MBB: Duke 89, SMU 62 Post-game Thread

5. I'm sure there are posts already about Duke winning this game as a Quad 1 game. Unless somebody gets really hot, I don't know if Duke will have another chance this season. I personally don't think it matters all that much if you are a #1 or #2 seed - I'd rather have easier travel as a #2 seed than further travel as a #1 seed (even though it would be great to see Duke in the West Regional, as I have tix already). Anyway, it's really now up to Duke to win the regular season going away and then lock up a #1/2 seed. Can they? Sure... but I think it's unlikely that they will be undefeated the rest of the way, as it's tough to expect perfection. But here's hoping!
Rather than seeding, my concern is settling in to the lower level of competition and not being ready for the NCAAT teams. The coaches will need to maintain high standards of execution and effort to keep everyone sharp.
Also, a long winning streak carries a lot of pressure, so a loss or two can be a good thing to keep the team hungry and humble.
 

Metrics

That was the best performance of the season so far. Nice to see the team jump on an opponent early and maintain the lead thereafter. Both the offense and the defense got it done today.

OFFENSE
Possessions: 65.3 (a really slow pace)
oRtg: 136.4 (136.2 adjusted; would be #1 nationally, and our 3rd straight elite performance offensively)
eFG%: 62.1% (outstanding)
3pt%: 40.7% (very solid)
2pt%: 62.9% (outstanding)
%threes: 43.5% (a bit high percentage)
FT rate: 25.8% (poor; we just don’t seem to be a foul-drawing team)
OR%: 35.5% (decent)
TO%: 10.7% (excellent)
a/to: 3.14 (excellent)
fast break pts: 10 (okay)
With respect to the game this afternoon, at least, the fact that Duke didn't draw a lot of fouls is not because a lot of fouls weren't committed against Duke players. Somehow, despite the very physical play of the Ponies, Duke was not yet in the one-and-one bonus with under two minutes left in either half. It seems the Blue Devils got "Groovered" -- and not for the first time.
 
It sure seems like for us to lose a regular season game, it will require us to shoot 20-30% from 3 while our opponent shoots 40-50%. Illinois, Pitt, Clemson, 2xUNC. I don't think any of these teams will beat us with defense and 2-point shooting. They will need to have a hot shooting night.
I’d throw Wake in that group also. I think the game at Joel could be tough. But maybe I’m still thinking about last year’s game. The court storming and Filipowski situation left a bad taste in my mouth.
 
With respect to the game this afternoon, at least, the fact that Duke didn't draw a lot of fouls is not because a lot of fouls weren't committed against Duke players. Somehow, despite the very physical play of the Ponies, Duke was not yet in the one-and-one bonus with under two minutes left in either half. It seems the Blue Devils got "Groovered" -- and not for the first time.
Yeah, tons of fouls not called. Very physical team.
 
Duke 89, SMU 62 (recap, box score, highlights, condensed game, full replay, presser)

Duke men's basketball trailed for only 29 seconds at SMU on Saturday, Jan. 4, as the Blue Devils (12-2, 4-0 ACC) cruised to an 89-62 victory over the Mustangs (11-3, 2-1 ACC). Freshman Cooper Flagg poured in 24 points and posted his fifth double-double of the season with a team-high 11 rebounds to lead the Blue Devils. The 20-point double-double is Flagg's fourth such game of his freshman campaign.

Kon Knueppel and Tyrese Proctor also scored in double-figures, as each contributed 14 points. Sion James dished a season-high eight assists, one shy of his career high.

As a team, Duke tallied 22 assists on their 33 made field goals. The Blue Devils are averaging 20.3 assists per game across their last three games, and Duke's 3.1 assist-turnover ratio on Saturday afternoon set a new benchmark for the season.


In addition to the ACC Digital Network highlights linked above, here are some from The CW:


GoDuke offered postgame quotes, but SMU's On3 affiliate has the Duke presser from associate head coach Chris Carrawell, along with Tyrese Proctor and Cooper Flagg:


Coach Carrawell: "I thought we did a good job in the first half. We didn’t settle. Thought we did a really good job of attacking the paint in the first half. We got downhill. At halftime, I think we had 12 assists and one turnover. We didn't turn the ball over, we got quality shots for the most part of the game. And in the second half, we were able to get downhill and it opened up. We made our kicks and guys were ready to shoot the ball. Cooper is able to put pressure on the defense and any time he's in that mode, attacking, it opens up a lot for us."

Cooper Flagg: "I think for me, my whole mindset this whole year, has just been trying to get better every single day. I think that as we've gotten more comfortable as a team, we've come together more. I think our offense has definitely sharpened up a lot, and that's helped me as well. A lot of guys have stepped up through a lot of different games, so it's just a team effort that having guys like Tyrese [Proctor] and Kon [Knueppel] on the court helps open everything up for me."

Tyrese Proctor: "The number one emphasis the whole week was to limit their offensive transition. So, focus on [defensive transition] for us and rebound. They're a really good rebounding team. They sort of punched us in the mouth early, in terms of getting balls and offensive rebounds. I feel like, once we adjusted to that, we just played the game in our favor, and we do what we do."

Here are the postgame comments from the SMU side: head coach Andy Enfield, plus players Matt Cross and Boopie Miller:


Coach Enfield: "We picked a tough time to play a bad game. We just didn't have it offensively today -- missed a lot of open shots, 14 free throws, and then defensively they went on a couple of runs, so give Duke credit. They played very efficient offense today, and we didn't."

Finally, Duke MBB delivers a short clip from the locker room that's surprisingly jam-packed: Dallas local Dereck Lively, a water bottle celebration, a phone call from Jon Scheyer, and a few words from a soaked Coach Carrawell.

 
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Duke 89, SMU 62 (recap, box score, highlights, condensed game, full replay, presser)

Duke men's basketball trailed for only 29 seconds at SMU on Saturday, Jan. 4, as the Blue Devils (12-2, 4-0 ACC) cruised to an 89-62 victory over the Mustangs (11-3, 2-1 ACC). Freshman Cooper Flagg poured in 24 points and posted his fifth double-double of the season with a team-high 11 rebounds to lead the Blue Devils. The 20-point double-double is Flagg's fourth such game of his freshman campaign.

Kon Knueppel and Tyrese Proctor also scored in double-figures, as each contributed 14 points. Sion James dished a season-high eight assists, one shy of his career high.

As a team, Duke tallied 22 assists on their 33 made field goals. The Blue Devils are averaging 20.3 assists per game across their last three games, and Duke's 3.1 assist-turnover ratio on Saturday afternoon set a new benchmark for the season.


In addition to the ACC Digital Network highlights linked above, here are some from The CW:


GoDuke offered postgame quotes, but SMU's On3 affiliate has the Duke presser from associate head coach Chris Carrawell, along with Tyrese Proctor and Cooper Flagg:


Coach Carrawell: "I thought we did a good job in the first half. We didn’t settle. Thought we did a really good job of attacking the paint in the first half. We got downhill. At halftime, I think we had 12 assists and one turnover. We didn't turn the ball over, we got quality shots for the most part of the game. And in the second half, we were able to get downhill and it opened up. We made our kicks and guys were ready to shoot the ball. Cooper is able to put pressure on the defense and any time he's in that mode, attacking, it opens up a lot for us."

Cooper Flagg: "I think for me, my whole mindset this whole year, has just been trying to get better every single day. I think that as we've gotten more comfortable as a team, we've come together more. I think our offense has definitely sharpened up a lot, and that's helped me as well. A lot of guys have stepped up through a lot of different games, so it's just a team effort that having guys like Tyrese [Proctor] and Kon [Knueppel] on the court helps open everything up for me."

Tyrese Proctor: "The number one emphasis the whole week was to limit their offensive transition. So, focus on [defensive transition] for us and rebound. They're a really good rebounding team. They sort of punched us in the mouth early, in terms of getting balls and offensive rebounds. I feel like, once we adjusted to that, we just played the game in our favor, and we do what we do."

Here are the postgame comments from the SMU side: head coach Andy Enfield, plus players Matt Cross and Boopie Miller:


Coach Enfield: "We picked a tough time to play a bad game. We just didn't have it offensively today -- missed a lot of open shots, 14 free throws, and then defensively they went on a couple of runs, so give Duke credit. They played very efficient offense today, and we didn't."

Finally, Duke MBB delivers a short clip from the locker room that's surprisingly jam-packed: Dallas local Dereck Lively, a water bottle celebration, a phone call from Jon Scheyer, and a few words from a soaked Coach Carrawell.

its really nice to hear Carrawell talk, his personality really comes out. On the bench it doesn't look like he says much as an assistant. As someone upthread said...he's probably the next one to take on a head coaching position. We have such a special group of former players that turn into Coaches...they represent us so well. Better than I could do. Proud of them.
 
Rather than seeding, my concern is settling in to the lower level of competition and not being ready for the NCAAT teams. The coaches will need to maintain high standards of execution and effort to keep everyone sharp.
Also, a long winning streak carries a lot of pressure, so a loss or two can be a good thing to keep the team hungry and humble.

This is my concern too. . Be ready for tough March. Be ready for very few foul calls
 
This is a chart of Duke's adjusted offensive efficiency over time, per Torvik. Duke's most impressive showing was the Auburn win - the metrics were impressed by our showing against an excellent defense. Our 2nd, 3rd, and 4th best performances have all come in the last 3 games. In other words, the offense looks to be taking a big step forward.

1736043043301.png
 
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