That was the kind of game Duke fans have been waiting to see from the Blue Devils all season, a complete game, no let downs.
Duke got just that in their 95-60 victory over NC State in a performance that was as convincing as the final score indicated. The Blue Devils got back to the program trade mark against the Wolfpack forcing 21 turnovers and scoring more than 30 points off those turnovers.
After a season that has featured countless defensive struggles, it was somewhat surprising to see Duke bring the kind of defensive intensity that has been a staple of the program, but not a trait this team has shown.
Jabari Parker who has been struggling since the ACC schedule started, at least for one game, returned to form scoring 23 points on 7-14 shooting including 2 for 2 from beyond the arc. Rodney Hood chipped in 11 while Quinn Cook got 10 to pace the Blue Devil starters.
Mike Krzyzewski for the second straight game employed a regular rotation that featured 10 guys who played significant minutes. That second rotation which has featured a resurgent Rasheed Sulaimon (13 points) and Andre Dawkins (11 points) helped provide much needed balance.
It was hard to find much wrong with Duke’s play against NC State and it would be hard to argue that it wasn’t the Blue Devils best and most complete performance to date this season.
Duke did just about everything well, even things they’ve struggled with. The Blue Devils outrebounded the bigger Wolfpack 35-32 and had 19 assists on 33 made field goals. Those numbers are really eye popping considering the struggles they have had this season.
Those struggles garnered a lot of attention and following the Blue Devils victory over Virginia on Monday, Krzyzewski took a big part of the blame for not having been his best following the unexpected death of his older brother Bill the day after Christmas.
Following Krzyzewski’s loss, his team lost two games and looked out of sorts even when they won and that may have been because Krzyzewski himself was out of sorts.
It is hard to say that this will be the definitive turning point for this team. NC State is struggling young, inexperienced and not very good, though talented. A win like this can only help the Blue Devils confidence, especially Parker.
Make no mistake, Duke looking dominant has a lot to do with Parker playing well and the team playing solid defense.
The key factor will be if Duke can go on the road and win a tough game, something they haven’t done this season. They will get a shot on Wednesday when they travel to Miami, who while not the team they were last season, are still dangerous especially at home.
The victory against State isn’t exactly something that will make the season for Duke, but the way they played in every phase of the game will be something they will look to replicate going forward.
