Duke 97 Georgia Southern 56
In their 2nd game of the season, Duke came out much sharper offensively boasting an offensive efficiency of 131.8, or in other words averaging 1.3 points per possession.
For the second straight game, Kyle Singler led the way with 19 points and 8 rebounds in just 22 minutes of time. Nolan Smith (13 pts), Greg Paulus (11 pts), and Gerald Henderson (11 pts) each added double-figures.
Coach K made a statement to his team and particularly his freshmen as none of the freshmen saw action until about halfway through the 2nd half. Once they came in, the trio played much better. Miles Plumlee finished with 5 points and 5 rebounds, while Elliot Williams added 4 points and a remarkable 10 rebounds in just 14 minutes of action.
Positives
- Duke's FT Rate (FTA/FGA) tonight was an incredible 74% (although check the negatives for more on the free throws)
- Gerald Henderson showed some signs of life scratching for double-figures. More importantly, Henderson attacked the rim more.
- Just 11 turnovers for Duke, and most were in the 2nd half as the reserves were in the game. On the other hand Duke dished out 17 assists, led by 7 from Jon Scheyer.
Negatives
- Sure Duke attempted 49 free throws, but they hit just 25 of them for a clip of 51%. That's downright horrible. The main culprit was Lance Thomas who went 1-8 from the line.
- Duke grabbed just 65% of their opponents misses, which led to too many second chances for Georgia Southern.
Factor of the Game
The factor of the game was Duke's shot selection and execution. Duke's key run was at the end of the first half as indicated below where their eFG% jumped from 38% to 55%, where it remained for the rest of the game. Effective field goal % takes into account that you get more points for three pointers and thus a missed three pointer isn't as harmful as a missed 2 pointer.
NC State 83 Catawba 63
Brandon Costner scored 17 points to lead the Wolfpack in an exhibition win over Catawba. Tracy Smith (14 pts), Farnold Degand (13 pts), and Ben McCauley (10 pts, 6 rebs) all reached double-figures in the win.
Here are some first-hand impressions from a poster on an NC State board...
Starting five consisted of Degand, Williams, Fells, Costner, and McCauley
- Catawba is a much better team than Ft. Valley State; Still Div. II, but a definite step-up in competition … I was impressed w/ their execution … They were still overmatched, but this is a team that could definitely beat a lot of 150+ RPI Div. 1 teams
- There is an extremely different feel to Sidney Lowe this season, IMO … For the second straight game he was up and animated and was in charge … After a particularly bad defensive posession where we allowed easy penetration and had poor
