Duke Falls to VT but Kyrie is "Op(toe)mistic"

I didn't get to watch much of this game, hence I didn't post about it.  I am going to keep this short and sweet unlike my usual long winded, obsessive, over analyzed and "Jeez this guy is in to Duke too much" way.

-Virginia Tech was desperate, playing in front of desperate fans and playing like their post season hope's rode on winning this game.  Their post season hope's were riding on this, so it made sense they played desperate and a lot of times in sports it is who wanted it more.  Duke usually plays harder than all of their opponents, but today Virginia Tech wanted it more. 

-The one part of the game I watched was the first 5 minutes.  Surprise surprise, slow start and as I've warned it did lead to a loss.

- Duke for now dropped out of projected #1 seeds but as I'll explain later this week will have plenty of chances to get back into a #1 seed for the tournament.

- Kyrie Irving posted on Twitter last week he is feeling "Op(toe)mistic".  Best scene so far in college basketball would be Kyrie running out on the court Saturday in the Dean Dome unannounced and stunning the UNC faithful.  Then going off for 19 pts and 11 assists in a dominant Duke victory.  Possible?  Yes.  Likely? No. Stay tuned.

Duke 78 - Temple 61 - Slow Starts but W's Keep Coming

I have to toot my own horn here quickly.

My prediction: Duke 78 - Temple 62

Actual Score: Duke 78 - Temple 61

Toot...toot....

Singler is back -

Kyle's focus tonight was attacking the rim either from the perimeter or posting up Temple's over matched undersized players.  In the preview I predicted a good bounce back game today from Singler and he lived up to that, 28 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals and 1 block.  You can look at the box score and see that he only took 1 three to prove that he was focused on getting easy buckets around the hoop tonight.

Slow Start -

I predicted (and begged for) a quick start for Duke tonight.  I was off on that prediction it was another very slow start for Duke.  Again the offense was sluggish until really the second half.  This continues to be a trend for Duke, and as I keep warning this could be something that catches up to Duke. 

Temple was very beat up -

Scootie Randall who was listed as day to day yesterday and ended up not playing.  Micheal Eric is out for the remainder of the year.  I feel bad for Temple because you can see they are a solid team that are well coached and could make a good run in the tournament if healthy.  Unfortunately without Eric, they will lack the big men I think to make the run that they could have.  A ton of credit though to Temple for battling on the boards tonight even though they were undersized.  Lavoy Allen is a heck of a player, had a double double tonight and really battled.  Hopefully they get Scootie back and can still make a good push in the tournament.

With Temple being beat up this game meant less to me than I thought it would.  Still a good win over a top 25 team for Duke.  Still a win over a team that played like a team Duke could play in the tournament in a couple weeks.  Just not the test for Duke I had kind of hoped it would be.

Next up @ Virginia Tech, Saturday 8 pm CST on ESPN-

This will be a very, very, very desperate Virginia Tech team on Saturday.  They have been on the wrong side of the bubble so many times.  With a very shaky resume so far this year they will be looking to get their signature win against Duke.  Virginia Tech has been a thorn in Duke's side in past years, lets all hope Duke gets it going early (WOW WHAT A THOUGHT!) and silent the Tech crowd.

Temple vs. Duke – A Sweet 16(-ish) Warm Up

Housekeeping-

Duke beat Georgia Tech Sunday night.  I didn’t write a post game update due to the fact I was bored by the game.  Honestly Georgia Tech is a pitiful squad and the only interesting thing that I could have talked about is yet another slow start for Duke.  Will they ever learn?  They’d better Wednesday or that newly awarded #1 spot in the polls will be short lived.

Temple @ Duke – Wednesday, 6 pm CST (TV: ESPN2)



It's OK Hooter (actual name) your Owl wisdom had to let you know we had no chance in Cameron!



Why this game in the long run may mean more than the UNC game at the end of the year.

It looks like possibly the end of the year match up in Chapel Hill on March 5 will decide whether Duke is the ACC champ all alone or if they split it again this year.  UNC looks as if it can handle the rest of its schedule and Duke outside of a trip to Virginia Tech which could be tough, should handle the rest of its ACC schedule.   Duke has the 1 game lead in the ACC standings right now and Chapel Hill will be rocking looking for revenge of the game they were in control of in Durham. 

Also as previously discussed here before, the UNC-Duke match ups are the best regular season match ups in NCAA every year.  Round 1 of the match up lived up to the hype with a huge comeback by Duke and Round 2 will have the ACC title on the line in the final game of each team’s regular season.  It will be a huge game, there is no doubt.

So, after all of that why am I saying the Temple game Wednesday will say more to me about what Duke’s fate will be in March than the UNC game?  Multiple reasons actually:

-          Temple currently in ESPN’s Bracketology is a 7 seed.  Duke is a 1 seed.  Go ahead and take a look at the link there and you will see that if Duke falls to a 2 seed or Temple works its way up to a 5 seed that a 2-7 seed or a 1-5 seed would run into each other in the second round or sweet 16 respectively.  These are the games that for a 1 or 2 seed really ramp up the momentum for a championship run.  Duke beating a tough Purdue (4 seed) team in the sweet 16 last year or Cal (8 seed) in the second round were games that built Duke’s confidence to then go ahead and beat a Baylor and West Virginia.  Does Duke have what last year’s team had? Or is this year’s Duke team more like the Duke teams of the 3-4 years prior where they have a great regular season but can’t beat a sticky quality team from a lower conference in the early rounds of the tournament?  

-          To me, the tournament is more important than the regular season ACC title.  Teams that take great pride in conference titles are teams that do not expect to be in the championship game every year.  Duke does expect to not only be in competition for the championship every year but they expect to win it.  That is why beating a Temple team convincingly at home is a must to prove Duke is ready for a tournament run.  The Cameron Crazies travel, but the mystique of Cameron does not in the tournament.  So if Duke can’t beat a 6-8 seed-ish team at home, why couldn’t they be tripped up by a team like Vanderbilt when playing on a neutral court?

-          Why is it a bigger deal to beat a 7 seed type team than a 4 seed team like UNC?  I believe for this Duke team it means more because of the 2 losses Duke has this year.  FSU currently a 9 seed and St Johns is currently a 6 seed.  We all know Duke has elite talent and CAN beat any team in the country, but its more handling games against teams they do not know well (like St Johns) and that play lock down defense (like FSU).  Temple fits both of those molds, Duke doesn’t know them well, and they play lock down defense– Temple has allowed over 70 pts only 4 times this year.

-          As stated here before UNC-Duke games take on lives of their own.  The record’s of either team don’t matter, the rankings don’t matter and how each team is playing coming into the game doesn’t matter.  You never know what’s going to happen (unless you’re reading this blog) and can’t usually take what happens and plan on it happening again for Duke or UNC moving forward.  Hence this game meaning more and being the game you can learn more about Duke from in the long run.

Players on Temple you probably don’t know-

-Ramone Moore – G  6’4 (15 ppg. 3 apg. 4 rpg)

-Scootie Randall – F 6’6 (12 ppg 5 rpg. 1 spg) – is day to day with a foot injury missed their last game against St Joseph

-Juan Fernandez – G 6’4 (10 ppg 4 apg)

Both Moore and Randall can shoot the three (around 38%) and both can go for 25 plus against good competition (Moore 30 pts against Georgetown and Randall 27 against Xavier).  Look for Smith to guard Moore and Singler on Randall.  Foul trouble for any of these four will be an issue for their respective teams.  Fernandez shoots under 30% from three and isn’t an explosive scorer but has stepped up with Randall going down against Richmond and missing the St Joe’s game (17 ppg in the two games).

-Lavoy Allen – F/C 6’9 (11 pts 7 rbs 1.7 blks.)

Temple lost their other big man Micheal (its how he spells it) Eric (6’11) for the season two games ago and now are a bit of an undersized team.  There are only three players over 6’6 (Craig Williams and Dutch Gaitley with Allen) and neither has played over 5 minutes in a game this year.  With Duke starting two 6’10 players it will be vital for Lavoy Allen to play huge on the boards and not get into foul trouble.

What to expect and look for-

Temple will be jacked up.  As if rolling in playing good basketball and taking on Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium wasn’t enough to get Temple going, Duke was named the #1 team in the country on Monday.  Temple is going to give all it has to end Duke’s home winning streak and put their name’s on everyone’s map come tournament time. 

A key will be Duke being able to run its offense and score against a tough Temple defense.   Temple held Maryland to 61 pts and #10 Georgetown to 65 – they also won both of these games.  Nobody has been able to hold down Nolan Smith this year; I do not expect Temple to either.  St. Johns held Smith to 32 pts…but they won and that’s all that matters and its safe to say that Duke’s offense was horrible that day at Madison Square Garden.  Kyle Singler started looking a little better Sunday against Georgia Tech and should be a match up problem for Temple.  Singler needs to step back into his All American status as he did at the end of last year, no better time to start that than Wednesday night.  Seth Curry needs to take smart shot and know when to turn up his aggressiveness and when to tone it down and let Smith and Singler control the offense.  Andre Dawkins has been quiet since the UNC game, Wednesday maybe the time he decides, and the time Duke needs him to, knock down big threes and change momentum at times during this game.

Can Temple get over the Cameron Crazies?  Temple’s players probably think they have seen crazy opposing fans before.  I am sure the Surly Spiders (not official name) in Richmond are crazy and all but this is Cameron Indoor.  This is a 34 game home winning streak.  This is the best 6^th man in the country. They knows your sister’s name.  They know that she beat you up when you were 12 because you stole her Barbie Corvette.  So you won’t hear the normal “You suck!” as you shoot that free throw.  You’ll hear “Don’t steal Julie’s Corrrrr-veeette!”  Will this throw Temple off?  Or will they be able to block out the Crazies and play their best unlike the past 34 foes? (Here are some examples of Crazies chants)

PREDICTION:

Duke finally…FINALLY…does not get off to a slow start.  Duke gets off to a hot start this game led by Singler and Seth Curry’s shooting.  Duke will break out to a 10-15 pt lead in the first 5-8 minutes and then hold on the rest of the game.  Allowing an occasional 6-9 point run to Temple to get it under a 10 point lead but never getting too close.  In the second half the runs from Temple will continue but Duke will put them away around the 10-12 minute mark.  Get up by 20+ and then go into “clock melt” mode after Duke’s superior size inside turns offensive rebounds into open threes.  In the end Duke comes out victorious and proves that it will take a 1 or 2 seed to beat them and end their season in March/April not a 5 through 8 seed like Temple.

Duke 78 – Temple 62

Win is a Win: Duke 56 - Virginia 41

This was a boring game.  It wasn't a game that we will remember by Friday...or at least I won't.  Virginia slowed the game down to try to take Duke out of its game, and it worked in some respects but they didn't score or execute offensively either so it was a wash.  The entertainment of this game was mainly listening to Mike Patrick screw up the ESPN broadcast.  Patrick miscalled multiple plays and bumbled and fumbled his words all night.  Bad broadcast and bad basketball.  Next game please...oh wait positives/negatives real quick first.

Positives -

Nolan Smith is a stud.  I don't need to explain this much more than just that.  He even busted out a "shimmy shake" after an "and one" bucket in the first half.  Nobody in college bball is playing as good as Nolan Smith, just hope that his shoulder's don't get too sore from carrying the team.

Mason Plumlee is playing with confidence right now and has in the past five games since the St John's debacle.  I've pounded this point all year, but this is the "Zoubek" emergence of a big man Duke needed this year.

Ryan Kelly is going to be a great Dukie the rest of this year and the next two years.  This is what Duke has that many other big time programs don't have.  Solid players that aren't NBA material early in their careers but contribute all four years and allow the program to not peak and valley as much as other programs have in the "1 and done" era of college bball. 

Negatives-

ANOTHER SLOW START!  C'mon Coach K, we have to stop doing this.  Temple, @ Virginia Tech and @ UNC are games in which Duke will lose if they continue to not play until 10-20 minutes into the game.

The more Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly step up the more Miles Plumlee disappears.  Duke will need Miles to achieve its best results for this season.  There are flashes in games, but then he makes you forget about those good flashes by throwing a horrible pass, travelling, or committing a stupid foul.

Kyle Singler.  2 pts. 4 fouls.  I am not worried about this though.  Kyle is a professional and will bounce back from a couple off games and be the All American again soon.

Nest Up: vs. Georgia Tech, Sunday, 6:45 pm

Coming off of a 5 game losing streak tonight GT beat Chattanooga....by 9.  Duke at home should dominate GT and then get ready for a mid-week, out of conference and very 2nd round to Sweet 16-ish type game against Temple at home next Wednesday.

At "The U" Duke Got the "W" - Duke 81 - Miami 71

After an emotional come from behind win against UNC on Wednesday, Duke had many excuses that they could have used Sunday if they had come out flat against Miami.  Being a Coach K coached team though, they didn't use those excuses and played a very solid game tonight against a Miami team that gave them their best shot.  After absorbing a hot start by the Canes, Duke really controlled the game after a nice run to finish the first half.  In the end Duke got its 10th ACC win 81-71.

Positives -

Seth Curry's confidence seems to be high after his huge outburst in the UNC game.  When Nolan Smith caught a finger in the eye in the first half and had to sit out for a good 10 minutes, it was Curry who stepped up to lead Duke.  Curry finished with 16 pts.  Curry is clearly stepping in as the 3rd scorer behind Smith and Singler currently. 

Tim Brando on the Fox Sport's coverage mentioned how great it could be for Duke if Curry continued his high level of play and Duke also got Mr. Irving back.  It'd be a disgusting offensive line up on the court with Irving, Curry, Smith, Singler and....heck throw my cat in there and they can put up 80 with that line up.

(Sigh)....enough if's....lets focus on the great season Duke is putting together with its current lineup...my cat Garfield not included.




BOO! Garfield the cat is ready to ball if Irving comes back.


Another positive was Duke's offense getting everyone involved.  I had mentioned that at times earlier this year, Duke's offense was too Singler/Smith-centric.  Today and in the games following the St John's loss, Duke has spread the offensive love more.  This is a very good thing, early season post-Irving Duke would not have handled Singler's bad shooting night against UNC, or Nolan Smith's absence from much of the first half tonight.  With a more well balanced offense, Duke handled each situation well.

Negatives -

Miami shot the three well early in the game, Duke seemed to adjust but the three point defense wasn't great.  It is a minor gripe but for where Duke needs to be come March, even minor gripes need to be addressed.

Yet again Duke got off to a bit of a slow start.  Not sure if this is as much Duke's fault as it is opposing teams really getting up for Duke games and coming out with a burst.  The "Duke Game", it is the game circled on the schedule of every team that plays Duke.  The key for Duke is to handle the built up emotion early in games from opposing teams, then crush their upset dream's like the big bullies and cold blooded killers they can be.
Next Up: @ Virginia, Wednesday 6 pm central. 

...Hope they love losing by 20

PS - Watching the Grammy's while writing this.....Lady Gaga is super weird.

Duke vs UNC: The Rivalry. The Review. Vol. 1

THE REVIEW IS IN RED.

The rivalry.  As Duke fans we all know about it, we all have memories of past battles both good and bad.  Stackhouse’s sick under the hoop dunk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv2b6zXBJiE).  Capel’s buzzer beater to force OT (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAZvnJ_sngI).  Redick lighting up UNC for 35 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iPAmUCfB5A).  Hansbrough dominating Duke in his four years then Gerald Henderson dominating Hansbroughs nose with his unintentional elbow, though as a Duke fan I like to think it was intentional (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGHaLUgrzi4).  It is the rivalry that all college basketball fans can tune into and get excited about, and the first chapter of this years rivalry begins Wednesday, 8 pm, Cameron Indoor Stadium.  Let’s play!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnnXvvL-DYk&feature=related

Match-ups to watch:

Nolan Smith vs. Kendall Marshall – Edge: Duke

Kendall Marshall is coming off his career game, 9 pts and 16 assists, taking over for Larry Drew II who left UNC.  The Freshman looks like the future PG for Roy’s Boys, but the future will need to be now if he is to keep up with the POY candidate Smith.  Nolan is on fire and will have the edge on Marshall just as he has the edge on all guards outside of maybe some dude named “Jimmer”. 

Result: Duke

Nolan Smith absolutely was unstoppable...again.  He kept Duke in the game in the first half when they would've been blown out and he won the game for Duke in the second half.  Kendall Marshall is a great player, did a great job in the first half of getting into the lane whenever he wanted and distributed to the big men.  Marshall is scary because he isn't big time NBA talent and will probably be at UNC for a long while.  In the end though Nolan had a career night with 34 pts, his stock will rise even more for POY after this performance.

Tyler Zeller/John Henson vs. Plumlees/Ryan Kelly- Edge: Draw

Both teams have big men with NBA hype, Zeller and Henson for UNC and Mason Plumlee for Duke.   You have to give Duke the slight edge on big men depth but then for overall offensive talent you have to give the edge to Tyler Zeller for UNC.  In the end I think it is a draw, but if Duke can get either or both of UNC’s big men in foul trouble the edge will swing big time to Duke.  Not because Duke will then pound inside to its big men, but because offensively Henson and Zeller mean a lot for UNC and without them on the court Duke can really focus on the perimeter players for UNC.

Result: UNC

Zeller and Henson played well tonight especially in the first half.  They dominated the boards and were threats offensively, the Duke big men were really worthless.  Duke's big men played better in the second  half and UNC's played worse but if Duke wants a championship they NEED NEED NEED consistent play out of the big men.  UNC's big men showed that Mason Plumlee has a long way to go before he can be relied on every night.

Kyle Singler vs. Harrison Barnes- Edge: Duke

Again we have a Duke Senior vs. a UNC Freshman, and again the experience will reign supreme.  Barnes may end up being a better pro either next year or later but right now Singler is by far the superior college player even with Barnes playing his best ball of the year right now.  It will be very interesting to see how Barnes reacts to the pressure of the rivalry and the Cameron Crazies.  Barnes had a ton of pressure on him early on this year and folded, he is now playing his best ball because UNC has faded from everyone’s focus and Barnes' hype has totally died due to his lackluster performance.  Barnes will be the main focus for the Cameron Crazies and he has to respond well, like Hansbrough used to, in order for UNC to have a chance.

Result: Draw

Kyle Singler could not throw the ball in ocean if he was swimming off the coast of North Carolina tonight.  Ended the night 3-17 with 10 pts.  Harrison Barnes started off hot tonight but then Kyle Singler did what he can do and made Harrison disappear.  Even Dickie V was wondering where Barnes was calling out Barnes name even though Reggie Bullock had the ball in the second half.  Barnes is a great talent, but right now is a passive player who cannot carry this UNC team yet on a night by night basis.  Barnes ended with 9 pts on 3-8 shooting.

UNC Role Players vs. Duke Role Players – Edge: Duke

Quite simply UNC can’t measure up to players like Seth Curry, Andre Dawkins, Tyler Thornton and Ryan Kelly.  This very well could be where the game is won or lost, Dawkins and Curry need to be hitting shots to take pressure off Smith and Singler.  Thornton will have to D-up Marshall to keep him from being the distributor he was against FSU Sunday.  Dexter Strickland is a nice player and will be the one I will keep a close eye on Wednesday, he can score and can do it in bunches when he gets going.  Outside of Barnes, Zeller and Henson, its Strickland that can carry UNC’s offense at periods of time for UNC much like Dawkins and Curry can for Duke.  The edge has to be Duke’s though because instead of having 1 player that can go for 20+ any night like Strickland they have 2.

Result: Duke

Seth Curry....welcome to Duke my friend.  UNC fans cringed when they heard that Curry was transferring to Duke and the reason they did so was because of what Curry can do and did tonight.  Curry took the game over for about 5 minutes while Duke was coming back and taking the lead in the second half.  There was nothing UNC could do.  As a Duke fan you have to hope this is a sign of things to come and that Curry will step in as the 3rd go to offensive option for Duke the remainder of the season.  Curry finished with 22 pts, while Dexter Strickland, Justin Knox, Justin Watts, Leslie McDonald and Reggie Bullock ended with 17 pts total combined.

Coach K vs Roy Williams- Edge: Duke

Coach K is on his game right now and after last years blow out win (http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=300650150) has to have a mental edge on Williams.  Overall these two are 7-7 against each other.  Roy seems to have this season turned around after last year’s disaster but UNC isn't that far removed from being smoked by a bad Georgia Tech team.  Another bad beating by Duke Wednesday could easily throw UNC’s season back in jeopardy.  UNC has a lot of very young players on the team that are already shaken from Drew leaving the team last Friday and a big loss to Duke isn’t what the doctor calls for when trying to heal young players wounds.

Result: Duke

Coach K said something at halftime.  I have to guess most of it would not be appropriate for this "family friendly" blog.  Whatever it was it worked.  Duke played no defense in the first half, Duke played great defense in the second half.  Duke couldn't get any offense going in the first half, Duke got whatever they wanted in the second half.  Duke got murdered on the boards in the first half, Duke murdered UNC on the boards in the second half.  Coach K proved once again he is the superior in game coach to the great recruiter Ol Roy.  Best Coach in American sports earned that title tonight with that halftime speech and second half.

Prediction: Duke 88 – UNC 74

The game will be close most of the way even maybe with UNC in the lead at halftime.  Duke at times has struggled to get off to good starts and this may happen again in a game with so much pressure.  In the second half Duke usually has found its offensive and defensive groove and will do that again here.   Duke will get it going and shots will be falling and with little over 7-8 minutes left will cap off a big run on UNC with a steal leading to a dunk.  Roy will call a time out as the Crazies go....well....crazy, as they do.  Duke will cruise to the finish from there and move on to Miami Sunday.

Actual:  Duke 79 - UNC 73

The game wasn't close in the first half, as predicted Duke came out real slow.  Much slower than I anticipated, but it was slow.  Also as predicted Duke came out in the second half and found its offensive and defensive groove.  Instead of a big steal and dunk being the play to cap a big run for Duke it was a Nolan Smith "and one" off a steal that capped the run with around 8 minutes left.  As predicted the Crazies went crazy, Ol Roy called time outs (almost passed out), the youngsters for UNC folded and Duke didn't exactly cruise to the win but weren't really threatened the rest of the way.

Next Up: @ Miami, Sunday 5:45pm

Duke needs to worry about a let down after this emotional win.  Duke has struggled on the road and Miami will be hungry.  Duke needs to come out better than they did tonight and put the struggling Canes away early.

Duke vs UNC: The Rivalry. The Prediction. Vol. 1

The rivalry.  As Duke fans we all know about it, we all have memories of past battles both good and bad.  Stackhouse’s sick under the hoop dunk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vv2b6zXBJiE).  Capel’s buzzer beater to force OT (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oAZvnJ_sngI).  Redick lighting up UNC for 35 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iPAmUCfB5A).  Hansbrough dominating Duke in his four years then Gerald Henderson dominating Hansbroughs nose with his unintentional elbow, though as a Duke fan I like to think it was intentional (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGHaLUgrzi4).  It is the rivalry that all college basketball fans can tune into and get excited about, and the first chapter of this years rivalry begins Wednesday, 8 pm, Cameron Indoor Stadium.  Let’s play!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JnnXvvL-DYk&feature=related

Match-ups to watch:

Nolan Smith vs. Kendall Marshall – Edge: Duke

Kendall Marshall is coming off his career game, 9 pts and 16 assists, taking over for Larry Drew II who left UNC.  The Freshman looks like the future PG for Roy’s Boys, but the future will need to be now if he is to keep up with the POY candidate Smith.  Nolan is on fire and will have the edge on Marshall just as he has the edge on all guards outside of maybe some dude named “Jimmer”. 

Tyler Zeller/John Henson vs. Plumlees/Ryan Kelly- Edge: Draw

Both teams have big men with NBA hype, Zeller and Henson for UNC and Mason Plumlee for Duke.   You have to give Duke the slight edge on big men depth but then for overall offensive talent you have to give the edge to Tyler Zeller for UNC.  In the end I think it is a draw, but if Duke can get either or both of UNC’s big men in foul trouble the edge will swing big time to Duke.  Not because Duke will then pound inside to its big men, but because offensively Henson and Zeller mean a lot for UNC and without them on the court Duke can really focus on the perimeter players for UNC.

Kyle Singler vs. Harrison Barnes- Edge: Duke

Again we have a Duke Senior vs. a UNC Freshman, and again the experience will reign supreme.  Barnes may end up being a better pro either next year or later but right now Singler is by far the superior college player even with Barnes playing his best ball of the year right now.  It will be very interesting to see how Barnes reacts to the pressure of the rivalry and the Cameron Crazies.  Barnes had a ton of pressure on him early on this year and folded, he is now playing his best ball because UNC has faded from everyone’s focus and Barnes' hype has totally died due to his lackluster performance.  Barnes will be the main focus for the Cameron Crazies and he has to respond well, like Hansbrough used to, in order for UNC to have a chance.

UNC Role Players vs. Duke Role Players – Edge: Duke

Quite simply UNC can’t measure up to players like Seth Curry, Andre Dawkins, Tyler Thornton and Ryan Kelly.  This very well could be where the game is won or lost, Dawkins and Curry need to be hitting shots to take pressure off Smith and Singler.  Thornton will have to D-up Marshall to keep him from being the distributor he was against FSU Sunday.  Dexter Strickland is a nice player and will be the one I will keep a close eye on Wednesday, he can score and can do it in bunches when he gets going.  Outside of Barnes, Zeller and Henson, its Strickland that can carry UNC’s offense at periods of time for UNC much like Dawkins and Curry can for Duke.  The edge has to be Duke’s though because instead of having 1 player that can go for 20+ any night like Strickland they have 2.

Coach K vs Roy Williams- Edge: Duke

Coach K is on his game right now and after last years blow out win (http://espn.go.com/ncb/recap?gameId=300650150) has to have a mental edge on Williams.  Overall these two are 7-7 against each other.  Roy seems to have this season turned around after last year’s disaster but UNC isn't that far removed from being smoked by a bad Georgia Tech team.  Another bad beating by Duke Wednesday could easily throw UNC’s season back in jeopardy.  UNC has a lot of very young players on the team that are already shaken from Drew leaving the team last Friday and a big loss to Duke isn’t what the doctor calls for when trying to heal young players wounds.

Prediction: Duke 88 – UNC 74

-          The game will be close most of the way even maybe with UNC in the lead at halftime.  Duke at times has struggled to get off to good starts and this may happen again in a game with so much pressure.  In the second half Duke usually has found its offensive and defensive groove and will do that again here.   Duke will get it going and shots will be falling and with little over 7-8 minutes left will cap off a big run on UNC with a steal leading to a dunk.  Roy will call a time out as the Crazies go....well....crazy, as they do.  Duke will cruise to the finish from there and move on to Miami Sunday.

Duke 76 - N(o)C(ontest) State 52

A wolf pack...a group of wolves that live and work together in order to survive.  The Wolfpack from NC State tonight though looked like they had never met each other before and were definitely not surviving against Duke.  6 minutes into the game Duke was only leading 11-8, Duke then went on a 20-2 run over the next 5 minutes and the game was really over.  If you had any question whether the game was over or not, all you had to do was look at the leading scorer for the Wolfpack Tracy Smith's face.  He was down and dejected most of the night and showed zip zero leadership by sitting on the bench shaking his head and smiling a dissapointed smile at his teams pitiful performance.

Mr. Duke prediction: Sidney Lowe will be fired at the end of this year.  He has more talent than he has ever had at NC State in his tenure and they are no better than they have been.  In this game tonight Duke embarrassed them.  It wasn't the score that was as embarrassing as was the effort on so many plays.  Long rebounds Duke ran hard after, while NC State jogged.  Loose ball rebounds Duke jumped on the ground, NC State bent at the waist. 

The most telling moment was on a ball tipped in to the back court a NC State player who I can't name right now jogged after the ball.  Josh Hairston for Duke started probably 20 feet behind the State player and sprinted hard and dove on the ground sliding for a good 10 feet and tipping the ball out of the State player's hands and out of bounds.  It was NC State's ball as it was off Hairston, and the game was decided without this play playing any role in that decision.  There was 1-2 minutes left and Duke was up 25 but the player who was still diving, showing passion, and wanting it more was Hairston for Duke. 

NC State has consistently started games slow this year, they lack passion, they lack inspiration....they lack  coaching.  That's what was embarrassing for NC State tonight, their program was outclassed top to bottom by Duke.  Sidney have fun assistant coaching in the NBA next year.

As for Duke, another strong game out of Mason Plumlee today, 16 pts 12 rbs. This is exciting and I am just hoping he continues his confident play the rest of the year and Duke will have an inside presence that it needs badly. 

Another bright spot in this game was Duke's lack of three point shooting in a win.  Duke only shot 14 total threes in this game and they made 7 of them.  It seemed K had stressed that Duke attack the basket and go inside some to Mason as well.  It was a good plan and there were much more high percentage shots taken early on in this game as Duke stretched out a nice lead. 

Moving forward Duke needs to remember they can score inside the three point line and they can do it when they are trailing in a game as well.  Duke goes to the three point shot when they trail early in games, like in both losses this year.  No need to panic when you trail early, continue running the offense and continue attacking the rim like this game and Duke can get back into games they trail without bombing away from three only.

Moving forward a big game to watch tomorrow is the UNC vs Florida State game.  It will be very interesting to see how UNC reacts to Larry Drew II leaving the team earlier this week.  Drew has been a lightning rod for criticism since being at UNC and taken most of the blame when UNC has struggled.  He lost his starting job recently and its looking like he didn't take that too well, even though coming off the bench he and UNC had played well. 

Just when it looked like UNC had recovered from both last years disappointment and this year's, up until a couple weeks ago, underachieving start, Drew leaves.  How Roy helps to get the Tar Heels mentally back into this season without Drew may decide whether or not Duke will have a challenger for the ACC title this year.

Next up for Duke is that UNC team.  If UNC beats FSU tomorrow we will know that UNC is back and Duke will have a serious game on its hands Wednesday.  If UNC falls to beat FSU we will know that UNC is mediocre and although they may give Duke a test Wednesday because in this rivalry the records go out the door, they will not be strong enough down the stretch to keep up with Duke record wise.  Either way its Duke - UNC week, and it doesn't get any better than that.  Bring on Roy's Boys.

The Cast is Off Kyrie Irving's Toe!

Just a quick update on Kyrie Irving's Toe.

Kyrie had the cast removed from his toe and was in a walking boot on the bench for Duke's win against NC State Saturday.  The walking boot allows Irving's toe to receive some pressure and have to do some work while walking but still being protected.  How the right big toe responds to its new found freedom and continues to recover will answer the question of whether or not he contributes to Duke's title run this March.

As of right now though Duke officials are still not putting a timetable on Irving's return.

St John's Game? What St John's game?

This post is two days late, but the nice part of writing your own sports blog is that you are free of deadlines.  Now there is a deadline for reader interest and I maybe cutting it pretty close there. But I am going to still give my opinions on the Wednesday match up of Duke @ Maryland.

Duke 80 - Maryland 62:
Isn't it amazing how good Duke looks when they shoot the three well?  All the problems of the St John's game just melted away as the net burned from Duke's three balls.  Duke ended the game 10-23 43% from behind the arc against Maryland.  What a refreshing change from the 5-26 19% shooting Duke had Sunday against St John's.  If Duke is shooting the three pointer well they are almost unbeatable by any team in CBB this year, that is already known.  What needs to be established is if Duke can win games against good teams without hot shooting from three?  Right now I say "no", Duke still needs to work on other parts of their game and they did take a step today against Maryland, 23 three point attempts is relatively low for Duke this year.

I think we've learned if Mason Plumlee is aggressive and gets on the board early offensively he is going to play well.  Mason scored Duke's first points of the night and had 6 of Duke's first 11 pts.  When I watch Mason in games like this, the jittery and confidence lacking Mason disappears and a confident, almost arrogant Mason comes out.  Thats the Mason I like, the one who gets in scraps with the other team at times, has a sly smile after skying in for a dunk...really just being the type of player Duke haters hate more than anything.  I love those guys, an engaged and arrogant Mason is that guy.  Zero confidence and over thinking Mason isn't.  He had 2 nice drives with thunderous dunks in this game, unfortunately one didn't count as the shot clock had run out but it sent a message early in the first half that he was there to play Wednesday night.  Mason ended the game with a solid double-double of 12 pts 11 rbs (4 off rbs).  Mason has recorded 7 double digit rebound games in 8 ACC games this season (BRIAN ZOUBEK ANYONE?........anyone?).

Defensively Duke's issues from Sunday's loss carried over I think to this game.  Duke still struggled to stop dribble penetration to the paint and that again led to lots of Maryland lay ups and dunks.  Duke switched to a 2-3 zone for some of the first half to slow it down and I liked the move especially against a team that struggles from 3 like Maryland.  Coach K learned the 2-3 from Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim during K's Team USA summers with Boeheim as his assistant.  I think K may need to continue to use the 2-3 zone going forward in games in which Duke is struggling to stop the dribble penetration in the man to man defense.

This was a nice bounce back game in which Duke got good contributions from everyone.  Winning @ Maryland feels better for me as a Duke fan than winning @ UNC.  That is just my personal opinion but the hate and vitriol that Maryland's fans show for Duke makes my blood boil.   There is nothing better than shutting them up.  Though even that is tough, Duke was up by 10-15 pts most a game and the goofy Terp fans were cheering as if THEY were up 10-15 on Duke.  These delusional turtles will have to wait until at the earliest the ACC tournament to have a shot at Duke again. What is more likely is that they will be seeing Mr. Rivers running circles around them next year when they get a shot to correct their recent failures against Duke.  Duke has won 8 of the last 9 against Maryland. 

"Sweat Gary....Sweat!"