. Nothing against Bolden, who is very good, but Javin gives the team better defense against smaller teams.

Free throw shooting is terrible, but I am beginning to think that's just the way this team is going to be.

I have yet to see anything to convince me that this is true. I think there is a tendency to believe he is a really good defender because he doesn't really do anything on offense. Granted he did have 2 steals last night, but I just don't see him as being much of a defensive presence around the paint. I think his biggest role is just being a hustle guy to grab rebounds with the occasional put back.

[flyingdutchdevil]

What did Coach K tell the Crazies to stop doing? I had the TV on mute.

Gracias.

[jimsumner]

What did Coach K tell the Crazies to stop doing? I had the TV on mute.

Gracias.

The Crazies were chanting "over-rated" at Romeo Langford.

[flyingdutchdevil]

The Crazies were chanting "over-rated" at Romeo Langford.

!@$%

That's it?

1. Crazies need to be more creative

2. Coach K needs to take a chill pill

[kako]

Coach K on R.J. “Come on Duke fans, lay off. R.J. He is not playing hero ball, he is playing winners ball”. Love it. He was fired up.

Completely agree. So many people seem to want to dump on Barrett. He's an amazing talent, we are lucky to have him. He's shown brilliance, and he's shown some questionable decisions (I say questionable because if he had hit that last shot against Gonzaga, he would be on a pedestal right now). So many in the past, for example Tatum, got criticized for not being an All-American right off the bat. Hero ball, selfish, etc... but look what he turned out to be by the end of the season: Tatum's play in the ACC tourney was stellar and beyond. And sure, we all love Zion now. Sportsyak wants to crown him the #1 pick, the second coming of LeBron (or better). I'll cite another recent example - Okafor was lauded for his early play ("look at his footwork!", etc.). And though he didn't fall apart at the end of the season, he was not the complete package - it was Jones, Allen and Winslow that led Duke in the title game. Not dumping on Okafor, he was great. And not dumping on Zion, I believe he will be great, too. But my point is that a few early games in November do not necessarily define the season for any player.

I think people forget that all of these guys are freshmen. And this is November. It's a time to learn, to grow, to make mistakes. And though it pains me, I want to see these guys make these mistakes in November and December... not in March and April. Anyone who expects night-in, night-out Wooden Award play from any of these guys is delusional. I see posts also bashing Reddish, another talented guy who needs to find his way. His outside shot will be critical to Duke in some game or games this season. I figure K would say to lay off him, too. And any Duke fan knows that we have the best coach in the land on our bench. If there's a way to get these guys into shape, he will find it. I trust in K. And IMO others should, too. And in the meantime it's OK not like it when a freshman (or any player) makes a mistake, but don't start relegating him to the bench or tagging him negatively.

9F

[weezie]

I have yet to see anything to convince me that this is true. I think there is a tendency to believe he is a really good defender because he doesn't really do anything on offense...

I think it's true. He's very sneaky and a real tormenter. He just bugs the holy hell out of his man. Needs a few more lbs.

And, he's handsome so that always counts for points from weezie.

[CDu]

I have yet to see anything to convince me that this is true. I think there is a tendency to believe he is a really good defender because he doesn't really do anything on offense. Granted he did have 2 steals last night, but I just don't see him as being much of a defensive presence around the paint. I think his biggest role is just being a hustle guy to grab rebounds with the occasional put back.

Well, while DRtg has its limitations, it is worth noting that DeLaurier's DRtg has been under 100 (i.e., better than average) in all 3 of his seasons at Duke, and is below 90 (i.e., quite good) this year. He's a solid defensive rebounder and does a decent job on both steals and blocks. He does foul way too much, which hurts his defensive efficiency and also limits his minutes along with his offensive limitations. But I'd venture that on aggregate he's been an above average defender.

[weezie]

Oh, the way Z is being sandwiched after an opponent free throw is also causing me some concern. There are A LOT of elbows into his midsection and upper arms. He's going to get popped for trying to get out of the squeeze.

RJ is being hit in the head too often, too.

[devildeac]

Oh, the way Z is being sandwiched after an opponent free throw is also causing me some concern. There are A LOT of elbows into his midsection and upper arms. He's going to get popped for trying to get out of the squeeze.

RJ is being hit in the head too often, too.

roger ayres says, "incidental contact."

[elvis14]

I don't get all the claims of people 'bashing' RJ. I'm sorry but pointing out that he handled the end of the Gonzaga game poorly isn't bashing. When you drive the ball into the teeth of the defense over and over and get the same negative result you've made a mistake or two. He should have either pulled up for a midrange jumper or dished the ball on one of those if not more than one. Pointing that out isn't bashing, I think it was painfully obvious to just about everyone. I appreciate Coach K standing by his player in public, but I'd be willing to bet that they had a discussion and went over replays and discussed better options in private.

Beyond the end game sequence of Gonzaga, I think it's pretty fair criticism to say that his shot selection isn't great and that he tends to make up his mind to take it to the hole early and stick with it (DeMarcus Nelson used to do this). That's not bashing. He's a freshman who is incredible, has an amazing amount of talent...and has room to learn/grow. Sometimes areas of growth are more obvious than others.

I thought he did a better job last night including some pull up, mid-range jumpers that he made look easy. RJ's going to have a great season, heck he already is and he's going to keep getting better as the season progresses. It's going to be fun to watch.

[MChambers]

I have yet to see anything to convince me that this is true. I think there is a tendency to believe he is a really good defender because he doesn't really do anything on offense. Granted he did have 2 steals last night, but I just don't see him as being much of a defensive presence around the paint. I think his biggest role is just being a hustle guy to grab rebounds with the occasional put back.

He did a good job denying entry passes last night and when his man got the ball in the post, he did a good job moving his feet and making the player take a tough shot.

And he gives Duke the ability to switch at five spots (as does White).

[gam7]

Anyone notice Tre's breakaway layup (rather than dunk) in the second half? At least one Maui lesson learned!

I also am surprised by the reactions to RJ. RJ is relentless. Harnessing that relentlessness is part of his learning process. I am usually pretty quick to gnash my teeth when guys try to do too much (including Tatum during the first half of his Duke season). For some reason, I felt differently about RJ at the end of Gonzaga. I want him to attack, attack, attack. Good things will come from that.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Anyone notice Tre's breakaway layup (rather than dunk) in the second half? At least one Maui lesson learned!

I also am surprised by the reactions to RJ. RJ is relentless. Harnessing that relentlessness is part of his learning process. I am usually pretty quick to gnash my teeth when guys try to do too much (including Tatum during the first half of his Duke season). For some reason, I felt differently about RJ at the end of Gonzaga. I want him to attack, attack, attack. Good things will come from that.

I never joined the RJ attack brigade, though I was frustrated a bit with his decision making in Maui. That said, Coach K told the team (re: Barrett) to play through Zion more than they did in Maui. The result? Barrett's most efficient game by far. Zion changes the way teams play D. Barrett might find out that less (shots) is more (points) by playing off of and through Zion.

[budwom]

!@$%

That's it?

1. Crazies need to be more creative

2. Coach K needs to take a chill pill

Agree on both counts. If K wants to gauge Duke fans by The Tweeter, then that's an odd choice...just don't see any reason to get so excited.

[Lar77]

Some observations:

Indiana fans, for the most part, are good people and knowledgeable (although in the last game at Cameron (2014?) a fan was escorted out for extraordinary obnoxiousness).

Please don't have our guys wear striped warmups (Where's Waldo was a great cheer)

Indiana played hard but this game was out of doubt pretty early on.

Yes, you got the feeling we could have won by 30 or 40, but very satisfied with our play except for a few minutes in the second half.

I am amazed at Zion's hustle and resolve, even more than his athletic ability. And he seems to understand that when 2-3 collapse on him, he can pass out to someone who's open.

RJ's mid range pull up is beautiful. Sometimes, I wonder if his drives are used to set it up.

Something's not right with Cam. Might be still recovering from his rib injury. It will click and when it does, he will be awesome.

Great game by Tre. I agree the layup on the breakaway might have been a lesson learned.

How do we improve our FT percentage? It was a major differentiator against Gonzaga and hurt last night. Our team is going to get close to 30 free ones every game and the difference between poor (60%) and okay (70%) is 3 points - enough to win many games. I am concerned for when we get into ACC play. Not that we won't win, but that the games will look like wrestling.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Some observations:

Indiana fans, for the most part, are good people and knowledgeable (although in the last game at Cameron (2014?) a fan was escorted out for extraordinary obnoxiousness).
.

apropos to your comment above, I highly recommend JD King's open letter to IU fans on the Home Page.

[Wildling]

Coach K on R.J. “Come on Duke fans, lay off. R.J. He is not playing hero ball, he is playing winners ball”.

Damn, he called me out,lol. I still call it hero ball. I appreciate the fact K is standing up for his guys, but R.J would be better served to trust his teammates more, which I am sure as the season goes on, he will. And I am sure someone has already told him that. He's not playing on his HS team where he can't trust his guys. He's now playing with 4 other All Americans. They are pretty good from what I hear

Anyhow, the game was a fun one to watch. It's nice to see a Duke team be this dominate against some pretty good opponents. Reminds me of the late 90's and the early 2000's the last time Duke teams were dominating and demoralizing their opponents by halftime. You could tell halfway through the first have the Indiana kids knew they were outmatched, outgunned and weren't going to win. If I seem confident with this team, it's because I am. This team is really good! Like confident in a possible Natty good. It's been a long time (not even 2015) since I felt this good about a Dukes team chances at a National Championship. Man they are a joy to watch.

[dukelifer]

Some observations:

Indiana fans, for the most part, are good people and knowledgeable (although in the last game at Cameron (2014?) a fan was escorted out for extraordinary obnoxiousness).

Please don't have our guys wear striped warmups (Where's Waldo was a great cheer)

Indiana played hard but this game was out of doubt pretty early on.

Yes, you got the feeling we could have won by 30 or 40, but very satisfied with our play except for a few minutes in the second half.

I am amazed at Zion's hustle and resolve, even more than his athletic ability. And he seems to understand that when 2-3 collapse on him, he can pass out to someone who's open.

RJ's mid range pull up is beautiful. Sometimes, I wonder if his drives are used to set it up.

Something's not right with Cam. Might be still recovering from his rib injury. It will click and when it does, he will be awesome.

Great game by Tre. I agree the layup on the breakaway might have been a lesson learned.

How do we improve our FT percentage? It was a major differentiator against Gonzaga and hurt last night. Our team is going to get close to 30 free ones every game and the difference between poor (60%) and okay (70%) is 3 points - enough to win many games. I am concerned for when we get into ACC play. Not that we won't win, but that the games will look like wrestling.

I would also like to compliment RJ's midrange game. He actually is really good with the 10 foot jumper. I hope he uses that much more in games- he is pretty deadly. He is an impressive player when he slows dow just a bit. Sometimes he goes a little too fast and forces. For most of the night- he was in control. Tre Jones has great basketball instincts. He also is a real pest on D- he plays it tenaciously. I am also liking his aggressiveness on O. He deferred too much early- and now he is picking his spots like great pt guards do. He is not a great shooter- but there is a lot to like about his game. Cam had an awful night and while we have seen his brilliance - there is no question is can lose focus. He made a ton of mistakes last night. But Freshman are up and down. He will have great games going forward- so not worried- we just know that he is likely not going to be consistent. Speaking of up and down- Zion is just a physical phenom. He just does not quit and when he makes his mind up to score- he is almost impossible to stop at this level. I am not sure if he can keep up this level of activity (jumping and spinning) without cramping every game. K may need to rest him more- but those muscles only have so much fueling them. Jack White continues to impress. I did not expect the growth we have seen- but K trusts him to do the right thing out there. He is gaining confidence with every game.

The D is yesterday's game was disruptive. It will take excellent ball handlers to withstand the pressure and length of Duke. As many have noted- FT shooting is an adventure with this team. It probably will be all year. Many a game is won at the line. Not sure who I trust to knock them down. That is very worrisome moving forward.

All in all, I think the team is ahead of schedule. The ACC wars start soon and we will not learn a whole lot until Texas Tech comes to town. After that- they get a HUGE test at Florida State in their 3rd ACC game- the first road game against a quality opponent.

[Skydog]

One other note about RJ's drives - it depends where they start from. After a turnover I have no problem with him going full out the length of the floor determined to score himself, support be damned. A player with his athleticism and finishing skills will do quite well with that approach. It's a different story when we are in half court facing a set defense. That's when he has to mix in pull-up jumpers, dishes to cutters and kick outs to 3. This is especially true on this team since we don't have enough outside shooting threats to keep defenses from clogging the middle when he has the ball.