I was fortunate enough to take in the Duke/Miami game this afternoon (ticket pictured on the left). While the game is still fresh on my mind, let me share a few thoughts...
- Its hard not to start with Jack McClinton who finished the game with 34 points on 12-18 shooting including 5 of 6 from long range. One of the 5 three point shots sent the game into OT. McClinton had guys draped all over him but Duke could still not stop him. After the game both teams lined up to shake hands and Mike Krzyzewski stopped McClinton and talked to him for at least 2-3 minutes. In his postgame interview K said he felt McClinton had made several great plays throughout the game and wanted to pass on his admiration.
- After the game the Duke team was visited by Duke's president, Richard Brodhead, who wanted to speak to the team. Brodhead told the team that he was pleased to see Duke's fight. Specifically, Brodhead said Duke had to win play after play thoughout this back-and-forth second half.
- In the first half Frank Haith outcoached Coach K showing a 2-3 zone that the Blue Devils hadn't faced much this season. It lead Duke to standing and passing around the zone instead of attacking. The zone also allowed Miami to dominate the boards in the first half. The Miami offense consisted of spreading out the Blue Devils and letting McClinton make plays.
- In the second half the game was completely another story. The Blue Devils started to drive the seams of the zone and pass into the middle of the zone before kicking out. Also, Duke grabbed several offensive rebounds earning second chances on several key possessions in the second half.
- Duke took an incredible 76 shots in the game. All but 7 of those shots were taken by the quartet of Greg Paulus, Jon Scheyer, Gerald Henderson, and Kyle Singler.
- Paulus was inserted into the starting lineup and played 40 minutes while Nolan Smith played just 7 minutes.
- Finally, Greg Paulus once again was dunked on, this time by Dwayne Collins. For whatever reason Paulus didn't try to draw a charge this time, but actually tried to block Collins. The result...a poster, youtube clip, and more jokes from the "Anybody But Duke" crowd.
Updated at 9:50 PM ET -- a couple more points to add...
- After praising Frank Haith's coaching above, I do have one small complaint. Last season against Duke, Dwayne Collins had a huge game at Miami and was the catalyst in the Hurricanes big win. The first play I saw designed to get Collins a touch in the paint didn't happen until OT. Collins took just five shots in the game, making three.
- I have to add a note about David McClure's performance today. While the four players listed above combined to take 69 shots, David McClure was equally important (if not more) for the Blue Devils while attempting just 2 shots today. Not only did McClure post a Dennis Rodman-like line of 2 pts, 2 steals, and 13 rebounds (7 offensive), but McClure was the only answer defensively to slow McClinton.
