This game was useful for Duke in that it helped them work out some kinks after the problems they had against Davidson, against a good but limited opponent. While the Spartans actually have decent talent and athleticism, I was frankly baffled by their game plan at both ends. Couple Duke's superior players with Coach K's acumen, and it wasn't a contest for very long.

It's plain to see that as a team, Duke's defense is ahead of its offense. That's partly because the team is running so much more motion this year than last, and partly because the Devils are still adjusting to the absence of Chris Duhon. In the early going, Duke was smothering on defense but had some trouble finishing. For example, UNC-G had 4 turnovers in the first three minutes, but Duke was only up 7-6 at that point. UNC-G was running a 3-2 zone for much of the game in order to slow down penetration and stop easy entry passes. However, the zone was way too passive to prevent Duke from finding cracks in it for passes to the low post. When UNC-G then collapsed around the man with the ball, that post did a nice job of passing out to a wide-open shooter. Duke also did a nice job of pushing the ball constantly after long rebounds or turnovers. In the early going, Dan Ewing got a steal & layup and penetrated & pitched to Sean Dockery, who drained an open three.

After the awkwardness of the first few minutes, JJ Redick energized his team. Missing a three, he corralled the long board and immediately rocketed a pass into Shelden Williams inside, who had been completely ignored by the Spartans. That was part of a personal 8-0 run for Shelden, who had earlier scored on a nifty drive under the basket. After a Shelden tip-in (he was alertly under the basket whenever Duke fired up a three and stuck back several of those attempts), Redick stole the ball and flew up court. He launched a lob over Shelden's shoulder, which he caught as he was leaping towards the basket, sending it down with a thunderous jam. One could see that UNC-G didn't get discouraged after such plays.

Unfortunately, instead of patiently trying to score, the Spartans would rush a shot in an effort to catch Duke napping in transition. The problem for them was that Duke's transition defense was consistently excellent, as Devils would chug downcourt in time to stop the occasional UNC-G leakout.  That impatience and lack of an organized secondary break dug a rather enormous hole for the Spartans, and they never came close to climbing out.

After Williams' run, Ewing contributed back-to-back three pointers to push Duke's lead up to 21-6. UNC-G got into a bit of a groove and kept the lead hovering around 15 for a few minutes, despite the fact that Lee Melchionni hit consecutive threes. The Spartans couldn't keep up in the scoring contest, as Duke pushed their lead from 15 to 25 after a couple of minutes. It was purely methodical, as Duke simply hustled and executed.  Redick found Dave McClure for a layup, and Ewing drove, getting fouled.  That hustle was shown when Ewing missed a three; Shav went high and tipped the rebound out to Ewing, who spotted JJ open for a three that he buried.

Later, Shav drove into the lane, drawing 3 defenders. He then found Redick open for another three.

Duke simply clicked during the rest of the half, outscoring the Spartans 21-7 over the last seven minutes. Highlights include Williams passing out of a double-team to an open Dockery for a three; Redick finding Randolph for a slam; Redick pulling up for jumpers from 19' and 15'; JJ dishing inside to Williams for a three point play and driving & drawing to set up Ewing for a late three. The Devils sizzled to the tune of 61.5% from the field with just 6 turnovers, while the Spartans shot 36% and coughed it up 14 times against Duke's pressure. Offensively, Shav was still not nearly aggressive enough once he got great position near the basket, but he was hustling like crazy on defense, with 3 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 blocks and a charge taken to go along with 3 assists and 4 points.

The second half was pretty much a formality after Duke built a 39 point lead, and there were lots of sloppy moments on offense. The main highlight was the play of Reggie Love, whose constant hustle on the court was coupled with a newfound offensive efficiency. During one stretch, he scored 8 out of Duke's 10 points, including a lob dunk from JJ, a finish on a post pass from Shelden, going very high for a tip in and then finishing a drive. Late in the game, Shav came alive a bit after struggling all down on th eoffensive end, with a stickback and a three.

DeMarcus Nelson got some extended playing time late in the game, hitting a three and a 17' jumper to finally break out of his offensive slump.

Coach K was simulataneously trying to get his starters comfortable in a slightly different offensive system and start to find ways to extend his bench a bit. My guess is that against Michigan State, he's going to ride the starting five (with Dockery as the fifth starter) for as long as possible. Expect to see Redick and Ewing play all forty minutes. He'll sub in Love, Melchionni, McClure and Nelson (probably in that order) as the situation demands. If Duke is getting murdered on the boards with a three guard lineup, look for Love and/or McClure to get their numbers called. Shav's defensive rebounding will be key, because MSU tends to send five guys to the offensive boards after every shot. If he and Shelden can hold off the Spartans on the boards (or at least keep it even), then Duke will get many fast break opportunities. MSU has a talented young point guard named Drew Neitzel whom Duke will no doubt attack; forcing turnovers will be Duke's #1 priority.

Player-by-Player:

** Williams: A much more aggressive game for Shelden this time around. He opened the game with a 17' jumper but did most of his damage around the basket. It was nice to see him get some lift on that lob he threw down, but he was also active in a more conventional sense with his stickbacks.

Most importantly, he avoided foul trouble (1 foul!), did his usual strong work on the boards and also had a couple of muscular blocks. He wasn't nearly as effective in the second half, even getting his shot rejected by a more active UNC-G defense. Overall, this is what the doctor ordered for Mr Williams.

** Randolph: Offensively, Shav had a frustrating game. There were too many times when he used a head-and-shoulders fake that wasn't fooling anyone instead of driving to the basket hard and getting either a dunk or fouled.

It's not that he's a slacker; on defense, he was a terror, diving for loose balls and running back in transition to block layups. He sees the floor wonderfully, deftly passing out of double teams for easy scores.

Even when getting an offensive rebound, he used his jump-hook instead of putting the ball on the floor and driving. The one time he did drive, he drew defenders and created a score. I understand that he's trying to diversify his offense a bit, but he also hung around the three point line a bit too much. Michigan State is going to provide a real test for him, and he'll need to avoid reaching in to help Duke in that game (he picked up 3 second-half fouls that clearly hampered his defense).

** Ewing: Just a solid game for Dan, who remains Duke's best one-on-one player at the moment. He can create his own shot any time he wants, nailing a three after getting a high screen. He also is working smoothly with Redick as the two look to find each other for open shots. Both players are better shooting after catching the pass than off the dribble, and so both are trying to set the other up for that play. Dan also teamed nicely with Dock on defense. With Sean providing withering ball pressure, Dan was there to pick up loose balls or pick the pocket of players distracted by Dockery. He did that to the tune of 5 steals.

** Redick: Another superior floor game from JJ. His three is still not falling as smoothly as he would like, but he's finding new ways to help his team. Eight assists vs 1 turnover is a fantastic showing, especially since he was getting those opportunities both in transition and in the half-court motion sets. The difference in his game is that he's in constant motion for the entire contest, rather than simply spotting up and waiting. He's become dangerous both on and off the ball and his defense has really become solid. He's not a ballhawk like Dockery or Ewing and certainly isn't a primary stopper, but he's no sieve, either. JJ's added maturity as a player is also evidenced by him turning to secondary and tertiary shot choices. When the three isn't falling, he turns to the mid-range shot from near the elbow or the high post. Most importantly, his game is a nice complement to that of Ewing's or Dockery's.

** Dockery: Sean had another solid game. While not quite as dramatic in his role in the win over Davidson, he nonetheless was a big part of UNC-G's early knockout. Taking those early threes was clearly a factor that UNC-G was willing to deal with. When he not only nailed 2 first half threes but also had his misses stuck back for scores, it was obvious that UNC-G had no chance. Anyone who has watched his shot closely can see that his form has been fixed and he looks much more comfortabletaking that shot. Also gone from his game are the out-of-control forays to the hoop and quick, ill-considered fouls. Michigan State was a breakout game for him last year, and he'll need to come up big this year as well.

Monitoring his three point shooting is a very important stat for Duke; if he can nail his open shots at a decent rate, Duke will become a very good team.

** Love: I went over Reggie's contributions pretty thoroughly in my report. The best news is that he's looking more like a basketball player (as opposed to just being an athlete that plays basketball) in each game.

He's feeling the game more accurately now and not just reacting. He had had no problem getting rebounds, but often threw the ball away after getting them. In this game, he was simply efficient. He made the most of his minutes definitely has the potential to earn more.

** Melchionni: Lee was in this game for one reason: shooting. Happily, after an ugly early miss, he nailed 4 of his last 5 treys. His shooting motion seems to have too many steps before he actually fires away; if he rushes the process he misses, but it's so slow that quick teams will make sure he never gets open. Still, this game was a strong confidence-booster, as he scored some points when the game's outcome was still in doubt.

** McClure: Offensively, Dave is still very limited. Defensively, he's playing well beyond his years. He has a technique where he manages to time the release of opponents' three point shots such that he managed to leap so that he blocks the shot right after it leaves their hands, often just enough to simply jar the ball off its path. It's a remarkable move for such a young player, but it makes sense considering that he's planning to build his playing time around his defense. He did take several open jumpers, but none of them landed. The big men of Michigan State will be an interesting challenge for him.

** Nelson: The first thing to know about Markie is that even when he's not hitting his shots, he's still going after rebounds and playing defense.

If he was 4 inches taller, he'd be playing power forward because of his overall ruggedness and willingness to mix it up inside. At the moment, Markie's guard skills are a bit behind as he struggles to adjust after sitting out so much practice. It was good to see him stretch his legs a bit with the walk-ons at the end, since he was both consciously looking for his own shot and trying to set up others (one of his turnovers was a perfect pass to the basket that a teammate couldn't quite handle). Right now, Markie needs to concentrate on running his own race and playing to his strengths. He doesn't have to worry about being a star; he simply needs to become efficient while helping to energize the team.

** Johnson: Special mention goes to Pat because he was inserted into the game to help protect Shav from getting his fifth foul. To his credit, he came up with a block and a rebound on one sequence.

** The Walk-Ons: Patrick Davidson set up Nelson for a jumper, but the group was otherwise unremarkable.

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