Next up for Duke is the ACC/Big10 Challenge and an Indiana Hoosiers squad on a 3 game winning streak.
New coach Archie Miller, in his first season with the Hoosiers after six seasons as head coach at the University of Dayton, has his Hoosiers playing better. They will be tested against a battle hardened Duke Blue Devils squad on Wednesday. The Hoosiers start 2 seniors (Robert Johnson, Josh Newkirk), a junior (Juwan Morgan) and 2 sophomores (De'Ron Davis, Devonte Green). Robert Johnson leads Indiana in scoring at 13.7 points a game, he shoots 51% from the field and 40% from 3 point range. Juwan Morgan chips in 11.8 points per game from the forward spot and sophomore forward De'Ron Davis adds 11.3 points per game. Davis is shooting 74% from the field. Indiana can and will use a lot of bodies against Duke, they have 9 players averaging double figure minutes so far this year.
Al Durham could be a huge x-factor off the bench for Indiana. Durham is averaging 27.8 minutes a game, scoring 9 points and 3 assists, he's a driver and could put pressure on the Duke defense considering current troubles Duke has had containing guards. Devonte Green, a starter at guard, has been inconsistent as of late with his decision making causing Archie Miller to have to dig a little deeper into his bench and creating more minutes for Durham. For a team that needs to slow the pace, the possibility of losing or giving away possessions could be huge - especially against Duke.
Duke comes in at 8 - 0, after picking up a 17 point comeback win against number 7 Florida in the finals of the Motion Bracket of the PK-80 Invitational. Duke is paced by freshman Marvin Bagley who is averaging 22.3 points per game and 11.3 rebounds. Bagley was named the MVP of the PK-80 Motion Bracket after posting back to back 30 point games. Grayson Allen averaging 16.5 points a game and 4.6 assists. Allen has been slumping of late but did seem to have positive stretches against Florida. Trevon Duval leads duke in assists at 6.5 a game and adds 13.1 points per game. Wendell Carter Jr. and Gary Trent Jr. round out the double figure scorers at 12.8 and 12.6 respectively - with Carter Jr. averaging 9.1 rebounds.
Some Keys and Interesting Points:
This will be Duke's first true road game and it comes against a veteran backcourt, it will be a good test for Duke to see if Trevon Duval, Grayson Allen and Gary Trent Jr. can raise their level of play after having subpar floor games recently. This will be a huge test for Indiana who seem to be grasping what Coach Miller is preaching.
Indiana plays at a slower pace so possessions and offensive efficiency will be key, with Duke shooting poorly as a team from beyond the arc they will need to, as they have been, rebound the basketball on the offensive end. Duke is currently leading the nation in that stat and it may be the x-factor for the Devils to put this game out of reach early.
Duke has a decided size advantage versus the Hoosier but can Indiana go small like Florida and force Wendell Carter and Marvin Bagley into foul trouble by making them guard smaller players on the switch. When Carter does get into foul trouble it takes him out of his game, figuratively and literally for large portions of the game and gives the opposition the ability to focus on Marvin Bagley. If Carter can remain on the court Duke can run what they want and the game plan on feeding the post becomes much more effective.
Jet lag - Will Duke, after the amount of travel and emotion spent on the PK-80, be able to bounce back and get up for this game? Could it be a trap game?
History:
Duke last played Indiana in the Challenge in 2015, where No. 7 Duke won 94–74 in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Duke also played the Hoosiers in 2006 when No. 11 Duke won 54–51 in Cameron Indoor Stadium, and in 2005 when both teams were ranked and No. 1 Duke beat No. 17 Indiana 75–67 in Assembly Hall.
