The No. 9 Blue Devils host Eastern Michigan in their last nonconference home game of the season Saturday at 2 p.m. at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Here are three things to watch:
Continue recent dominance on the glass
Much has been made of Duke's defensive efforts in recent weeks. A major reason for that improvement is that the Blue Devils have won the rebounding battle in each game since their loss to current No. 1 Arizona at Madison Square Garden. The Eagles aren't a force on the boards—they rank 199th in the country with 35.4 rebounds per game—but have the statistical edge against Duke's 33.7 average. Seven-footer Da'Shonte Riley will be a rebounding force that the rotating carousel of Blue Devil forwards will have to contain.
Push Eastern Michigan off the 3-point line
The Eagles are happy to shoot from downtown—Eastern Michigan went 8-for-28 from distance in their last game, an 81-79 overtime win against Oakland. Forward Karrington Ward and guard Ray Lee, the team's leading scorers, both shoot better than 40 percent from behind the arc, as does guard Darell Combs. The Blue Devils will have to lock up the trio in its man-to-man while finding ways to get open looks themselves against the Eagles' stingy 2-3 zone.
Bring the energy
The Blue Devils were flat earlier this year in home games against East Carolina and especially Vermont, playing in front of sparse crowds and a far-from filled student section. With students on winter break, noted crowd pleasures Quinn Cook, Amile Jefferson and Josh Hairston will need to set a tone for the team early on and provide a spark to replace the energy of the Cameron Crazies.
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