2019 2K Sports Classic: Duke vs G’town - espn2, 11/22 7:00

[-jk]

Here we go, for the first championship of the season!

-jk

[Devilwin]

Gonna be tougher than last night. But we should take them down.

[weezie]

Thump 'em good.

[JasonEvans]

Really surprised they beat Texas. I had Texas pegged as the much better team. Omer Yurtseven will be a real challenge for Vernon, clearly the best big we have faced since Dok of Kansas.

[AGDukesky]

Georgetown is not a great team but seems to get to the FT line a lot. In fact, the Hoyas played Georgia State just after we did and took 51 FTs to win by 8 after trailing by 5 at the half. It does not shoot 3s particularly well or do anything that jumps out. This game comes down to Duke hitting enough shots and keeping the FT numbers close (Georgetown also won the FT battle over Texas by 18 attempts with 12 more makes). The Hoyas also lost by 15 to Penn State and only won by 11 against the same Central Arkansas team we beat by 51. On paper this is a fairly routine win but with the back to back high profile games and maybe the Hoyas figuring things out, it will likely be much tougher than we hope.

[budwom]

Georgetown seems to live driving the ball...gotta limit that or they'll be shooting a lot of FTs...

[AGDukesky]

Georgetown seems to live driving the ball...gotta limit that or they'll be shooting a lot of FTs...

Yeah my biggest concern is the refs calling more of the ridiculous fouls like Tre’s second and Carey getting early fouls too...

[DavidBenAkiva]

Are we excited yet?

Looking forward to going to the game tonight. This is a perk of having moved to NYC over the summer. That and bagels. What's not to love about this matchup? It's Duke vs. Georgetown in the Garden. Patrick Ewing vs. Coach K. Bright lights, big city. Let's Go Duke!

[Rich]

Are we excited yet?

Looking forward to going to the game tonight. This is a perk of having moved to NYC over the summer. That and bagels. What's not to love about this matchup? It's Duke vs. Georgetown in the Garden. Patrick Ewing vs. Coach K. Bright lights, big city. Let's Go Duke!

I have tickets and am looking forward to the game tonight, but fully expect a bizarro moment as Duke, wearing home gray, takes on Georgetown in road blue.

[DavidBenAkiva]

Here are my thoughts on the matchup.

The Hoyas have an interesting balance of youth and experience, perimeter play and size. The backcourt is one of the more dynamic combinations in the country, featuring SO PG James Akinjo (6'0") and SO SG Mac McClung (6'2"). They also have SR Jagan Mosely (6'3") as a starter in a 3-guard lineup to begin the game. Neither Akinjo or McClung are particularly accurate or prolific shooters, hitting 25% and 30%, respectively, from 3 on 20 attempts each. Others on the team have been more accurate, but they don't have a designated shooter our there. The Hoya guards much prefer to drive, either to score, distribute, or kick out for an open look. They have a lot of action going towards the rim. They also get to the line a lot. And when they get to the line, they make their free throws. They have a number of guys hitting well over 75% from the line with Akinjo (87.0%) and McClung (90.9%) taking and making the most free throws. Mosley, in particular, has been getting to the free throw line a lot. He has more free throw attempts on the season than field goal attempts. And like Akinjo and McClung, he's not half bad at the line (77.8%). The guards of Georgetown are going to put a lot of pressure on the Duke defense in this one.

In the size department, Duke fans should be familiar with SR Omer Yurtseven. He is the big man for the Hoyas. The Turkish transfer can score. He will be a real test for Vernon Carey. Yurtseven has not taken many 3's on the season - just one, a miss - but will step out and take a mid-range jumper. He's connecting on those shots, too, hitting 52.0% on his jumpers inside the arc. One thing that hasn't changed much for Yurtseven has been his foul rate. He's racking up an absurd 6 fouls per 40 minutes of play, to go along with 6 turnovers per 40. It's what is keeping him off the court. He got into foul trouble against Texas last night. Other than that, Yurtseven scores, rebounds, and block shots. He's going to be a load to handle. Georgetown will also have JR F Jamorko Pickett (6'8") on the court to start the gate. Pickett is long and can shoot the ball - he's 5-10 from 3 on the season. He is a jack of all trades/master of none kind of player that has been about as productive throughout his college career as he is so far in his junior year. Georgetown will also through out 6'11" FR C Qudus Wahab and 6'7" SO F Josh LeBlanc into the frontcourt off the bench. Both are long and athletic if a little raw.

As far as team play, Georgtown likes to get up and down the court and so this should be a fast-paced and high scoring affair. The Hoyas are particularly adept at crashing the offensive boards, so getting defensive rebounds will be key. They don't guard the 3-point line much and have a relatively small backcourt where Duke should have a serious height advantage. Stanley, Moore, and O'Connell will all be a good 4-5 inches taller. That could lead to a lot of open looks. The Duke guards and wings will have to be careful to crash the defensive glass. Georgetown had a really bad night on offense when they lost to Penn State. The defense have been OK but nothing to write home about. They don't take or make many 3's, so it will be a game primarily played inside the arc. Duke will have to stay out of foul trouble up front and force the Hoyas to guard out to the 3-point line. Allowing Carey to go one-on-one against Yurtseven and Wahab will help him and the Duke attack. This is a game that Duke should win by 10-15 points. But it is the Garden, Patrick Ewing, and the Hoyas. They have some players - McClung in particular - that wants to play under the bright lights. Can Duke contain the momentum?

[Billy Dat]

I think anyone who was in the building last night for the second half of the Georgetown game is probably thinking what I am thinking - that Georgetown looks every bit as athletic and scrappy as Duke and that we are in for a war.

Aside from McClung and Yurtseven, I knew nothing about the Hoyas. The guy who really impressed me is Akinjo. He is a throwback hard nosed Big East guard, really reminded me of the UConn lineage of of guys like Chris Smith, Ricky Moore, etc. He's tough, physical and relentless going to the hoop. This is a vintage PG match-up for Tre.

Yurtseven has the rep, but he was a complete non factor last night but his back-up, Wahab, was tough. How the game is officiated will be key as I think we should go to Vernon early and often and put much pressure on Omer to defend cleanly. We'll see if it's reffed traditional ACC style or Big East style.

The kid Pickett looks like a pro to me...really long, really smooth and athletic. LeBlanc is also a springy, rangy wing. These guys protect the rim well.

All I have seen of this team (G-town) is probably the best 20 minutes they played all year so I am definitely biased. But, the truth is if they can play with that intensity, we will have to play really well to win. It is a great test in a great environment...I wish I could go!!!!

[Music man55]

I have tickets and am looking forward to the game tonight, but fully expect a bizarro moment as Duke, wearing home gray, takes on Georgetown in road blue.

Surely, Duke won't wear those awful gray unis tonight against G-town. Please, wear the white or even blue unis and leave that gray to the Hoyas.

[MartyClark]

I'm pleasantly surprised to see the early start, 7:30 ( or more probably 8:00).

Even living in Colorado, I couldn't stay awake for last night's game. Thank goodness for DVR. I got up at 3:30 a.m. and thoroughly enjoyed the game.

Go Duke.

[BandAlum83]

Is it my imagination, or are we still in preseason mode? These threads are languishing, it took forever for a MOTM thread for last night to be put up, postings to BBall threads seems down.

Could it be that many of us are tempering excitement after a few years of extremely high expectations and associated disappointment?

Maybe I’m imagining things.

[uh_no]

I'm pleasantly surprised to see the early start, 7:30 ( or more probably 8:00).

Even living in Colorado, I couldn't stay awake for last night's game. Thank goodness for DVR. I got up at 3:30 a.m. and thoroughly enjoyed the game.

Go Duke.

the early game started at 5, so 730 is proabbly about right.

[Pghdukie]

Hopefully!

[MarkD83]

Yeah my biggest concern is the refs calling more of the ridiculous fouls like Tre’s second and Carey getting early fouls too...

This is the first year in a long time where foul trouble does not seem to bother me. Yes Tre getting fouls would be an issue, but even if Vernon gets fouls early he has done that in other games this year.

[Coballs]

What time is the game supposed to actually tip off?

[DU82]

Surely, Duke won't wear those awful gray unis tonight against G-town. Please, wear the white or even blue unis and leave that gray to the Hoyas.

Crisis averted. We’re in blue tonight.

[lotusland]

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