Quick Recap for the two games last night. I expect our Duke and Clemson content partners to have a more detailed recap in the next day or two...
Duke 78 Maryland 67
- Gerald Henderson raised his game halfway through the season to be a great player but over the last two games against Wake Forest and Maryland he's raised it once again. Its remarkable he's done it once, much less twice, during the season, but at this rate Duke fans are going to be in for something come tournament time.
- Mike Krzyzewski really used his bench well in the Maryland win, and that can't always be said about Coach K. Brian Zoubek came in and gave Duke a nice inside presence both on offense and the defensive end. Paulus came in and knocked down shots, while David McClure brought his usual defensive and rebounding presence.
- Greivis Vasquez committed some really bad fouls. Would Duke had won if Vasquez had played 10 more minutes?
- Maryland came into the game as the top free throw shooting team in the nation but the terps made just 16-25 free throws or just above 60% in this one.
- Elliot Williams Experiment game three: 15 points, 6 rebounds.
Virginia Tech 80 Clemson 77
- Malcolm Delaney and AD Vassallo work really well together, and the two found many open looks due to the Clemson press. In the first matchup, Purnell abandoned the press and shut the Hokies down in the halfcourt. Last night, Purnell stayed with the press far too long and it may be why the Tigers lost.
- Trevor Booker started the game getting lots of touches, but Clemson forgot about him once again during the middle of the game.
- Seth Greenberg has been trying to push the right buttons all season long finding two guys that work well with the trio of Delaney, Vassallo, and Jeff Allen. Last night, Greenberg got a really good performance from Hank Thorns. Thorns was in the lineup to help deal with the Clemson pressure and did a fine job finishing with 10 points, 4 assists, and 4 steals.
- Ultimately, the story of the game was the Virginia Tech three point shooting. The Hokies made 11 of 19 three pointers, most of which came in transition.
