No. 3 Duke basketball has its chance for revenge against No. 5 Miami at 6 p.m. tonight at Cameron Indoor Stadium. When the two teams met in January, the Hurricanes beat then-No. 1 Duke 90-63, storming the court and dethroning the Blue Devils from atop the rankings.
We went to our Twitter account @dukebasketball to answer some questions before tonight's top-five action.
Off we go:
@dukebasketball @dukebasketball Kelly? Whats the deal? Is he playing tomorrow? #AskChron
— max moyle (@maxipad04) March 1, 2013
First, the facts: Ryan Kelly hasn't played since injuring his foot Jan. 8 against Clemson. He did, however, dress for the team's loss to Virginia Thursday and warmed up with the team. He previously stated he would likely return for one of the Virginia Tech or North Carolina games, so returning today would be early.
Now, the speculation: Jeff Goodman reported yesterday that Kelly is "leaning toward" returning. And it makes sense, given that he dressed.
Either way, getting your hopes up, if you're a Duke fan, isn't a good idea. He has only had minimal practice time and won't be in top-notch game shape... don't expect 30 minutes of the White Raven, even if it spreads its wings and flies for a little bit.
@dukebasketball how do u think DUKE will respond Saturday after a loss #askchron
— Seymore Butts(@TheRealKJ_12) March 1, 2013
Know this: Duke responded very well after its first three losses of the season. They haven't dropped back-to-back games, and even covered the spread in each of the games after their first three losses, winning by an average of 22.7 points. This team will be fired up after getting bullied by Virginia.
Another point of reference could be looking at how Duke ran past N.C. State by 13 points when the two teams played at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Wolfpack gave the Blue Devils their first loss of the season and stormed the court. Duke came out much better the next time.... sound like it could be a storyline for this game?
@dukebasketball with a win tomorrow, does Duke regain their one seed in March? Same question with a loss but an ACC tourney champ. #askchron
— Drew Doc Fladung (@DrewFladung) March 1, 2013
At this point its so tough to say—after every loss, it feels like Duke should drop out of contention for a No. 1 seed, but the other top teams just keep losing too. If the Blue Devils beats Miami, they're probably still a one seed. I'd say the same is probably true if they lose but then win every game the rest of the way through the ACC tournament, which would theoretically include a win against Miami in the championship game. But there is a lot of basketball to be played, even though it might not seem like it.
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