There has been a theme for Duke throughout the tournament – balance and defense.
As Captain Wendell Moore said during in the regular season, “That’s how we like it…when you don’t know who scored.”
Duke has weapons. At any given moment five players can create their own shot. Six players scored over nine points in the Blue Devils’ 78-69 win over Arkansas to advance to the Final Four.
Mark Williams has been an enforcer in the paint – altering and deflecting shots. Williams finished the Elite Eight win with 12 points, 12 rebounds and 3 blocks. Notably, Williams has the highest field goal percentage by a Blue Devil in a single NCAA tournament at .806%. Previously Christian Laettner owned the landmark with .788 according to Duke Men’s basketball stats.
Lucky 13
With the 78-69 win over Arkansas, Mike Krzyzewski now has passed the late John Wooden for most Final Four appearances with 13.
Momentum Changer
Late in the second half Arkansas cut Duke’s 12 point halftime lead to 5. Coach K called a crucial timeout instructing Duke to go back zone. The move not only changed pace, but kept the Razorbacks from driving into the lane where the majority of their points came from. Duke went on a 10-0 run, which was the deciding factor in San Francisco.
West Region All-Tournament Team
Three Blue Devils made All-West Tournament team, including Jeremy Roach, Mark Williams and Paolo Banchero. Banchero also earned outstanding player honors, finishing the contest with 16 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, one steal and one block.
Making the Final Four was just ONE of the Blue Devils’ goals, but job isn’t done there.
“For us that’s our second banner we’ve hung,” Wendell Moore said after the win over Arkansas. “The thing is, we’re not happy about it. For us the job is not finished. We want to hang one more banner. We’re going take this five-hour trip back to Durham and going to be happy about it, but once we get in to practice tomorrow or the day after, it’s time to move on.”