The Blue Devils aren't coming off their prettiest win, but with a 9-0 record and a high ceiling, they are looking a lot better than the reigning national champions.
No. 2 Duke will take on Connecticut Thursday at 8 p.m. at the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, N.J. The Blue Devils come into the game following a sloppy 13-point win against Elon, a game they will be looking to move past as they attempt to hold off the 2013-14 national champions.
"We know we didn't play our best, we won and we need to move on," Duke assistant coach Jon Scheyer said. "We need to get better. It's a long season."
Thursday's matchup will be the 10th all-time meeting between the Huskies (4-3) and Blue Devils (9-0), and if history stays true to itself, the game has promise to be another classic. Of the previous nine matchups, seven were decided by 10 or fewer points and six were decided by five or fewer.
Although Connecticut does not enter the game on any sort of hot streak—the Huskies have yet to secure a win against a Power Five opponent—the defending national champions are still loaded with talent and will be aiming to pick up their first marquee victory of the season.
The Huskies boast big names in their backcourt with Ryan Boatright and N.C. State transfer Rodney Purvis leading the way. Connecticut guard Omar Calhoun—who missed the first seven games with a sprained right knee—may be another threat the Blue Devils need to prepare for, as he is currently day-to-day and may make his season debut Thursday. But it is Boatright and his 18.9 points per game that will have Duke's main focus.
"They have some really good guards that can break you down, especially Boatright, who can get in the lane," Scheyer said. "He's a great player."
Boatright joined forces with Shabazz Napier—currently with the Miami Heat—last season, as the two combined to average 30.1 points per game and led Connecticut to the title.
Before this season began, many questioned whether or not Duke senior guard Quinn Cook and freshman guard Tyus Jones would be able to coexist. Cook pointed toward Boatright and Napier as a prime example of a successful two-point guard system. Through nine games, Jones and Cook average 24.1 points per game and have dished out 83 assists to just 21 turnovers.
"If you look at the last couple national championships: Louisville—Peyton Siva and Russ Smith, two point guards—Kemba Walker and Shabazz Napier, two point guards, Shabazz Napier and Ryan Boatright, two point guards," Cook said before preseason play began. "It’s obvious two point guards can play in this game. I think myself and Tyus, we’re right there with those guys, that’s how we feel."
Although the matchup between Jones and Cook and the Huskie guards will be alluring, it is the battle in the paint that will more than likely command the majority of the attention.
Duke freshman center Jahlil Okafor is coming off a 25-point, 20-rebound performance against Elon—the first 20-20 game by a Blue Devil rookie—and has been on a tear all season, as he leads the squad with 18.0 points on 65.5 percent shooting and 9.0 rebounds per game.
"Our gameplan doesn't change with who we're going against," Scheyer said. "We should have that advantage in that matchup [in the post] every night."
The player who will be tasked with slowing down the National Freshman of the Week will be 7-foot Connecticut center Amida Brimah. The Ghana native is coming off a monster performance against Coppin State, as he posted 40 points, 13 rebounds and three blocks. On his career night, Brimah shot 13-of-13 from the field and 14-of-16 from the free throw line.
Prior to that game, Brimah had never scored more than 14 points in a game, as his niche had always been his defensive prowess. He finished the Huskies' 2013-14 national championship run averaging 2.3 blocks per game and will provide Okafor with possibly his stiffest defensive test yet.
"Brimah is a really good shot-blocker. He's long and can really protect the basket," Scheyer said. "Whoever's going to the basket—Jahlil, Amile [Jefferson], Marshall [Plumlee], our guards—needs to go up strong and expect that he's going to be there."
Staying on Connecticut's defensive side of the floor, the Huskies—like Duke against Elon—struggled in their last game. Coppin State is a 1-9 team but put up 85 points against the defending NCAA champs. Part of the scoring issues came from sloppy offense, as the Huskies committed 18 turnovers, leading to 35 Bald Eagle points. Connecticut enters the game ranked 193rd in assist-to-turnover ratio at 0.93, opposed to Duke, which ranks 1st at 1.8.
With Jones at the helm—the freshman leads the team with 5.6 assists and 1.6 steals against 1.3 turnovers per game—the Blue Devils will look to take advantage of the Huskies' sloppiness early and avoid any sort of chance for late-game heroics from Boatright and Co.
Duke will take another 11-day break following Thursday's game before returning to Cameron Indoor Stadium Dec. 29 to take on Toledo.
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