After suffering a 74-63 loss to Kentucky Tuesday, Duke returns to action in the 2K Classic—benefiting the Wounded Warrior Project—Friday. The Blue Devils will travel to New York City to face Virginia Commonwealth at 7:30 p.m at Madison Square Garden, a venue that has historically been friendly to Duke. Here are some keys to the game for Friday’s contest:
Take care of the basketball
The lack of a true floor general has been an issue for the Blue Devils through the first three games this season, but was especially evident against the talented Kentucky team. Confusion on the court due to imprecise roles and sloppy play by Duke contributed to 16 turnovers which Kentucky capitalized on for 17 points—more than the final margin in the game.
Although some of the Blue Devils' mistakes could be attributed to the high level of play from the Wildcats, Duke also committed 10 turnovers against a less-talented Siena team in the first game of the regular season. The Rams have averaged 29 points off turnovers in their first two games of the season, making it even more crucial for Duke to have a good handle on the ball.
Breaking out in transition
Duke has been beaten on the fast break in two of the first three games. The Blue Devils allowed 18 fastbreak points against Kentucky, while putting up only four of their own. In its best performance of the season against a less-talented Bryant team, Duke was able to win in transition and finished with 14 points to the Bulldogs’ two.
A trait of many successful Blue Devil squads has been their ability to control the pace of the game and pull away from their opponents by capitalizing on open looks down the court. Pushing the ball down the floor also allows the team to get good shots without deciding on the team's primary ball-handler. Virginia Commonwealth has thrived against both of its opponents thus far in transition, so improvement on the fast break will be key for Duke to emerge victorious.
Ignite from the perimeter
The three players expected to lead the Duke offense this season—Grayson Allen, Brandon Ingram and Luke Kennard—combined for only 12 of the team’s 63 points in the loss to Kentucky and failed to score in the first half. The trio shot just 3-of-22 from the field and struggled to penetrate the first competitive defense they faced this season.
Although head coach Mike Krzyzewski praised Derryck Thornton’s fight against Kentucky, the freshman still appears to be inexperienced as a floor-general. As the season progresses, Thornton should slowly be able to fill the point-guard role for the team and set his fellow guards up for success. In order to return to their winning ways, the guards will need to get hot from the perimeter and find ways to create open looks from beyond the arc.
As a team, the Blue Devils were just 5-of-13 from downtown against Kentucky, with junior Matt Jones hitting three three-pointers. Meanwhile in the Rams’ last outing, the team shot 52-prcent from beyond the arc with senior Melvin Johnson canning six three-pointers and a game-high 24 points. With an experienced Johnson shooting 41.9-percent from the field—including 50-percent from beyond the arc—Duke will need to rely on its trio of young guards, as well as the veteran Jones, to sink their own three point shots in order for the team to come away with a victory.
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