Your Pocket Guide to Duke vs. Michigan

Coming off an 87-35 thumping of Hampton, No. 1 seed Duke (31-4) will take on No. 8 Michigan (21-13) with a trip to the Sweet 16 on the line today at 2:45 p.m. at Time Warner Cable Arena in Charlotte, N.C. Here’s a quick rundown of what you need to know before this afternoon’s contest:

Beware of the Wolverine’s unusual defense. Head coach John Beilein brought the 2-3 zone and its rare 1-3-1 counterpart to Ann Arbor when he came from West Virginia. “It's a good tool for us to have in our back pocket,” junior Zack Novak said. “It’s changed the momentum of a number of games since I’ve been here.” It certainly caught Duke by surprise on Dec. 6, 2008—unranked Michigan used the 1-3-1 to keep the then-No. 4 Blue Devils off balance the entire game en route to a 81-73 upset in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines also employ man-to-man defense as well, which adds one more scheme Duke must watch for on the court.

The Blue Devils have their own ace in the hole—their size advantage. The Wolverines only have one player taller than 6-foot-10 on their roster. Duke has three, in addition to Kyle Singler, whose size is tough to match on the perimeter. Beilein is more concerned about the ramifications of the Blue Devils’ size on the defensive end. “There’s not many 3-men at 6-foot-8 out there,” Beilein said.  “They’re at 6-foot-10, 6-foot8, they’re denying passes. You have to be very concise with what you’re trying to do."

Head coach Mike Krzyzewski is on the brink of history. With a win today, Krzyzewski will have 900 for his career. That’s only two shy of his mentor, Bob Knight, who holds the record for the most wins in Division I history. In typical Krzyzewski fashion, he didn’t acknowledge this in yesterday’s press conference, electing instead to focus completely on this Michigan team (as in, the 2010-2011 team). Nolan Smith also didn’t appear to be phased by the impending milestone. “It's not really a surprise because he's always close to something,” Smith said.  “It's an honor to be playing for Coach K.”

Nolan Smith doesn’t “even know what an Uncle Tom is.” In other words, Duke isn’t letting Jalen Rose’s comments be a distraction. The Blue Devils are completely focused on this present matchup—and don’t expect that focus to slip after the game either.