After each Duke men's basketball game this season, check back here for the Player of the Game and more. The Blue Devils shut down the Orange Saturday night, notching a 22-point win of their own. The Blue Zone breaks down the dominant victory:
One player: Dariq Whitehead
One of the most famed mantras in sports reads, “it’s not how you start, but how you finish.” In Saturday’s matchup against Syracuse, Duke’s freshman sensation Dariq Whitehead embraced this saying.
Despite being sidelined to start the game, the Montverde Academy product didn’t waste any time making a palpable impact on the offensive end. He started his prolific scoring night with an acrobatic left-hand layup off a pick set by freshman center Kyle Filipowski. He stayed hot for the rest of the first half, draining three 3-pointers in a row to steal the game away from the home team. The five-star recruit finished with 14 points off 5-of-7 shooting from the field in just 19 minutes of play.
It’s in split moments like these that Whitehead puts on full display how lethal he can be: a consistent three-level scorer that can take things into his own hands if, and when, needed — and it’s clear that when he’s healthy and on the floor, Duke is much more of a formidable offensive threat.
One word: Firepower
There’s no hiding that Duke boasts one of the most talented rosters in the nation, with young players like Dereck Lively II and Whitehead and veteran pieces like junior captain Jeremy Roach. However, the team hasn’t had as much success as most expected them to: It sits unranked with an underwhelming record of 19-8.
But make no mistake — the team has undeniable talent and depth, and the Blue Devils showed exactly what they are capable of when they employ their weapons the right way. In a 22-point blowout win, three players finished with double-digit point totals — not to mention, freshmen Tyrese Proctor and Mark Mitchell were each just one field goal shy of breaking the 10-point mark.
As Duke starts to prepare for the chaos and madness that awaits it in March, its depth and firepower will be key to its success.
One stat: 22 assists
Slowly nearing the end of the 2022-23 campaign, the Blue Devils are starting to play with a heightened level of confidence and, more importantly, chemistry. Against the Orange, they weren’t afraid to find the big man in the post or cutting wings for easy looks in the paint.
It’s when Duke found its players in the post that it cracked the code to Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim’s 2-3 zone. Almost every time Mitchell got the ball in the high post, he was able to either kick the ball out to a wide-open shooter or throw it up for an athletic big. Most notably, with just under 11 minutes remaining in the first period, graduate transfer Jacob Grandison connected with a cutting Mitchell who threw the ball up for a crowd-silencing Lively jam.
Thanks to the playmaking from its guards and elite off-ball movement from Mitchell, the Blue Devils continued to find holes in the Orange’s defense — and as always, numbers don’t lie. The Blue Devils logged 22 assists while holding Syracuse to just seven.
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