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Official game day thread- Duke at Arizona

Brown is very disruptive out there. Agree on the backcourt inconsistency, Kon’s two three pointers were very deflating shots if you were Arizona. The timeliness of when he hit them were back breakers. To hold them to 55 points in that building is a tremendous performance and it’s so nice to punk Caleb Love on top of it.

Will be interesting to see how things materialize with Evans and Harris. James has turned out to be a more critical pick up than probably imagined going into the season just based on how these games have unfolded so far.

Great to get a decisive win in the vaunted McKale Center on Lute Olson Court. I still remember that ridiculous double OT loss there in 1991. Laettner looked both exhausted and pissed walking off the court.
 
James at the 1 starting Tuesday makes too much sense.

Our D is elite and offense can be scary. I think Kon needs to stop passing up shots and coop needs to focus more on driving.. both are seeming to do what the other should do at times. Kon does add a lot more then just scoring though.. reading some of the post from halftime till the half way point in the 2nd half are a little embarrassing toward him.

Great win against a good team, glad to hold love to whatever he ended with and hope he and Steve Robinson cry together all night
 
One thing that stands out thru the first 6 games is, the guys that play, play with great energy at both ends of the floor. Just speculation, but the guys that aren't playing, while surely talented, may not be bringing that kind of energy on both ends. That matters when you're playing tough, physical games against good competition. Looking at the minutes Coop and Kon played, it's obvious coach values those attributes above pure scoring ability. Can't say I disagree with him.

Also, those that are saying Sion should start, why? He's the perfect 6th man, why would you give that up?
 
One thing that stands out thru the first 6 games is, the guys that play, play with great energy at both ends of the floor. Just speculation, but the guys that aren't playing, while surely talented, may not be bringing that kind of energy on both ends. That matters when you're playing tough, physical games against good competition. Looking at the minutes Coop and Kon played, it's obvious coach values those attributes above pure scoring ability. Can't say I disagree with him.

Also, those that are saying Sion should start, why? He's the perfect 6th man, why would you give that up?
Because against elite competition, Sion appears to be the only guard who can get into the lane off the dribble consistently AND finish in there. Foster, Kon and Proctor not so much. I think the starting 5 needs that. I thought Foster would be able to do that but he seems to be more in line with Proctor and Kon, better at catch and shoot.
 
Just watched the game this morning. That was one helluva physical game. I would like to see Evans get some minutes, but I don’t think he is ready for a game like this one. I’m sure Kon’s aggressiveness, hustle, and timely threes are what’s getting him the starting position. Kon needs to learn he’s not going to be able to drive against certain teams. He’s a got a great basketball IQ, he will figure it out. Great win last night!
 
Kiss Evans goodbye. 2 biggest games of the year (Kentucky and Arizona) and he seen ZERO MINUTES TOTAL... Nobody wants that. McDonald's AA... I honestly get mad myself seeing him not even get a chance to play... Kon didn't play good the entire first half, give Evans go dang minutes... Gillis also didn't play good either, give Evans some minutes. JON you are losing these kids mentally... next, Sion is a stud. He brings intensity to this team. Proctor needs to match tonight's intensity every game... but Jon has got to give these players a dang chance to help and prove something. Or another mass exodus
 
The defense and rebounding were excellent. Offensively, we have a lot to do. I want to see Jon go a little deeper in the bench to echo others. But it's hard to complain about a gritty win on the road against a good team at their place. Oh, and f@$k Caleb Love.
Seeing him struggle last night was almost as good as the win itself Bleed!
 
A really solid defensive game plan by Jon. On that side of the ball, we are strong. Winning on the road against a very reputable team is hopefully a confidence builder. But I also don’t think Arizona is that good.

I get that Foster isn’t doing much offensively, but neither is Proctor. We need them to be better. So those saying Sion should start? Over which one?
 
A really solid defensive game plan by Jon. On that side of the ball, we are strong. Winning on the road against a very reputable team is hopefully a confidence builder. But I also don’t think Arizona is that good.

I get that Foster isn’t doing much offensively, but neither is Proctor. We need them to be better. So those saying Sion should start? Over which one?
Need to switch them around. Foster is over thinking the game bad from his position but he will get it .

The Mass exodus was gonna/is going to happen anyway . What do you really think Evans does if he comes in and shows out on offense? You think he’s staying ? No.

It’s early only forth game of the season and it’s clear that Duke is working on three key things . Defense, rebounding and defense . Offense will come but defense wins games .
 
Need to switch them around. Foster is over thinking the game bad from his position but he will get it .

The Mass exodus was gonna/is going to happen anyway . What do you really think Evans does if he comes in and shows out on offense? You think he’s staying ? No.

It’s early only forth game of the season and it’s clear that Duke is working on three key things . Defense, rebounding and defense . Offense will come but defense wins games .
I don’t know who’s staying, or who will be going. I’m talking about the here and now. You’re right, defense wins games. But I’ve watched enough basketball over the years to know you have to have really good guard play.
The good news is there’s time, but the reality right now is Proctor and Foster aren’t doing enough on offense.
 
A loss to a ranked team on a neutral court and a loss to a ranked team in their house does not prohibit a team from getting a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Be Logical here pepeople.
Hey Bull, I love ya' man, but this W was HUUUUUUUUGE! I think we were being QUITE "LOGICAL" simply by the fact Duke is held to such a DIFFERENT STANDARD.

Most folks HATE DUKE BASKETBALL, and this still has its origin back to the Laettner era. Yes,another November Duke loss so close to the Kentucky L, would have Duke trending at the top on X(formerly Twitter) this morning.

Joe Linardi would absolutely be having his jollies. He would make a tremendous deal out of Duke's two early season losses THROUGHOUT the season. Trust me. It may not have been FATAL to a #1 seed, but it would be a definite blow.

OFC
 
Neither Proctor nor Foster can beat their man off the dribble very well and when they do they seem to not finish contested shots at the rim consistently.

Last night Foster had chances to beat his man and get to the rim but backed out of it.

Overall Proctor is playing the best of the two. Foster to me is so disappointing so far.
 
Need to switch them around. Foster is over thinking the game bad from his position but he will get it .

The Mass exodus was gonna/is going to happen anyway . What do you really think Evans does if he comes in and shows out on offense? You think he’s staying ? No.

It’s early only forth game of the season and it’s clear that Duke is working on three key things . Defense, rebounding and defense . Offense will come but defense wins games .
Fair, but getting these guys minutes in these games will pay huge dividends come march. I’ll never understand it, it’s short sighted. This game means little to nothing other than THAT alone, preparing these kids for a run in march.
 
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For Foster, it’s not just his inability to make shots. He continues to drive into the trees without any idea what he’s going to do - when’s the last time he drove and dished it off to one of the bigs? He also is careless with the ball. The inbounds pass attempt to Cooper, the 10 second call when he lazily dribbled up court, his not looking for a pass from his teammate (I forget who it was) when the guy was trying to get out of a double team in our end…he just doesn’t look like his head was in the game. And 0 assists from your PG? Really? As Denverexpat said, we need better PG play to get the max out of the incredible talent this team otherwise has. I think Scheyer recognized this by yanking Foster a few times - at one point, one of the coaches was yelling at him as he walked to the bench. I could see James becoming the de facto starting PG in terms of minutes played. I know we love having him come off the bench, but I’d bring him in in a hurry. Who didn’t feel better when he was in the game?
 
What I saw from Kon last night was a smart basketball player that plays as hard as anyone and has a sense to skyways be around the ball. He went to the basket a little too many times and tried to draw the foul or power his way through only to get his shot blocked. While it may work against undersized or younger weaker players it didn't work last night. Can't wait took he adds a floater to his game at the next level.

I think we keep the starting lineup the way it is. Like having James off the bench if Foster or Proctor have a slow start as it was last night.

Still don't like that we go 3 ball happy at times.
 
James at the 1 starting Tuesday makes too much sense.

Our D is elite and offense can be scary. I think Kon needs to stop passing up shots and coop needs to focus more on driving.. both are seeming to do what the other should do at times. Kon does add a lot more then just scoring though.. reading some of the post from halftime till the half way point in the 2nd half are a little embarrassing toward him.

Great win against a good team, glad to hold love to whatever he ended with and hope he and Steve Robinson cry together all night

It was a great win. Great D down the stretch and Flagg had much more poise down the stretch. Still, the flaws are there. Big test of that Tuesday.

The problems noted for Kon remain. He finally came through with some great 3s at the end. Super clutch. But he turned the ball over on multiple drives - either getting blocked or putting up a poor, forced shot. He just doesn’t have the quickness at this level. His game has to be the 3 with only an occasional drive if the middle is wide open. But he is too much of a one-on-one ball hog. Against teams with better physicality (size, speed, quickness) he won’t be effective with that.

I still think playing a front line of Maluach, Flagg, and Brown for stretches with Sion and any of the other 3 guards would be a forceful D because Brown and Flagg can guard the 2-3-4 (even the 1 in some situations) and their length will give teams a lot of trouble.

But Scheyer—simply mimicking K—seems locked into Brown purely as a backup to Maluach. It seems like Jon struggles to move outside the box.

I also think more of Evans and Harris at some point in the first half of games has to happen. Get their feet wet and who knows.

I don’t think it’s a clear about Gillis. Depends on the match up for him. But he also didn’t get a lot of minutes.

Last night was ostensibly a 7 man rotation. Scheyer has the same flaw (imo) that K has of not playing his bench. I think that will bite us if he’s running freshmen out there 35-40 minutes and going 2 deep.
 
Hart,

Very Good Road Win! I know people who are not Duke fans despise the Blue Devils. Had Duke lost last night, I agree the critics would have came out and chirped including Lunardi (he doesn't make the ncaa tournament bracket though!). I just didn't see last night as a "must win game" when there are 5 more tests in the regular season and the ACC Tournament still in front of The Blue Devils.

Love ya too buddy!! Hope you and yours are doing great!
 
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Kiss Evans goodbye. 2 biggest games of the year (Kentucky and Arizona) and he seen ZERO MINUTES TOTAL... Nobody wants that. McDonald's AA... I honestly get mad myself seeing him not even get a chance to play... Kon didn't play good the entire first half, give Evans go dang minutes... Gillis also didn't play good either, give Evans some minutes. JON you are losing these kids mentally... next, Sion is a stud. He brings intensity to this team. Proctor needs to match tonight's intensity every game... but Jon has got to give these players a dang chance to help and prove something. Or another mass exodus
I totally agree. Sometimes the outside hype plays a role with who you play. Evans deserves the pt.
 
Great win. It may not have been a must win, but we needed to win that to get a one seed. Losing yesterday with number one Kansas coming up would not have been good. I would like to see Proctor and Sion start, Sion has earned it. Bummer Evans didn't play but him and Harris are out of the rotation for now. This was a nice win for the resume. Foster seems to be the same guy he was last year, but he still could come on strong. Gillis can disappear at times so he's probably a 5-10 minute guy right now.
 
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Are we sure Evans and Harris aren’t rehabbing an unknown injury? I mean big Pat didn’t get in the game either but looked good against Wofford.

Think you see more out of Foster against Kansas. This is a knew role for him as well. From coming off the bench, to getting injured last year when he’s playing his best ball and now to starting as a pg . Lots of time left to figure things out .
 
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I don’t know why Evans and Harris aren’t playing. I’d like to think one of them could help, but all I can comment on is what I see on the court. Which is, Foster AND Proctor have to be better. It’s not that they were a combined 5-17. It’s that very little offensively has been done by either of them down the stretch.
Really good guards make things happen by getting into the lane, and knowing what to do when they get there. So far, I don’t see either as really good.
 
That is why I want Sion starting. One he is a senior, and a tough player. Not sure why he needs to be locked into a 6th man role, he has earned the right to start. Foster can get 15-20 minutes backing up the guard spots for now. Proctor and Foster are nice players, but as of right now I wouldn't say they are final four caliber. Maybe Proctor; but not both together. I don't want to say soft; but they are both finesse players. Neither are good at getting in the lane and drawing fouls or finishing. But I'm not the coach. Evans is either injured or in the doghouse. Maybe Jon is bringing him along slowly. Harris will either wait his turn or move on. Kon was possibly hyped too much; he is better than expected but maybe not a lottery pick. Would love to have year two of Kon but he's probably a guy who goes in the 20's of the draft. Pat will probably get spot minutes like Power. Cooper and Mal are the real deal. Brown does a lot of little things well.
 
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As others have mentioned I think Jon is focusing on defense and rebounding at top priority now. I still think Evans or Harris should get some spot minutes especially a minute or two before a commercial timeout. Proctor seema to start well then slowly fade. He practically got his points in the first few minutes then went cold. Think he did the same thing in the Kentucky game

Edit: The two missed free throws by Proctor was unacceptable. Luckily it didn't bite us at the end.
 
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This really will suck if Evans leave at the end of the year. I'm assuming he would be the starting shooting guard next year. Let's hope he stays
I wouldn’t assume that - from the limited sample we’ve seen plus his high school success, we’ve already seen that he can shoot. It must be something else that is keeping him on the bench. Defense? On a team that seems to value defense over offense as its calling card, that may be it. So he’d have to improve his D to get on the floor. That said, Foster isn’t the defensive cornerstone of this team, so would it really be a big drop to play Evans instead of Foster? Really hard to fathom.
 
Let’s start Sion and you’re still going to have Foster or Proctor on the floor. Duke is playing a five out offense and if you notice every game the opposing team is going to sag off the three point line and make guards put it on the floor . Sion had a couple good lay ups but I’m sure every team can live with that as long as Duke isn’t burning the nets from three. IMO the offense is simply shoot if your open or look for Kon and Flag first . It’s four games in . Foster has never been a starter or played with anyone outside Proctor . Some act like the NCAA tourney starts tomorrow. What we know at this point is simply , Duke’s defense will only get better, Flag is for real. Kon is a streaky shooter but does other things well, Mal will only get better, Sion is first off bench with Brown and we all know Duke needs more THIS season out of Proctor , Foster, Gillis and the bench if they want to go far . It’s November these are games Jon wants his starters to win . No one can say for sure Evans or Harris would have made a vast impact in this game . Maybe they each hit a shot but give up two shots a piece to the man their guarding . There is a long season ahead . How many young teams are playing four schools in the top 20 in the first five weeks of the season starting ? Long season ahead fellas .
 
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Quick look at the Kansas roster. They look very experienced. By my count 4 seniors and 2 juniors in their top 7.
 
My guess is Jon is playing Gillis for his defense/toughness, but Gillis has to hit some 3's to get extended minutes. I do agree with some on the other board saying we probably don't win that game without Sion and Brown. That may be the difference in this team making a deep run.
My son had a great take on Gillis’ unproductivity. His analysis was that, at Purdue, Edey caused the opposing team’s defense to collapse on him, leaving the outside wide open. Gillis can shoot well, but when guarded closely, it’s a different story than his days at Purdue. For him to be effective offensively, there need to be set plays to pop him open.
 
Great win. It may not have been a must win, but we needed to win that to get a one seed. Losing yesterday with number one Kansas coming up would not have been good. I would like to see Proctor and Sion start, Sion has earned it. Bummer Evans didn't play but him and Harris are out of the rotation for now. This was a nice win for the resume. Foster seems to be the same guy he was last year, but he still could come on strong. Gillis can disappear at times so he's probably a 5-10 minute guy right now.

I think we are going to end up agreeing to disagree here. Playing devil’s advocate here, let’s say Duke would have lost last night but then didn’t lose the rest of the regular season. I find it very hard to believe that resume doesn’t Earn a #1 seed in the NCAA Tournament just because they lost two games in November.
 
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