By Bob Holliday, WRAL Sports contributor

One week after allowing Clemson to carve up its proud interior, The Duke Blue Devils returned to the kind of defense Coach Jon Scheyer wants to see, forcing difficult shots, jumping into passing lanes and diving for loose balls.

Three times Kon Knueppel plunged ahead in pursuit of an available basketball. Maliq Brown took it a step further, battling a Stanford player for a loose ball beyond the out of bounds line, crashing into the media table where I sat and dislodging it into my chest by at least eight inches! So I personally felt how hard Duke was playing in this game. Maliq and I are both fine by the way.

Though Stanford has a superb big man in Maxime Raynaud, it was Duke that dominated inside. After allowing Clemson to make 26 of its 41 two point shots, the Devils overpowered the Cardinal in paint points 42-16. Duke held Stanford to 12-34 from inside the arc, barely 35%. Raynaud hit just 3-12 in close as he tried to navigate shots over the long arms of Brown, Khamen Maluach and the Duke forwards.

Stanford did make 12-29 of its shots from beyond the arc for 41%, or Duke’s 36 point margin of victory might have been even bigger.

Raynaud made four 3’s as he led all Stanford scorers with 19 points.

Former Duke player Jaylen Blakes did not make a three. Blakes did receive a thunderous ovation from the Cameron crown when he was introduced as the Stanford point guard. But then Duke’s perimeter defenders turned up the heat and Blakes went just 1-10 for the game with three turnovers.

Stanford Coach Kyle Smith said afterward Blakes probably put “too much pressure on himself.” Blakes’ former said simply “Jaylen is family.” Yeah it was an emotional day for this Duke graduate now earning a post-graduate degree at Stanford.

But it wasn’t just Duke’s defense on Raynaud and Blakes that impressed Smith. “They’re big. They brought help from everywhere,” the Stanford coach said.

And while Raynaud had a flurry late in the first half where he scored 12 points in a four minute span, he was a non factor after intermission. “With Duke’s size and physicality, Max just wore out,” Smith observed.

Smith used three time outs in the first half trying to keep Duke from blowing the game open, but to no avail. The Blue Devils built a 20 point lead in the first half and continued to expand that advantage into the final minute of the game.

Duke’s point total of 106 was its largest by far in an ACC contest. The team’s 36 point margin of victory was also an ACC best for Duke.

The fact is Duke’s defensive effort produced some amazing offense. The Blue Devils shot 62% including 14-29 (48%) from three. Duke shot better than 72% inside the arc, 26-35. And the team piled up 23 assists, nearly triple its assist total in the loss at Clemson.

Probably no stat measured Duke’s defense to offense better than fast break points. The Devils registered a whopping 24 of those, and that doesn’t count possessions where a stop led to quick ball movement and a good shot versus Stanford’s set defense.

This is where the steals and loose balls come in. “If we’re flying around on the court and getting stops that leads to transition” Scheyer said. “And we’re one of the best transition teams in the country.”

No argument here.

Moving forward, Scheyer sees many strengths in this Duke team:

• Multiple ball handlers. Against Stanford, Cooper Flagg had 6 assists, Sion James had 6 assists. Tyrese Proctor had 4 assists along with a game leading 23 points. Brown picked up 3 assists. Heck even back up center Patrick Ngongba had an assist. Scheyer notes: “With so many guys handling, the ball doesn’t get stuck.”
• Improvement of Khamen Maluach. The 7’2 freshman from Sudan scored 17 points against Stanford—some of those coming on alley oop dunks which are almost impossible to defend. The Duke coach likes Maluach’s practice habits and feel for the game.
• Savvy of the first group. Here’s Scheyer’s take: “We’ve been defended a lot of different ways. This group is great at sensing what’s coming next.”
• Leadership. “I can’t make players do things; leadership is key” according to the Blue Devils’ third year coach. Proctor, James, and Purdue transfer Mason Gillis are all veterans and leaders at Duke. Gillis of course missed the Clemson game with illness and his absence was felt. Flagg, by virtue of his playing style-he’s a pass first superstar-also plays a leadership role.

Duke faces Illinois of the Big Ten Saturday in Madison Square Garden. The Illini are 17-9 off a tough schedule and are ranked #18 in the NET.

Beyond that the Blue Devils face no ACC opponent ranked in the NET top 40. Duke is all but assured a double bye at the ACC Tournament in Charlotte, and currently is listed as a #1 seed by the NCAA Selection Committee.

But that won’t change this team’s approach. As with this past week’s preparation for the big bounce back wins over Cal and Stanford, Duke has demonstrated its players have the belief and the hunger to get better every day.

Source: wralsportsfan.com