Originally Posted by
Dr. Maturin
I'm not sure I'd call this a trap game, but I do think this one may be deceptively hard. Duke is #1 playing an unranked team on the road... and yet the KenPom and Torvik basically have this as a toss up. Ohio State has underachieved so far in some respects, but their last game was a 3 point neutral site loss against a very good Florida team. They are definitely a worthy opponent. I'm not so much worried that Duke won't bring it tonight, however, after such a great performance against Gonzaga, it's hard to imagine us playing that well again.
Duke's big advantage tonight should be on offense. OSU has been pretty average defensively. They give up a ton of offensive rebounds, which should bode well for Mark Williams. They also play a style of defense that tries to force teams to win 1-on-1 battles - their opponents made field goals are only assisted 34.5% of the time. That strikes me as similar to the way Kentucky defended Duke, albeit with lesser athletes than Kentucky. This could be a game for Keels/Dell/Paulo to make things happen off the dribble.
On the other side of the ball, it really is all about E.J. Liddell. He is an efficient scorer at all levels and draws an outrageous 7.9 fouls per 40 minutes. I'd imagine multiple defenders will get the chance to guard him.
Going into the season I said I would be thrilled to go 2-1 in the big OOC games. Tonight offers a chance to go 3-0. It's our first road game and should be a real test.
Even though Banchero is the natural defender for Liddell (our 4 vs their 4), I suspect Moore will be the primary defender. Moore has been a really good defender and he has the size (6'6" and 220) to neutralize Liddell.
If Williams doesn't get going early, K may go to a small ball line up with Banchero at the 5. That would make Moore/Griffin the natural option to guard Liddell, which is a good thing.
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