Cut and dry: Florida State by the numbers

Usually I would dedicate 700 words to the statistical anomalies of the Duke men’s basketball team; however, a week of concrete statistics looks to be the best way to show just how painful this past week’s loss to Florida State was.

45 – The number of wins in a row at home until Saturday – As shocking and bizarre as it may feel, the second longest home winning streak in the country was shattered with Michael Snaer’s buzzer beater. Most areas in the country see this as surprising, but those who live and die with Duke basketball are fully aware that this loss meant so much more. The current junior class just witnessed their first ever loss as students at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Since the beginning of the 2008-09 season, Duke was 59-1 at home. Let that sink in. This is a Florida State team that had won only once in 18 games at Cameron coming into the weekend. This wasn’t just a loss; it was a wake-up call to a team that desperately needs to figure out its identity…and fast.

64 – The number of wins in a row at home against unranked opponents until Saturday – Even more crushing than losing at home is that the Seminoles were unranked. The Blue Devils’ last loss at home to an unranked team? Florida State on February 4, 2007.

21 – The number of wins in a row at home in the month of January until Saturday – Not to beat a dead horse with these winning streaks, but news flash: Duke won a lot of games in a row, and then we lost to an upstart Florida State team.

66.7% – Florida State’s shooting percentage in the second half – The Blue Devils have made a name for themselves by playing tough defense and draining  3-pointers, but it’s safe to say this wasn’t the case Saturday. What’s even more alarming was how the Seminoles were getting those points. 24 of the 50 points Florida State scored in the half were in the paint, an unacceptable number considering the vast improvement we’ve seen from Miles and Mason this season.

76.5% – Duke’s free throw percentage for the season – I don’t want to go completely negative in this column. As Andrew Beaton pointed out in his column on Tuesday, Austin Rivers seemed to have his breakthrough moment and we played a solid game on the offensive end. The biggest improvement, however, was seen at the free throw line. I pointed out a few weeks ago how poorly the Blue Devils were shooting from the charity stripe, and though the number hasn’t gone up too much (69.3 percent for the season), seeing Mason Plumlee put back-to-back shots in is encouraging. Despite the sarcastic uproar of cheering following the makes, it should be noted that shooting better from the free throw line will be the difference maker in a lot of close games this season.

2 – The number of points scored from mid-range – In all honesty, I’m not sure how big of a deal this is, but I think it’s worth mentioning. 71 of Duke’s 73 points were from behind the arc (30), in the paint (28), or from the free throw line (13). Often in basketball, analysts discuss, “the art of the midrange jumper.” The low number, however, is not only a result of poor shooting. Of the 63 total field goal attempts, the Blue Devils shot only 6 times from this particular area.

13 – The number of assists dished out by Duke – Say what you want about the defensive intensity in the second half, the number one problem with Duke’s offense is ball movement. With another mediocre passing performance, the team has now dropped to 134^th in the nation in assists per game. To hammer this home, the University of Pennsylvania, a team the Blue Devils beat by 30, ranks 84^th in the same category. I’m not sure what is lacking in this offense, seeing as there is talent at guard and Mike Krzyzewksi is the best coach in the history of Division I men’s basketball. The Blue Devils can only hope the road loss to Temple and the home loss to Florida State can set a fire under a young and talented team capable of doing great things when March rolls around.