Following each Duke men's basketball game, the Blue Zone provides you with a one word summary that is encompassed by one stat and one player. After the Blue Devil's first win of the ACC tournament, read our breakdown:
One word: Primed
With their NCAA tournament hopes on the line Tuesday afternoon in Greensboro, the Blue Devils delivered in a big way, earning an 86-51 victory over Boston College to set up another must-win matchup against Louisville on Wednesday evening. As heavy favorites over the lowly Eagles, the Blue Devils never trailed in what was nothing less than a thoroughly dominant display.
In the grand scheme of things, a win over Boston College is little to get excited about, especially knowing that, in all likelihood, the Blue Devils must get to and win the ACC Championship this weekend to earn a postseason berth. Today was, more than anything, Duke’s chance to prove to themselves that they belong amongst the best teams in the conference. And while a win over an inferior team is not enough to do so, the Blue Devils clearly showed that they have the firepower to compete into the weekend.
On a night in which top scorer and newly minted First Team All-ACC player Matthew Hurt was uncharacteristically missing in action, solid play from the freshmen trio of DJ Steward, Mark Williams and Jeremy Roach is an encouraging sign, as is another steady outing from Jordan Goldwire, who scored 12 points on 4-6 shooting from range. Add this to the fact that no starter played more than 27 minutes on the night, and Duke would seem to be in good form and relatively well-rested for tomorrow night’s final battle with the Cardinals.
Yes, the Blue Devils have teased greatness on occasion throughout the season with little to show for it. But after firing on all cylinders Tuesday, it finally appears as if head coach Mike Krzyzewski and his squad are primed for their best basketball this week in Greensboro, and it could not come at a better time.
One stat: 1-of-15 from 3-point range for Boston College
In too many of Duke’s losses this year, the opponent has connected on a seemingly unthinkable amount of open three-pointers, leading to a sizeable disparity in points beyond the arc. On the season, the Blue Devils sit in a virtual tie with Wake Forest for the conference’s worst three-point field goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to hit more than 37 percent of their attempts. For reference, the NCAA average sunk to a new low of 33.4 percent in 2019-20.
Back when Duke and Boston College met for the first time in early January in a tense 83-82 Blue Devil victory, the Eagles found the bottom of the net on an eye-popping 56.3 percent of their attempts from range, forcing the home team to use a heroic Wendell Moore Jr. baseline jumper to avoid the upset. This time around, the Eagles saw almost zero open looks in a display of what Duke’s defense can look like should it be able to secure the perimeter.
In two close Duke losses to Louisville this season, the Cardinals were not much of a threat from three-point range, connecting on just 10 in both contests combined. After all, Louisville makes fewer threes than any team in the conference at just 5.26 per game. Even so, it is incredibly important to see the Blue Devils shoring up what has been a weakness all season long just in time for the stretch run.
One player: DJ Steward
With the shot clock winding down on a late first half possession for the Blue Devils Tuesday night, DJ Steward stepped past the oncoming defender to hit an unlikely, circus-style jumper before the buzzer. On the ensuing possession, he soared down the center of the lane to clean up a Matthew Hurt miss with a monstrous putback slam.
It was just that kind of night for the star freshman, who after emerging as the clear starting shooting guard for the Blue Devils amidst a run of remarkably consistent play spanning most of January and February, struggled mightily over the three-game skid Duke snapped Tuesday. Steward put all of that behind him with his performance against Boston College, hitting three of his first four triples en route to an efficient 17 points in just 24 minutes of play. After shooting a miserable 2-13 from the field against Louisville in February’s overtime loss, another stellar outing from the ACC’s top freshman scorer could be exactly what is needed to finally topple the Cardinals in Wednesday night’s matchup.
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Jonathan Levitan is a Trinity senior and was previously sports editor of The Chronicle's 118th volume.