Tag: Tyrese Proctor

Three keys to a Duke win versus Houston in the Sweet 16

Duke’s methodical offense and ability to handle Houston’s air-tight ball-trapping defense defense is a major key to winning this game.

The time continues to dwindle as we get closer and closer to Duke tipping off in Dallas to take on the Houston Cougars for the right to move on to the Elite Eight.

Duke’s journey this year has been up and down, but after an unfortunate blip of back-to-back losses right before the NCAA Tournament started, the momentum did not seem to favor the Blue Devils.

Yet, here we are after Duke dominated the tournament’s first two games and cruised to Dallas. Things won’t be nearly as easy on Friday night against Houston. The Cougars are tough, physical, and tested. Two-way guard Jamal Shead, Houston’s star player, will be playing in his 15th NCAA Tournament game on Friday evening. Kelvin Sampson has had a terrific tenure coaching this program, and he brings years of NCAA Tournament experience.

Duke will have its hands full. However, Houston can be beat. With that said, here are three keys to a Duke win.

Quick decisions are essential.

Houston runs a highly effective defense predicated on trapping the ball in the pick-and-roll. It blitzes ball-handlers and forces them to make lightning-quick decisions and passes that many teams at the college level can’t make or are too slow to make, thus leading to turnovers and rushed offensive sets.

When you look at the Cougars’ defense, they are No. 2 in effective field goal percentage (44%), block rate (16.1%), and steal rate (15.5%). They are also within the top five in turnover percentage (24.7%) and 2-point defense (43.4 %) and they hold teams under 30 percent from three.

In other words, they are stout defensively. However, opponents have a shot if they can swing the ball and break the trap down off the dribble. Jeremy Roach has dominated the ball in the tournament thus far, sliding into a more conventional PG role like he did in the last few NCAA Tournaments. He must be decisive, make the right reads, and get the ball out so Duke can swing it, attack open gaps, or use numbers to their advantage when applicable.

If the ball sticks, Duke will be in trouble, generating offense. Luckily, Duke has found its rhythm in sharing the ball in the tournament. 22 assists on 33 made field goals against James Madison in the second round certainly helps. They may not make nearly as many baskets, but a similar ratio would likely mean they’ve been able to break down Houston’s defense.

Shoot, shoot, shoot

There are going to be plenty of 3-point opportunities available come Friday night. Duke needs to be ready to hit them. They shot the cover off the ball against JMU in their last game. Jared McCain had eight threes. It’s unlikely Houston will allow the number of open looks that JMU did, but for the ones they do, Duke has to cash in on them.

Per Synergy Sports, Houston is in the 98th percentile in spot-up points allowed per possession at an incredibly high rate (27% of defensive possessions.) In other words, McCain and Tyrese Proctor have to have good days like they did Sunday shooting the ball. The issue is that Houston plays such a hellacious defense that they will contest everything. Duke needs an inspired shooting performance like they had in the second round, or at least 40% in comparison to the 50% they were at against the Dukes.

Toughness wins

You would be hard-pressed to find a tougher team than the Houston Cougars. They play hard physically; if you are mentally and physically unprepared, things can spiral quickly. Duke’s knock this year is that they are soft. That has been the narrative all season long. Both games against UNC showcased that, as did their early loss to Arkansas.

Duke will be run out of the gym if it is not mentally and physically ready to battle this Houston team. In the aftermath of the JMU game, players and coaches talked about how the message preached was to throw the first punch. Come out and attack them. Set the tone on both court ends and let them know you’re here. That same message applies here.

Houston may not be nearly as dynamic offensively as the Tar Heels, but they are even better defensively, and both games against North Carolina did no favors for Duke. Duke is 18th in effective field-goal percentage. They can score with the best of them, but this is different. Duke hasn’t beaten a higher-ranked seed in 30 years. To win this game, they must showcase what they have been missing all year.

Duke buries James Madison behind Jared McCain’s record-breaking day

Jared McCain’s 30-point night included a Duke freshman NCAA Tournament record eight threes as the Blue Devils blew out James Madison.

Duke fans got a taste for how Sunday afternoon would go from the opening tip.

The Blue Devils wrestled away the opening tip and dribbled down the court for the opening possession. Freshman Jared McCain got his hands on the ball from beyond the arc, just outside the elbow, and pulled.

The ball found the net so smoothly, the nylon barely moved.

The Blue Devils looked like the team people have insisted could be a Final Four threat on Sunday, beating James Madison 93-56 to advance to the Sweet 16.

The Blue Devils’ guards had really struggled from long range over the last two games. McCain, Proctor, and Jeremy Roach shot a combined 29% from 3-point range over the last two games despite a variety of open looks.

The dam broke in a big way against James Madison.

The Blue Devils made seven of their first 12 triples against the Dukes, including each of McCain’s first five attempts. Before Sunday’s second-round game, no Duke freshman had ever made more than five 3-pointers in a March Madness game. McCain made his sixth in the first half.

McCain finished the first half with a team-high 22 points in the opening 20 minutes, making six of his eight 3-point attempts. James Madison allowed the entire Wisconsin team to score 20 points in the first half on Friday.

Part of Duke’s offensive dominance came from some exceptional work on the glass. 10 of Duke’s first 18 points came on second-chance attempts after offensive rebounds. The Blue Devils finished the game with five more rebounds and 13 more attempts than James Madison.

The James Madison offense, which scored 72 points against the Badgers in the opening round, couldn’t get off the ground either. The Dukes started the game 6/16 from the floor and missed each of their first five 3-point attempts, and James Madison made just five of their first 11 free throws.

The end result of the one-sided onslaught was a 36-17 lead after 15 minutes, and Duke rolled to a 47-25 advantage at the break.

McCain didn’t slow down in the second half, either, burying his seventh 3-pointer of the game within one minute of play resuming. The young star finished with 30 points on 10/15 shooting, making eight of his 11 3-point attempts.

Proctor got his share of work from behind the line, too. He inbounded a ball to Kyle Filipowski and snuck behind him to the baseline for one 3-pointer, and he hit another triple from the corner pocket a few minutes later.

He couldn’t match McCain’s electricity, but the sophomore Australian still contributed 18 points and four 3-pointers in his own effort.

It’s a side effect I think every Blue Devils fan would have signed up for at the start of the game, but the end result was a slow march to the buzzer over the final 15 minutes. The pace did pick up for this Mark Mitchell lob to Sean Stewart, however.

Duke coasted the rest of the way for the 38-point victory, booking its first ticket to the Sweet 16 since 2022.

Mark Mitchell, Duke grind out 64-47 win over Vermont to advance to Round of 32

Duke grinds out 64-47 win over Vemront to move on to the next round of the NCAA Tournament.

It was not pretty, but it was more than adequate.

Duke’s defense and a balanced scoring effort featuring four players in double figures were enough for the Blue Devils to beat Vermont 64-47 on Friday evening and advance to the round of 32.

Duke dropped its last two games leading up to the NCAA Tournament as they slid from fighting for a chance at a 2-seed to landing on the 4-seed line come Selection Sunday. The reasoning had everything to do with Duke’s play against its in-state rivals, UNC and NC State, in its final two games. The Blue Devils didn’t look like themselves, and it showed on the court. As they prepared for their first-round matchup against a tough Vermont team, Duke needed a level of toughness they hadn’t shown in weeks.

On Friday night, they showcased that as they held America East Conference champions to just 47 total points, including 18 in the second half.

The offense was hardly fluid, but early on, sophomore Mark Mitchell terrorized Vermont in ball screens as he repeatedly rolled to the basket, finishing with 11 first-half points and four dunks. Vermont opted to double Kyle Filipowski on every post touch. While the 7-footer finished with just one shot attempt from the field, he impacted the game in every other category, collecting 12 rebounds, four assists, two steals, and three blocks.

Vermont made a late push at the end of the first half to go into the break with Duke leading 34-29.

The two teams struggled to put the ball in the basket in the first eight minutes of the second half, and Duke scored on just one of their first five possessions.

Vermont cut the Blue Devils’ lead to 36-34, possessing the ball with a chance to tie or even take the lead, only to see Nick Fiorillo miss a 3-pointer that would have put the Catamounts out in front.

McCain answered with a 3-pointer for Duke, and when Proctor added a 3-pointer with 14:46 to play, Duke led 42-35.

For the remainder of the second half, Duke kept Vermont at arm’s length thanks to defense and inspired play from senior captain Jeremy Roach, who added 10 of his 14 points in the final ten minutes of the second half.

Jared McCain provided 15 points on 4/9 shooting, while Tyrese Proctor added 13 points. Shamir Bogues and Aaron Deloney led the way for Vermont with 18 and 14 points, respectively.

Duke needed to get back in transition, and they did that. They were also +12 in rebounding, holding Vermont to one shot on over half of their possessions.

With Duke’s win, they move on to Sunday’s second-round matchups, where they will face the winner of James Madison and Wisconsin.

Caleb Foster to miss NCAA Tournament, Jon Scheyer confirms

Caleb Foster will miss the remainder of the season with a stress fracture injury, Jon Scheyer confirms.

Duke freshman guard Caleb Foster will miss the remainder of the season with a stress fracture in his ankle, head coach Jon Scheyer announced on Thursday.

Foster had not played since he suffered the injury against Wake Forest on Feb. 24, missing the rest of the regular season. After he became a pivotal part of the Blue Devils’ rotation late in the season, starting 15 games and averaging 25.4 minutes per game, he will now be out for Duke’s NCAA Tournament run.

The freshman guard averaged 7.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game before he got hurt. He was also efficient from beyond the arc, shooting 40.6% from deep, the second-best mark on the team in the regular season.

Sophomore guard Tyrese Proctor returned to the starting lineup in place of the injured Foster. The Australian will likely continue to be the starter during Duke’s NCAA Tournament run.

Duke’s NCAA Tournament run begins against No. 13 Vermont on Friday evening with tipoff set for 7:10 p.m. ET.

Starting fast and getting back on defense in transition key to a Duke win vs. Vermont

Three keys to a Duke win over Vermont.

Duke has departed Durham and arrived in Brooklyn as it prepares for its first-round NCAA Tournament game against the Vermont Catamounts.

Duke’s season has been an up-and-down affair, but the Blue Devils can change the entire narrative in six games. They’ll do so without a piece of their depth in freshman guard Caleb Foster, but make no mistake: the Blue Devils have plenty of offensive firepower to make a run in this tournament.

Their opponents are no strangers to the NCAA Tournament. The Catamounts will not be intimidated, considering this will be their third straight NCAA Tournament appearance out of the America East conference.

With tournament experience under their belt, expect the Catamounts and coach John Becker to fight.

With that said, Duke has the talent and size advantage, and barring a nightmarish day, they should advance. However, there are a few keys we wanted to lock in on that should help the Blue Devils push through to the round of 32 and get one win closer to a Sweet 16 appearance.

Dominate the Glass

If it sounds simple, it’s because it is. Duke has no reason not to dominate the glass in this contest. Vermont’s leading rebounder is a 6-foot-4 guard named Shamir Bogues. The Blue Devils have a starting point guard who is 6-foot-5. They start the 6-foot-9 Mark Mitchell, and Kyle Filipowski is a full 7-foot. There’s no reason that Duke should not be +12 or more in rebounding by the end of this game, especially with Sean Stewart and Ryan Young coming off the bench. Eliminating second-chance points is an easy way to shut off the offense for a team that doesn’t need extra opportunities. If Vermont tosses a shot up, that should be their only shot of the possession.

Start Fast

This may be the most essential key to this game. This is the NCAA Tournament, and anything can happen if you play with your food. Duke needs to set the tone early. Race out to an early lead by the under-16 media timeout, or the under-12 at the latest, and keep the foot on the gas. If Vermont is within three possessions by halftime, things could get dicey in that Duke locker room. The doubt would settle in on one side while belief would rise in Vermont’s, and after that, all bets are off. Duke needs a fast start like they had last year against Oral Roberts.

Get back on defense

Jordan Mann, a former collegiate basketball player who breaks down Duke games and their opponents, laid out an interesting stat. Vermont is in the 99th percentile across Division I basketball in points per possession via transition offense.

They shoot 71% from inside the 3-point line in transition and 40% behind it.

Make or miss, Duke needs to get back and set its defense up. While many talk about Duke’s offensive efficiency, they remain in the top 25 defense in adjusted efficiency per KenPom, meaning Duke can play some defense when they are willing and engaged. If they play defense that way come Friday, they will be fine.

Duke is well-positioned to win this game. It ultimately will come down to how well Duke starts this game and if Jon Scheyer’s team can impose its will early and often. Duke should see itself coasting into Sunday with a trip to the Sweet 16 if they can do that.

Does Duke have the consistency to go deep into the NCAA Tournament?

Duke assuredly has the ceiling to reach the Final Four. Can they put together four good games to get there, though?

Duke has the talent to make the Final Four. In fact, the Blue Devils have a team that could make noise when it gets there.

With two All-ACC team members and one of the best freshmen in the country, as well as the emergence of sophomore Mark Mitchell as a reliable scoring option, there aren’t many teams with Duke’s top-five talent.

The Blue Devils need to get to the Final Four for that to matter, however. That requires them to win four straight games, and with each passing game in spring, that looks less and less likely.

After Thursday’s loss to NC State in the ACC Tournament, Duke has played 12 games since the beginning of February. The Blue Devils have shot below 32% from behind the 3-point line in six of those games. They’ve turned the ball over at least 10 times in six of those games. They’ve shot 70% or worse from the free-throw line in six of those games.

Even their esteemed five starters can’t all get on the same page. Against North Carolina in Chapel Hill in February, sophomore Tyrese Proctor went 1/6 from the floor and had more personal fouls than points. In the next game against Notre Dame, senior captain Jeremy Roach went 3/10 from the floor to score seven points and the team shot 22.2% from long range.

Freshman Jared McCain went 1/8 from three in the following game against Boston College. Then Proctor went 0/5 at home against Wake Forest, and then Mitchell, Filipowski, and Caleb Foster combined to shoot 8/21 from the floor against Florida State, and you get the idea.

The issues all culminated against the Wolfpack when Proctor, McCain, and Roach teamed to shoot 7/28 from the floor and 3/14 from beyond the 3-point line. With Foster battling an ankle injury and unlikely to come back anytime soon, Duke doesn’t have the backcourt depth to spell more than one of them at a time.

The end result? The trio combined for 23 points on 28 shots and Duke lost by five.

The Blue Devils, by every advanced metric, have been one of the best offenses in the country all season. As a team, they average 79.8 points per game, and KenPom grades them as the eighth-best offense in the country in adjusted points per possession.

However, it’s felt like a sure thing that at least one member of the team won’t show up any given night. When the lights get brighter and every team ahead of them is a top-30 team in the country, Duke can’t afford a random member of its starting five to shoot 20% from the floor, especially with their limited depth.

Can they rely on all five members to show up night-in and night-out?

Three keys to a Duke victory against UNC

Taking a look at three keys to a Duke win vs UNC on Saturday as the Blue Devils close out the regular season.

It is time for the round two.

Tobacco Road’s biggest titans are set to square off one final time for the regular season on Saturday evening. The stakes will be a bit higher than they were when the two hit the hardwood the first time in February. An outright ACC title is on the line for UNC while a share of the ACC title is still up for grabs for Duke.

That doesn’t even include the possible implications for NCAA Tournament seeding either. Both schools are still firmly in the mix for a No. 2 seed at this juncture, and a massive Quad 1 win like this would only boost that case.

All those storylines aside, it’s Duke and North Carolina. The bragging rights matter and Duke, specifically, has revenge on their mind.

The loss in Chapel Hill in February felt like a lifetime ago. Duke played passively, didn’t play a crisp game (nine of their eleven turnovers were live ball), and defensively, they had some major hiccups.

Credit is due to the Tar Heels. They played great. But Duke didn’t put forth their best effort.

Saturday gives the Blue Devils one final chance to show how much of a force they’ve become. There is no mistaking them now. They’ve got a bench unit that’s starting to flourish despite being without Caleb Foster at least through the ACC Tournament, per head coach Jon Scheyer. And Tyrese Proctor has found his swagger again.

These all bring us to our three keys for the game on Saturday.

Aussie, Aussie, Aussie

Duke’s chances to truly be Final Four contenders rest on the shoulders of their sophomore Australian point guard, Tyrese Proctor. Proctor can control and dictate a game on both ends. In the first UNC matchup, he played 26 minutes and scored two points on 1/6 shooting. It felt as if he wasn’t even out there at points. He wasn’t aggressive, and he seemed reluctant to get downhill.

In the last three games, he’s found himself. He kept Duke afloat early in Raleigh despite NC State connecting on the first punch. His 11 first-half points, spearheaded by three massive three-pointers, kept Duke from spiraling. He can shoot, he can pass and he can defend. All three of those things Duke will need against UNC.

Look for Proctor to be a factor early.

The bench needs to show up

Ryan Young, Sean Stewart, and TJ Power look solidified as Duke’s bench right now. Caleb Foster joins that when, or if, he gets back, and Duke officially is nine deep.

For right now, they are eight deep, and that will have to be enough. Power and Stewart have started to become consistent players off the bench in the last three games. Stewart had his best game as a collegiate player against NC State. He played 26 minutes and had 12 points, five rebounds (four offensive), three blocks, two assists, and two steals. It was incredible. If Stewart provides that kind of impact, Ryan Young hits the glass, and TJ Power can hit one or two open threes, Duke will be in a much better position to win.

Defending Bacot

RJ Davis is likely going to win ACC Player of the Year. And rightfully so. He’s had a phenomenal season. Davis can get his season average in points. Stopping fellow senior Armando Bacot is the real challenge for Duke. They have bodies to throw at him, but in an attempt to limit foul trouble for Flip, they tried to double Bacot last game and it helped result in open threes or driving lanes for others.

How Jon Scheyer and this coaching staff choose to play Bacot matters. Do they double him? If they do, do they leave Elliot Cadeau, a 21% 3-point shooter, open and force him to shoot the ball? Or do they play Bacot straight up and leave Flip to defend him one-on-one? Either way, one wrong decision would be to leave Harrison Ingram open. He shot 5/9 from distance in game one. 

That’s the game within the game and one matchup that will likely decide the winner. 

Senior night for captain Jeremy Roach, Ryan Young, and Spencer Hubbard. A share of the ACC title is on the line for Duke. The number one seed in the ACC Tournament is still up for grabs. All the storylines are there. Duke just needs to play a bit cleaner than they did in Chapel Hill and they’ll have a chance to wrap up a very good regular season.

The man in the mirror is the final hurdle Duke must clear as they prepare for rematch with UNC

The Duke Blue Devils have to win against themselves in order to win against UNC.

Sir Edmund Hillary said it best: “It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves.”

It feels like the perfect quote to summarise the Duke basketball experience this year and focus on what’s ahead of the team as they prepare to try and get revenge for an early February loss to their rivals, UNC. The Blue Devils have been fighting the team in the mirror all season. It’s time they conquer that.

If they can, the Blue Devils will head to Washington, D.C., for the ACC Tournament, with their share of the 2023-2024 ACC regular season title; if the Tar Heels win, they are the outright title winners. Losing that also likely eliminates Duke from having any shot at a 2-seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

For Duke, it’s simple: UNC is the best opponent (not named Arizona or Baylor) on their schedule. They beat Baylor in Madison Square Garden, which stands out as a great Quad 1 win, but the Blue Devils know they need more. Hubert Davis’ team is undoubtedly in the Final Four-capable tier of teams, so a win against North Carolina would be the perfect confirmation that this Duke team has grown and evolved and is playing its best basketball.

It’s easier said than done, as UNC will have everything to play for on top of the sheer fact that this is a rivalry, and it could be Armando Bacot and RJ Davis’ last game against Duke ever. They’ve ruined big nights in Cameron Indoor Stadium before.

Duke played a rough basketball game against UNC in the first round in Chapel Hill. They were not strong on the court, and their defensive plan wasn’t strong. Ultimately, the Heels just played better.

Duke shot 26.3% from three, compared to almost 38% from UNC. Harrison Ingram was the thorn in Duke’s side from the outside, going 5/9 from deep. Duke also had 11 turnovers, which led to 19 UNC points. Eight of those turnovers were live-ball, which makes it even harder to get back on defense against a transition offense-focused team like UNC.

Kyle Filipowski struggled with foul trouble, and when his team needed him to contain Armando Bacot without a double team, he couldn’t. Tyrese Proctor had one of his worst games, registering just two points and one assist on 1/6 shooting in 26 minutes.

So, what has to change this time around? Duke has to put together a complete performance as they have in games on the road at Miami, NC State, Virginia Tech, or as they did recently at home versus Virginia. This team has shown that it can play a full 40 minutes on both ends of the court, and when they can, they will blow teams away, as eight of their conference wins have been by 15 points or more.

Duke is a deeper team now. The bench has lengthened a much-needed development due to limitations with guys like Jaylen Blakes and Ryan Young. They are decent role players but certainly guys with deficiencies. The answers were the 6-foot-9 five-star freshman Sean Stewart and the 6-foot-8 four-star small forward TJ Power.

Power’s shooting ability is among the best on a team of great shooters this season, but the lack of opportunities hasn’t allowed him to showcase that. Stewart is hyper-athletic and an incredible shot disruptor combined with pure energy and hustle, allowing him to provide the energy on 50/50 plays Duke needs.

Each player has played at least 10 minutes in the last three games. Stewart had a season-high 26 minutes of game action at NC State, where he had his proverbial breakout game, scoring 12 points, five rebounds, three blocks, two steals, and two assists. He was a menace on defense, and four rebounds came on the offensive glass, giving Duke extra possessions.

They must be factors in this rematch, and the rest of the team needs to be more assertive with the ball. If Duke hadn’t been forced into so many live-ball turnovers, they could’ve shaved off at least six points they allowed. Tyrese Proctor must play better, especially considering Caleb Foster will still be out. He’s had some encouraging performances since being inserted back into the starting lineup with Foster out, and Monday night in Raleigh showcased that.

Kyle Filipowski needs to be a factor for the entire 40 minutes. Jon Scheyer must find a better way to defend Bacot while not allowing RJ Davis to explode. Do not respect Elliot Cadeau’s shot. Make him shoot more jumpers than layups, and respect Ingram as a solid spot-up shooter.

It won’t be easy, but Duke can beat UNC. Aside from the implications mentioned above about the ACC title, this win is about Duke playing well enough to beat an elite opponent as it pursues a sixth NCAA title in two weeks.

They missed the mark early against Arizona and in Chapel Hill. In both games, Duke was the loser, but there was a clear sense that Duke didn’t play well enough to beat that caliber of team. Can they conquer themselves and raise their level of play to conquer their goals? We’ll find out on Saturday.

The five biggest takeaways from Duke’s 79-64 win over NC State

Duke weathered some rough opening minutes and an off shooting night to beat the Wolfpack by 15 on Monday. Here are our most important thoughts on the game.

The Wolfpack scored the first nine points of the game on Monday, but Duke battled back to still win by 15 points by the time the clock hit triple zeros.

The win, led by 21 points from senior Jeremy Roach, set up a dramatic showdown in Cameron this coming weekend. The Blue Devils host North Carolina in the regular-season finale on Saturday, and no matter what happens in UNC’s Tuesday game against Notre Dame, Duke can clinch at least a share of the ACC regular-season title with a rivalry win.

Before any members of Duke faithful get too far ahead of themselves, however, there is still a game to analyze. Here are our biggest takeaways from Monday’s 79-64 victory over NC State.

Duke Wire staff predictions for Monday’s game against NC State

Duke plays its last road game of the season against the Wolfpack on Monday. Check out our staff’s thoughts on how the game will go.

With the calendar officially turned to college basketball’s most important month, each and every game carries weight from here on out for Duke.

Even Monday’s road battle with NC State, despite it being a regular-season game against a team not projected to make the NCAA Tournament, can drastically alter the Blue Devils’ expectations.

A win keeps them within a game of the ACC lead at worst, giving them a chance for at least a share of the regular-season crown in the finale, and pushes them closer to a No. 2 seed in the March Madness. After a valiant 7-1 run to stay alive in the conference, however, a loss to the in-state rivals could take all of the air out of Duke’s balloon at a crucial time.

Here is what our staff thinks you can expect from the road battle.