Gary Hahn's Scouting Report: Duke
Wolfpack, Blue Devils clash Wednesday night.
Jan. 18, 2006
No. 14 NC STATE (14-2, 3-1) at No. 1 DUKE (16-0, 4-0)
DATE: Wednesday, January 18, 2006 @ Cameron Indoor Stadium, Durham, NC (9,314)
TIME: Tip-off: 7:00 p.m. EST
TELEVISION: ESPN
OPPONENT-- The Blue Devils are one of three remaining unbeaten teams in NCAA Division-1 (Florida & Pittsburgh) and are coming off a hard fought 87-77 win at Clemson last Saturday.
Duke let an 11-point lead slip to 76-71after Akin Akingbala's short jumper with 1:56 left, but J.J. Redick advanced the ball up the court and found a wide-open Sean Dockery for a layup and the Tigers could not get any closer.
Clemson (13-4, 2-2) came out fired up and Duke had a tough time for most of the afternoon guarding the Tigers dribble penetration. In fact, the Blue Devils even played some match-up zone defense to counter that strategy. Redick single-handedly kept Duke in the game in the first half with 17 points and the Devils led at the break 44-38.
Free throws were a major factor in the game as Duke sank 29-of-36 attempts while the Tigers could only manage 6-of-21 shooting. Clemson stayed in the game by holding a 19-9 edge in offensive rebounding and outscoring Duke 23-7 in second-chance points. However, Redick and Shelden Williams were too much for the Tigers to overcome.
Redick finished with 34 points, including 12 at the free throw line. Williams followed up a triple-double against Maryland (19 points, 11 rebounds & 10 blocks) with his eighth double-double of the season, recording 17 points and 11 boards against the Tigers. Vernon Hamilton led Clemson with a career-high 31 points.
So far, Duke has been able to work through the absence of DeMarcus Nelson. The 6-3 sophomore guard bruised a bone in his ankle against Maryland on January 11th--the same ankle he broke in November. Coach Mike Krzyzewski told reporters on Monday that Nelson status was doubtful for Wednesday's game with the Wolfpack.
Duke continues to win with great pressure defense and because Redick and Williams continue to play at an amazing high level of consistency on both ends of the floor while their teammates complement them.
Redick tops the ACC in scoring (26.4) and has averaged 29.9 points over his last 8 games. The 6-4 senior who was last season's Rupp National Player of the Year, averages nearly 36 minutes a game and is probably the best three-point shooter in the country. Redick leads the ACC in 3-point field goals per game (3.69) and his .424 shooting mark from beyond the arc is third-best in the league. He's also a career 92 percent free throw shooter.
In 7 career games against NC State, Redick has averaged 22.1 points (155), including a 35-point explosion against the Wolfpack in the 2005 ACC Tournament.
Williams is also an incredible talent. He's one of the nation's top post defenders and is the No. 1 shot blocker in the ACC (3.7). The 6-9 senior also leads the league in rebounding and is second in scoring while shooting 61 percent from the field--third best in the ACC. Williams has recorded 46 career double-doubles.
Dockery, another top defender, leads Duke and is second in the ACC in steals (2.44). The 6-2 senior can also hit big shots. His 40-footer at the buzzer was the game-winner against Virginia Tech in December.
Other contributors are freshmen, Greg Paulus and Josh McRoberts. Paulus leads the ACC in assists per game (5.1) while McRoberts is shooting 61 percent from the field and adds size up front to complement Williams. Off the bench, Lee Melchionni is a smart veteran who fills a variety of roles and can hit clutch shots.
Duke's trademark defensive pressure on the perimeter and Williams shot blocking inside, force most opponents out of their set offensive patterns. The Blue Devils have allowed opponents an average of only 61.9 points a game (No.3 ACC) and .262 shooting from the 3-point line (No.1 ACC).Valparaiso is the only Duke opponent this season to have more assists in a game than turnovers.
The Blue Devils and Wolfpack are not strong rebounding teams. Duke's -1.0 rebound margin is slightly below State's +0.8 while both are at the bottom of the ACC in offensive rebounding.
Offensively, Duke averages 82.2 points a game and leads the ACC in field goal percentage (.517) with many of those shots coming from long-range. The Blue Devils average 19 three-point field goal attempts a game and shoot 40 percent from beyond the arc.
The Devils also make opponents pay for fouling. They lead the ACC in free throw shooting (.768) and get to the line an average of 23 times a game. Duke has made more free throws than its opponents have attempted this season (288-to-222).
Last season, Duke won twice over the Wolfpack 86-74 in Raleigh and 76-69 in the ACC Tournament semi-finals. The last time the Pack beat a No. 1 ranked team, Duke was the victim 78-74 at the RBC Center on February, 15, 2004. Due to ACC expansion, this game will be the only meeting between Duke and State during the 2005-06 regular season.
PROBABLE DUKE STARTERS
No. Name Pos. Ht. Class PPG RPG APG 15 Sean Dockery G 6'2 Sr. 8.6 4.1 3.1 04 J.J. Redick G 6'4 Sr. 26.4 1.7 2.3 03 Greg Paulus G 6'1 Fr. 6.4 2.9 5.1 23 Sheldon Williams C 6'9 Sr. 18.2 9.4 3.7* 02 Josh McRoberts F 6'10 Fr. 7.5 4.6 1.3*
TOP RESERVES:
13 Lee Melchionni F 6'6 Jr. 7.7 3.6 1.2 21 DeMarcus Nelson G 6'3 So. 5.7 2.5 1.3 05 Martynas Pocius G 6'4 Fr. 2.5 0.5 -- 34 Jamal Boykin F 6'7 Fr. 1.8 1.3 -- * Blocked shots per game
A WIN--Would be the Wolfpack's third in-a-row overall and 10th in the last 11 games. The Pack would gets its first win over a No. 1 ranked team since February 15, 2004 when it beat Duke at home 78-74 and its first road win over a top-ranked team since February 21, 1998, when it won at UNC 86-72. State would improve to 3-2 versus ranked teams this season. The Wolfpack would break a 9-game losing streak at Cameron Indoor Stadium (the teams did not play in Durham last season), winning for the first time since 1995. State would improve to 15-2 overall and 4-1 in the ACC, moving into a first-place tie with the Blue Devils in the league. Duke would lose for the first time this season, dropping to 16-1 overall and 4-1 in the ACC, and drop its first home game since Jan. 26, 2005, when Maryland upset the Devils.
A LOSS--Would break a two-game winning streak for the Pack, dropping State to 14-3 overall and 3-2 in the ACC. The Pack would lose for the 10th straight time to Duke in Durham and for the third time in-a-row in the series with the Blue Devils. State would drop to 2-3 against ranked team this season. Duke would remain unbeaten at 17-0, equaling it start in 1991-92 when it won the '92 NCAA championship, and improve to 5-0 in the ACC and remain in sole possession of first-place.
THE POINTS STOP HERE --The Wolfpack is holding opponents to 60.9 points a game, the second-best number in the ACC. State leads the league in field goal percentage defense (.381) and is 3rd in three-point percentage defense (.302).
LONG RANGE RIFLEMEN --State is No. 2 in the ACC in three-point percentage (.395) and has made more three-points shots (151) than anyone in the league this season. About 45 percent of the Pack's field goal attempts come from behind the arc (382-of-844).
BETHEL'S BOMBS ON TARGET --Senior guard Tony Bethel leads the team in 3-point field goal percentage (.492) and has made 14 of his last 21shots from the three-point arc (67%). In his last 4 games, he has averaged 14.8 points (59) while shooting 22-of-35 from the field (63%). Bethel is NC State's best on-the-ball defender and is also a highly skilled playmaker and impressive rebounder.
MR. VALUABLE -- Engin Atsur, a native of Istanbul, Turkey, is the ACC's top 3-point percentage shooter (.476) and is 5th in the league in assists while ranking No.2 in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.32). The 6-4 junior leads the Pack in assists (72), steals (25) and minutes (31.9). Atsur has only 14 turnovers in his last 10 games. He's scored in double-figures in each of his last 9 games, averaging 14.2 (128) points and 4.9 assists (44) while shooting 55 percent from the three-point line (28-51) during that span.
DON'T TURN IT OVER --The Wolfpack turned over the ball only 9 times in its win over Georgia Tech on Saturday and for the season is averaging only 13 turnovers a game. State had a season-low 5 turnovers against New Hampshire on Dec. 30th.
CONSISTENT CAM -- Cameron Bennerman has elevated his game. In his last 10 appearances, the senior has averaged 14.1 points a game (141) while shooting 59 percent during that span (60-102). The senior led the Pack with 16 points in the win over Georgia Tech.
POSITIVE BOUNCE OFF THE BOARDS-- The Pack's rebounding margin of +0.8 may be 10th in the ACC, but it's an improvement from earlier this season. State is 4th in the ACC in defensive rebounds (25.1) per game.
SUPER SIMMONS --The most improved player on the NC State team is Cedric Simmons. The sophomore center played in 31 games last season and averaged 3.5 points and 1.8 rebounds. This season, Simmons leads the team in scoring (12.2), rebounding (6.9) and blocked shots (2.98) while shooting a team high .644 from the field. He is No.2 in the ACC in blocked shots.
SHARE AND WIN --NC State is averaging an assist on an impressive 67 percent of its field goals (277-of-412) this season.
BRACKMAN'S BUSTING OUT --Sophomore, Andrew Brackman, has come off the bench to score in double-figures in 5 of his last 6 games. During that span, Brackman has averaged 12.7 points (76) while shooting 56 percent from the field (25-45).
INJURIES --Freshman forward Brandon Costner could miss his 11th straight game with a leg injury. Duke's DeMarcus Nelson could miss his 2nd straight game with an ankle bruise.
