How will Duke respond after losing another OT game?

[acc hoops]

Duke probably wins the game if they can make their free throws. They probably win if Brakefield doesn’t miss easy shot up 6 with 25 seconds to go in the half and then leaves his man wide open for a 3 to cut the lead to 3. Duke probably wins if Goldwire does a better job with inbound passes. I believe 4 were stolen ( Duke stole one back). The inbounds pass with 2 seconds to go on shot clock that went to Moore 35 ft from the basket was a called play? Duke held Ga Tech scoreless the last 5-6 minutes and had 2 great chances to win. Moore holds the ball then shoots a terrible 3 and then that last play. I understand Coach letting Goldy have the ball but he was never going to drive in for a shot. Should have gotten it to Baker sooner or better yet let Roach drive down the floor and get off a shot or get fouled. It wasn’t bad luck last night...it was bad mental errors. That being said Duke will be loose and free Saturday. I feel confidant they respond by beating UNC .

 

[AlanInNJ]

Tough loss for sure. We had plenty of chances, and we off just enough to lose, not to mention some of the generous rolls GT got. Second game in a row in OT we let our opponent get up 8 points. We just don't have a reliable drive and score guy this year. We don't have a guy other than perhaps Hurt who is going to pull up and hit that big shot at the end of the game. I thought the play at the end of regulation was a good play to get a wide open 3, but why was it run for Brakefield? I love the kid, but he was 1 for 7 at the time and not having his best game. Lots of Monday morning quarterbacking I suppose.

I do agree we should be loose as a goose on Saturday, and I like our chances. If we can head into the ACC tourney with a "nothing to lose" attitude we could beat anyone, and who knows what could happen.

 

[Liftee]

I don't think this team gets discouraged. They lost several close ones in a row and then beat Wake, lost some more and beat Virginia. They know if they made one more play here or there and they could have won the last two. Coach K is a great motivator.

Having said that, I don't know why Coach K didn't use his last time out with 35 seconds to play when it became obvious the team wasn't running anything. I know he had it when there were 2 seconds to go but the earlier possession was the critical one.

 

[denverexpat]

The answer is in how they have responded to the other similar situations....doing exactly the same thing and expecting a different outcome. Losing so many close games is no coincidence, its consistency

 

[AlanInNJ]

I don't disagree denver, but like many I thought we had turned the corner after we had that win streak. I don't think we can completely disregard that a team develops and hopefully improves as the year progresses. I guess we will see over the next two weeks.

 

[denverexpat]

@alan - we go as the guards go....the win streak saw our FR PG's shoot well and limit TO's...and Goldwire play within his swim lanes. I think that flattered this team as that was not the norm but an anomaly. We hoped it was a permanent change in our play. However, our consistent pattern is erratic PG shooting, with TO's and limited assists ( and vice versa on the defensive end) ...that's the root cause of our struggles. PG is the QB...and if you are playing one that has little experience, lots of TO's and inconsistent TD passes....you don't win games consistently in FB ....and poor guard play is our downfall - so losses in CBB. All being said...GTHC...that's our Superbowl!

 

[bleediteveryday30]

I think to say this team hasn't improved would be incorrect. We've seen improvement in many areas. Mark Williams, our ball screen defense (still not the best, but better), our guard play was improving until these last two games, Moore and Hurt have improved all year long, etc. With everything this team has went through this season I am honestly surprised we're 11-10 overall and 9-8 in the conference. After the season we've had this team with the upcoming offseason will be much better next year and with the two horses of Griffin and Banchero coming in I feel better about next season and this team's chances to go deep. However, our backcourt is just too young right now to take us anywhere. I love J-Gold, but he tries to do too much to make up for Steward and Roach with some forced play at times. Overall, I think he had a good game last night.

 

[christophero]

This team is just so unpredictable. You never know how they are going to play. Which is par for the course for a young team. I am excited we have most of our team back. But we will have to get improvement out of the returning guys. It should happen; but it is not guaranteed. This would be a good formula if they were all 3-4 year guys, but I suspect many will look to leave after next year. Still; you never know. I'm not in an optimistic mood right now, but a win Sat. would cure a lot of ills.

 

[sheyduke]

Steward isn’t looking for his shot. There was the one play in over time he had a catch and shoot three his feet were set for the shot he dribbled into the lane and passed it then got it back for a contested three.

These young guards are learning but imo took a step back.

If Duke wins at UNC it will surprise me.

 

[christophero]

Brakefield needs to learn to cheat towards the basket not away. When his man is posting him up I've seen several plays where he gets faked out badly and his man spins to the basket. It is correctable but he keeps doing it. He should learn and get better. Williams is the only freshman improving right now. Maybe Coleman. But they are gaining valuable experience.

 

[Duke1783]

If the trend continues, our response will be losing to Carolina in overtime