Duke basketball looks to sweep Syracuse in budding ACC rivalry

Syracuse's return trip to Cameron Indoor Stadium won't be as the top-ranked team in the country. The Orange aren't jostling for position for a No. 1 seed—the school self-imposed a postseason ban Feb. 4, meaning Rakeem Christmas and company have just three games left in their season. And they already lost the first meeting against the Blue Devils on their home floor two weeks ago after building a double-digit lead.

But Saturday's 7 p.m. contest is an opportunity for Syracuse to steal away a win from No. 4 Duke and avenge all of that. In the fourth installment of what senior Quinn Cook acknowledged is quickly becoming a brewing rivalry in the new ACC post-realignment, there is no shortage of motivation for the visitors.

"Because they're not playing any postseason ball, this will be in some ways a championship-type game for them," Duke assistant head coach Nate James said.

Syracuse has already taken down one top-10 opponent away from the Carrier Dome this week, felling No. 9 Notre Dame 65-60 Tuesday in the renewal of an old Big East battle. A day later, the Blue Devils were pushed to the wire by Virginia Tech—a team with just two conference wins—needing overtime and 30 points from freshman Jahlil Okafor to escape Cassell Coliseum with a win.

After playing 37 minutes on a sore ankle, Okafor has participated in practice the last few days, James said. The center continues to receive treatment for the sprain he suffered Feb. 18 against North Carolina and was held out of a few drills in practice Friday, but is expected to be in the lineup once again Saturday night.

Okafor's career night helped the Blue Devils (25-3, 12-3 in the ACC) mount a comeback and secure a win, but the Hokies exposed some chinks in the Duke armor, particularly on the defensive end. Virginia Tech made 12 of its 22 attempts from behind the arc, and found driving lanes to set up its shooters around the outside.

After Semi Ojeleye's decision to transfer in December, the dismissal of Rasheed Sulaimon in January and Okafor's ankle scare, head coach Mike Krzyzewski has had to shorten practices out of necessity, which may impact his team's defensive intensity.

"We've got to keep pushing and make defense a priority," sophomore guard Matt Jones said. "[In practice] we don't have that many numbers, so obviously we try to conserve as much energy as possible. So in the games we tend to go back kind of [lackadaisically].... We have to fight human nature as a team, and make sure everyone is emotionally involved in the game."

For a spark, the young Blue Devils can always look to their senior captain. In Duke's seven games this month, Cook has sat for just eight of 290 game minutes, logging all 45 minutes in the overtime wins against North Carolina and Virginia Tech. After scoring 20 or more points in four of his last five games, the captain's offensive development has overshadowed his contributions on the defensive side of the ball.

Against Notre Dame Feb. 7, Cook hounded 6-foot-5 star Jerian Grant. Despite giving up three inches to his former high school teammate, he held the Fighting Irish's main offensive weapon to seven points on 3-of-10 shooting. In the second half of Duke's 80-72 win at the Carrier Dome Feb. 14, Cook asked to be switched onto the even larger 6-foot-7 Orange swingman Michael Gbinije—his Blue Devil teammate as a freshman. Gbinije had erupted for 19 points and five 3-pointers in the opening period, but managed no triples and only eight points the rest of the way with Duke's leader keeping tabs on him.

"He steps up for the challenge, first and foremost," James said. "We go to him and say 'Hey, we need this particular guy stopped' or 'This guy has to feel some pressure'. He's in amazing shape, so he can go 40 minutes and still give maximum effort. He's a lot stronger and quicker than he looks, so he uses his physical abilities and his strength to really get up under guys."

Gbinije's scoring tear has tapered off of late, though the redshirt junior has still reached double-figures in seven straight games. In Syracuse's upset of Notre Dame, the Orange (18-10, 9-6) got by without their best play-maker's scoring thanks to 19 points off the bench from sophomore B.J. Johnson, who averages just 4.6 per contest.

For Syracuse to pick up its second consecutive upset on the road Saturday, Johnson may have to have another career performance. The Orange didn't score a single bench point against the Blue Devils at the Carrier Dome.

A big night from Trevor Cooney wouldn't hurt, either. The senior is one of the nation's streakiest shooters—he tallied 28 points against North Carolina but was held scoreless by Pittsburgh—and has struggled in his career against the Blue Devils, making just three of his last 13 3-point attempts against Duke, dating back to last year's game in Durham. Cooney had 11 points in the game against Notre Dame—including a pair of highly difficult shots to stave off the Fighting Irish—and is capable of heating up in a hurry, especially in transition.

"We try to have complete awareness on him—do not leave him, do not give him a decent look at the rim," James said. "If he shoots a one-dribble, fall-away, fade-away three, then God bless him. We want all shots to be contested and make sure he feels our pressure."

The Blue Devils have switched back and forth between man-to-man and zone this season. That's never been a question for the Orange, whose 2-3 zone remains hard to crack despite the departures of C.J. Fair, Jerami Grant and Tyler Ennis from last year's team.

"[Syracuse head coach Jim] Boeheim has perfected that zone. They're very athletic and it's big. You can't recreate it in practice—it's always different in the game," Cook said. "Guys who have been here two years are kind of getting used to it, but it's still a challenge."

Cook said Marshall Plumlee and Amile Jefferson attempted to mimic the length of Gbinije and Tyler Roberson on the bottom line of the zone during practice Friday. In the first meeting between the teams, the Blue Devils committed 15 turnovers, but also dished out 19 assists, utilizing excellent ball movement that found open shooters on the perimeter and got Okafor one-on-one opportunities posting up Christmas in the paint.

But Duke was able to do some damage even before the vaunted zone could materialize. Long outlet passes by Cook and Tyus Jones helped the Blue Devils generate 12 fast-break points, saving themselves the time and energy required to work the ball around the floor to set up a good look against the zone.

The run-and-gun style allows Justise Winslow to flourish. The athletic swingman is at his best in the open floor, and since returning from a few nagging injuries midway through the year, the freshman has been attacking with purpose. Krzyzewski called Winslow's dunk in transition Wednesday night at Virginia Tech to cut the Hokie lead to four halfway through the second half one of the game's pivotal plays.

"When I'm aggressive, it opens up a lot of things for my teammates and myself," Winslow said. "I just try to stay aggressive and try to get in the paint and play physical, because that really will open up a lot of things for our shooters and for Jah."