Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither will this 2022-23 Duke Blue Devils. Everything will take time. Coach Jon Scheyer picked up his first conference win against Boston College tis past weekend in a 75-59 home stand.
What has changed since Portland?
Obviously, getting healthy with adequate repetition, step up in competition and conference play are all contributing factors to being battle tested. Duke is getting valuable playing time from players such as Ryan Young and Jaylen Blakes. Derek Lively is allowing the game to come to him, with his defense and floor running ability affording him a chance to be productive on the offensive end.
Against Boston College Dariq Whitehead showed flashes of what is to come in Durham. Dariq’s ability to drive into the lane and finish above the rim is on the horizon. At this point, it’s more so about confidence and opportunity for Whitehead. After enduring significant lower body injuries, a player is capable of second guessing his talents and may ease away from playing naturally. This means overusing another aspect of your skillset – shying away from contact. As Jon Scheyer stated after his first conference win as Duke’s head coach, the loose ball play made by Whitehead in the win was arguably the most impactful play of the ball game. For that moment, Dariq didn’t think about injuring himself and just played ball.
Veteran Jeremy Roach didn’t score his first basket in Saturday’s win until a little over two minutes in the first half, which helped Duke maintain a double digit halftime lead. Roach’s impact on the game is more than just scoring.
The Blue Devils are starting to gel more and get more official team practices with full 5-on-5 scrimmages. The more run and coaching these players get, the more confidence is instilled. This team won’t be eye candy. Doing the dirty work, as Ryan Young often states, is overlooked, but does give you wins in building for March. It’s about the longevity for Duke this season.
Up Next
Duke moved up two spots to number 15 in this week’s AP Polls. Up next is matchup at Madison Square Garden Tuesday night versus the Iowa Hawkeyes.
Game Notes:
- The No. 15 Blue Devils are 3-0 in the Jimmy V Classic — beating Kentucky in 1998 and 2001 and Florida in 2016. Duke has won five straight and six of its last seven at MSG where it owns a 39-18 (.684) record all-time in the World’s Most Famous Arena.
- The all-time series vs. Iowa favors Duke, 7-1, but the teams have not met since the 2001 ACC/Big Ten Challenge in Chicago — an 80-62 Blue Devil victory.
- Duke’s opponents to date own a combined record of 50-23 (.685) — the fourth toughest by a power conference team to date. The Blue Devils have faced three AP Top 25 teams in the regular season and battled No. 1 Houston in a closed scrimmage on the road in October.
- With an emphasis on defense and rebounding under first-year head coach Jon Scheyer, Duke is leading the ACC in both rebound margin (+9.9) and scoring defense (58.7).
- Kyle Filipowski — the first player all-time to be named ACC Rookie of the Week in each of a season’s first four weeks, has scored in double figures in all 10 games. His 15.2 points and 9.3 rebounds lead the team. The versatile 7-footer leads Duke in field goals, rebounds and steals.
- The balanced Blue Devils saw eight different players average at least 8.0 points and 2.0 rebounds over two wins last week, led by Filipowski’s 12.5 and Tyrese Proctor’s 10.5
