The Blue Devils have a shot to avenge last season's home loss against North Carolina Thursday night at 8 in the two rivals' first meeting of the season. Here are three keys to the game:
Be active on the glass
Part of the Blue Devils’ struggles this season have been due to a lack of rebounding. Despite forward Amile Jefferson having his best year yet after sitting out most of the 2016 campaign with a foot injury, he has been the only consistently productive big man. Duke’s size isn’t its problem—it features highly touted freshmen Jayson Tatum, Harry Giles and Marques Bolden, who all stand 6-foot-8 or taller. The problem has been their production thus far, as the trio has combined to grab fewer total boards than Jefferson, who is nearly averaging a double double with 11.9 points and 9.3 rebounds per game.
Meanwhile, North Carolina has the highest rebounding margin in Division I basketball, led by Kennedy Meeks, Isaiah Hicks and Tony Bradley, and the second-place team isn't even close. Jefferson will almost surely try to match up with Meeks down low, but the other frontcourt matchups could be more likely to decide the outcome of the game.
Lock down the perimeter
The Tar Heels are shooting just 30.7 percent from 3-point range in their four losses this year, almost seven percent worse than their season average. In order for Mike Krzyzewski’s team to hand them their fifth loss of the season, they will have to limit juniors Justin Jackson and Joel Berry II, who shoot 39.3 and 42.1 percent from beyond the arc, respectively. Without their production, the fifth-best scoring offense in the country will lose its rhythm. Look for Matt Jones to get more playing time when Duke needs key stops due to both his experience and excellent perimeter defense.
Keep the ball moving
Entering the season, nobody saw Luke Kennard stepping up to lead the Blue Devils in scoring while they dealt with injuries, a suspension to Grayson Allen and intense scrutiny from the entire country, but that is exactly what he has done. Everyone knows Kennard can score, but against North Carolina, he will also need to share the ball to get others going.
The Tar Heels score the basketball. A lot. In order to keep up, Duke can’t let itself fall into a rut with isolation plays all game long. This team is at its best when it gets penetration from Allen and Frank Jackson, which then opens up the perimeter for shooters like Kennard and Jones. At times, especially in Krzyzewski’s absence, the ball just stuck too much and the offense looked lost as the team continued to slip in the rankings and lost three of four games. If there is a good amount of balance and shot distribution, Duke has the athleticism and talent to take on its rival at home.
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