To get past OR, the Blue Devils will have to stop Dillon Brooks, who scored a game-high 25 points in the Ducks’ second-round win and has scored at least 20 points in 11 games this season. It is a tale of two teams and a tale of two conferences when the 4 seed Blue Devils and the 1 seed Ducks hit the floor around 10:00 PM. Duke will look to slow OR on their 10-game winning streak. “A terrific year. Proud of them”. We need to play well on the national stage against someone who is very good, and who has proven themselves.
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Grayson Allen, Duke’s leading scorer, had just four points on 1-for-6 scoring in the first half as Duke fell behind 36-31.
The Blue Devils have seen the UNDER go 9-3 in their past 12 games as a lack of depth and foul trouble has hurt the squad in sometimes crucial moments during games, including last week’s tilt against Yale. “They got on me pretty early, coach Bennett, and I built a real good relationship with them and their coaching staff and I went out there on a visit. We’ve got to get our defensive rebounds, our offensive rebounds and we’ve got to crash the glass overall”.
The win is a landmark for a football school making its basketball mark.
After all, it is also the home of the Ducks, as UO fan Steve Lee pointed out. No nerves, no panic – and no rallies by Duke. Brooks added, “he’s right”, in reference to Coach K and said he had to do a better job of respecting Duke. “It was a different feel to it”.
This will be their first meeting in the NCAA Tournament and first since March 2004, when both were members of the Big East. Miami has won nine of the last 13 games in this series. But coach Mike Krzyzewski has Duke alive in the second weekend of tournament with a chance to become the first team to top a No. 1 seed in 2016. I actually expect coach Dana Altman to funnel Oklahoma’s guards away from the three-point line and play much like Arizona, forcing the Sooners to make 12-15 foot jump-shots and floaters.
“I don’t think he plays dirty or anything like that”, forward Jordan Bell said. Everybody, not just including me. If we started to compete because of Mondays, Tuesdays and West Coast, I don’t think we ever would have had five national championships and 12 Final Fours.
Grayson Allen was in no mood for postgame hugs from his opponent after losing to OR in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament on Thursday.
“It helped me knowing the ins and outs of the game”, Brooks said. I know a lot of the guys are motivated. “And that’s what each of my teams deserve from me and my staff is that level of commitment”.
So, while college hoops nation hypes up the narrative of a traditional powerhouse going up against an up and coming west coast program – Duke is 0-4 this season when playing in the Pacific time zone – the real story on Thursday night will rest with whether or not Altman’s most accomplished roster can continue its historic run.
“For Boucher, it’s more than just shot blocking however, as the 6’11” center has also made 37 three-pointers this season.
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But that doesn’t mean OR will be looking to make this game any bigger than it already is, which is an opportunity to advance to the Elite Eight for the first time since 2007.
