Because Wake is so bad, many will consider this to be our first true *true* road test.
Please put your thoughts about this game in this thread.
Because Wake is so bad, many will consider this to be our first true *true* road test.
...when I was in college, would wake up at 11am, roll over to Cameron, and have a great start to the weekend.
Now, sigh...is this what getting old feels like?
Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things. - Winston Churchill
President of the "Nolan Smith Should Have His Jersey in The Rafters" Club
Guessing this will be f$u's "bowl" game .
I'd like to hear from some folks who have attended games there comment on the loudness and "quality" of the crowd (sobriety, too, I guess ) and other observations they've had over the last decade or so. From my TV-watching experience, not much has been favorable.
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.
I thought Duke had struggled majorly on the road in Tallahassee at FSU but checked and Duke is actually 8-5 in Tallahassee since the 2000-2001 season. It is a tough place to play and like virtually all venues Duke travels to in the conference, it is loud and hostile. I watched the first half of the FSU at UVA game last weekend and didn't come away all that impressed with FSU. They are long and have some big guards and lanky forwards/centers. I would expect Duke to be a 9-11 point favorite on the road. If Tre keeps pressuring the ball and dishing out lots of assists and Jack/Bolden/DeLaurier clean up the glass along with normal nights from RJ and Zion, Duke should win this one. Life on the road in the ACC is tough but from what I've seen out of Duke's defense thus far, I think we will not only be in this one but win somewhat comfortably.
Let's Go Duke!
A big test for the team. I look forward to a victorious outcome.
FSU has historically been a difficult-ish opponent for us when we go to Tallahassee. Even when they aren't great, they sometimes nip us there. It's not an easy place to play. The lighting is bad, the crowd isn't great, it's just a bad combination. So, yeah, this one should be a step up from Wake.
As for the Noles this year, they are again a solid defensive squad and okay-ish offensive squad. They are, as usual, athletic and physical, with good size on the perimeter. They force a lot of turnovers and block some shots, and generally make like annoying for the opposition's offense. They also foul a lot, which comes with their physical style of play. On offense, they draw fouls pretty well, and make a decent percentage of FTs. They are also an elite offensive rebounding team, and that's what keeps them afloat. They don't really do anything else particularly well offensively, including being a terrible shooting team and a terrible passing team. They are also turnover prone, which plays into our hands a bit (hopefully).
It's likely to be a slugfest, as it usually is with FSU, and especially so in Tallahassee. They'll throw a TON of bodies at us, some skilled, many not. Hope we're ready for it.
Centers: We're finally starting to run out of freakish 7-footers at FSU. However, we aren't quite there yet. Christ Koumadje (7'4", 270lb senior from Chad) is the starting center. Koumadje has always been a spindly player. But over his 4 years at FSU, he's put on 45 lbs such that he's now... less spindly. As you might expect, Koumadje is a great shotblocker. He's also gotten to be a great rebounder, on both ends of the floor. He has, however, ZERO offensive skills other than catching rebounds and dunking. He's not even all that high-percentage a scorer despite basically just attempting shots at the rim. Koumadje doesn't play a ton of minutes, but he does make an impact when he's in there. Behind Koumadje, the Noles bring sort of the opposite end of the spectrum in Raiquan Gray (6'8", 260lb freshman). Gray is a short-ish, stocky, interior player with sort of the opposite skill set to Koumadje. He's a good passer and decent shooter, but not very quick/athletic.
Forwards: Phil Cofer (6'8", 230lb fifth-year senior) is the starting PF. Cofer missed several games early in the season, and is just now rounding into form. He's a prototypical stretch-big: great 3pt shooter at his size. He was an All-ACC caliber player last year, but is still showing some rust as we get into conference play. Still, he's a really dangerous weapon for them. Alongside Cofer in the starting lineup is Terance Mann (6'7", 215lb senior). No, he's not the fictional writer from the Field of Dreams movie. Mann is kind of like Justise Winslow in style. He's a rugged, versatile player, capable of guarding 1-to-4, and not being a liability against many 5s either. He's a terrific rebounder and has improved his shooting over the years as well. He's the leader of this team, and a terrific player. The heart and soul of the Noles. Behind (and often alongside) those two is Mfiondu Kabengele (6'10", 250lb sophomore from Canada). Kabengele's major claim to fame is that he's Dikembe Mutombo's nephew. However, he's very little like his uncle in style of play. He is a strong rebounder and shotblocker somewhat like Dikembe, but Kabengele is also fairly skilled offensively and not afraid to get his shots up. The Cofer/Kabengele frontcourt pairing is a particularly interesting one offensively as it allows FSU to play 5-out at times.
Wings: Technically, you could list Mann here as well. He's the starting SF. But FSU has so many wings that I wanted to balance the list out. Aside from Mann, the other starter is MJ Walker (6'5", 215lb sophomore). Walker is an elite athlete and good 3pt shooter who hasn't quite figured out how to play the rest of the game of basketball. The former McDonald's All-American somehow manages to be an inefficient offensive player despite shooting 38% on a high volume of 3s, mainly because he takes and misses a lot of bad 2pt shots. And despite his size and athleticism, he's an awful rebounder and a poor defender overall. It's a disappointing waste of talent. Still, because he's so athletic and can shoot, he is capable of a monster night at any time because he can get his shot off against anyone. The other primary wing is PJ Savoy (6'4", 210lb senior). Savoy isn't overly athletic, but he's on the court to do one thing: shoot 3s. And he puts them up, for sure. Over 80% of his FGA at FSU have been 3s. He shoots 5 3s per 20 minutes this year, and that's substantially down from his rate in previous years. He's struggling a bit from 3 this year, but he's a 38% career shooter from deep. Leaving him open is a baaaaaaad idea. Anthony Polite (6'6", 215lb redshirt freshman from Switzerland) is next on the long list of wings. Polite missed last season with knee problems. He is a lanky player with good shooting touch, but still is working to catch up to the pace of play offensively. Finally, Devin Vassell (6'5", 170lb freshman) rounds out the wings (sort of). Vassell can shoot and provides yet another pesky defensive presence, leading the team in steal rate.
Guards: Trent Forrest (6'4", 215lb junior) is the PG. He's a steady-Eddie at the position. Nothing flashy, just a tough, physical, pass-first type of guard. Technically a combo guard, he's got a PG mindset and a SG body. He's not the steadiest of ballhandlers though, and has been turnover-prone this year. But in a half-court game, he's a solid contributor. He's also a very strong and willing defender. Behind (and sometimes alongside) Forrest is David Nichols (6'1", 185lb grad transfer from Albany). Nichols is the flashier player of the two combo guards at FSU. He's a terrific 3pt threat and not bashful about shooting. He is, however, fairly sloppy with the ball, with a team-worst turnover rate. Still, he's a nice complement stylistically to the bigger, more physical, less 3pt shooty Forrest.
FSU has a ton of depth and athleticism, and they are committed to making the game a war of attrition. I won't even venture a guess as to the outcome, because we could lose close or blow them out. Neither is really out of the realm of feasibility. TRank has us as an 8-point favorite, and that feels reasonable. As does our ~75% chance of winning. But that ~25% chance of FSU winning seems more glaring than it should be on paper.
^ good summary. I'll be impressed if we come away with a win, tough place for us, would not be stunned at all if we lose. Definitely a necessary step up in competition, it's what we want this time of year.
Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things. - Winston Churchill
President of the "Nolan Smith Should Have His Jersey in The Rafters" Club
Hopefully Duke rolls into FSU and starts the game with more intensity and commitment to defense than they showed vs. Wake. It would be helpful if Cam doesn't turn it over a couple of times early, and it would be nice if the team could get him a dunk early as opposed to hoping he can connect on a 3 early.
The thought of having to look at Leonard Hamilton's glaring mug for 2 hours makes bile rise in my throat. I seriously hope none of our guys gets injured in a thugfest. As you can tell, I'm not a fan of FSU AT ALL.
Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things. - Winston Churchill
President of the "Nolan Smith Should Have His Jersey in The Rafters" Club
With a couple exceptions, they're all hard. Of ACC teams against which we've played more than 3 games since 2000-01, FSU is the 6th hardest to play (out of 11), but only one game "behind" the hardest to play (if "hardest" can be measured by Duke's win/loss record in that venue).
DUKE ROAD GAMES, 2000-01 to 2017-18 (ranked from "hardest" to "easiest" venue)
Code:Team W L pct Louisville 1 2 0.333 N Dame 1 2 0.333 Syracuse 1 2 0.333 NCSU 7 6 0.538 Maryland 7 6 0.538 UNC 10 8 0.556 Miami 6 4 0.600 Va Tech 6 4 0.600 FSU 8 5 0.615 Wake 10 6 0.625 UVa 7 4 0.636 Pitt 2 1 0.667 Clemson 9 3 0.750 BC 7 2 0.778 Ga Tech 11 2 0.846
To quote Miracle Max: "While you're at it, why don't you just give me a nice paper cut and pour lemon juice on it..."
Re: "I'd like to hear from some folks who have attended games there..."
Saw two Duke games in the Donald L. Tucker Center just after the turn of the century (circa '02 & '03???). I expected a win the first time, and was even more confident a year later, yet my record there as a spectator is 0-2. Was so high up in the rafters, looking straight down on the game was like having a bad "out of body" experience. Terrible lighting. Devastating place to loose as #1. [If God had meant for basketball to be played on a floor laid down on top of ice, he would have put the Indoor Stadium in the tundra.]
You've raised my blood pressure just recalling four of the worst hours of my life...
I plan to wake up at 10:30 - 11:00, roll to my kitchen for my morning coffee and electronic reading (DBR comes first of course), maybe making a little brunch after that (nothing too heavy - I'll be making popcorn at halftime), maybe catching a 12:00 game with about 10 minutes left in the half, and settling in for the main event. I may start it late, because I absolutely loathe commercials!
Shower and putting on of street clothes will come after 4:00, of course.
ETA: Getting older gets better for watching Duke BBall. The kids are out of the house. It used to be get up at 8:30 for some practice or game or performance or road trip...
So better for watching Duke Basketball, but I do miss coaching youth baseball, or keeping stats for lacrosse & softball, or all the things I did when the kids were younger.
Last edited by BandAlum83; 01-10-2019 at 04:38 PM.