Duke 82
Temple 57

December 5, 2001.  
Cameron Indoor Stadium.

  Certain games just have an electric feel to them before they are even played.  Some just carry a certain gravity to them, as though everyone in attendance knows something special is about to happen and that the home team is about to play extraordinarily well.  The Duke-Temple game was such a contest, one where Duke could not rely on talent alone to win.  Under John Chaney, the Owls are always one of the smartest and toughest teams in the country.  You can't intimidate them or simply wait for them to make a mistake, because it won't happen.  To beat them, you must play with discipline and passion.  Decision-making and courage are important in equal measures here, knowing what the right shot is and being ready to take it.  After an uneven performance against Clemson, the Devils were more than ready to raise their level of execution against Temple.  And they did.

  There are certain caveats to be aware of here.  Temple was missing their best post player in Kevin Lyde.  He probably could have played but Chaney didn't want to risk it, noting that Lyde is their best chance to return to the NCAA tournament.  He wanted to make sure he'd be healthy in March. Another important player, wing David Hawkins, was out due to academics.  He's also supposed to return in a few weeks to help take some of the pressure off of the fabulous Lynn Greer.  Greer was the nation's leading scorer coming into the game and had just dropped 47 on Wisconsin in a double-OT game on Monday.  His signature series of moves (dribble-drive, jab step, pull-back fade-away) is extremely difficult to defend.  Assigned to guard him would be Chris Duhon, and it proved to be a fascinating matchup indeed.

  Duke came out determined to set the tempo and force Temple to play in a manner uncomfortable for them.  They succeeded, with the first five minutes of the game a frenetic scramble.  Duke initially used a strategy that worked well for them in their first meeting with Temple last year, where they had Boozer slip behind the zone and get great position.  Duhon found him for the first basket of the game as he did exactly that.  Chaney decided that Duke would have to hit jumpers to win the game, so he forced an immediate double team of Boozer and using more of a 2-3 zone than a 1-3-1.  Carlos usually had a guy in front of and behind him at all times.  Temple would switch to a 1-3-1 when Carlos was out of the game and attack Duke's shooters more effectively.  So even though Boozer didn't have a big game offensively, his very presence altered Temple's plans. 

  The primary mission in this game was to get Jason Williams going early and often.  So when Boozer got the ball on Duke's second possession, he immediately flipped it to the corner where Jason was waiting to hit that shot.  Dunleavy then found him on the next possession for a 25' footer that was perfect.  After a Temple turnover, Jones found Dunleavy slicing through the zone (which had moved up to stop the shooters) on a cut.  Duke was up 10-0 and had played Temple's defense like a harp. Temple struck back with a relocation three, but Duke would answer with an 8-0 run.  Duhon was in complete control driving in and dishing out to Dunleavy for a three.  Then he drove and found Boozer, who pulled up over 300+-pounder Ron Rollerson and hit a jumper.  Duke forced a turnover and this time Dunleavy drove and found Jason for another three.  The Devils were in complete command at 18-3.  While Temple would fight their way back into the game, they never got any closer than 9 points.

  Temple scored five in a row to pull within 18-8 with fourteen minutes left in the half, but Duhon found Jason open for yet another three.  The Owls kept fighting and rebounded some Duke misses, and Greer finally got on the board about eight minutes into the game.  The score was now 21-12, but Duke adjusted to Temple's 1-3-1 look as Jason drove into the lane and dished to an open Sanders for a dunk.  Casey used his speed to slip behind the zone and was ready for the pass.  That fired Duke up and they intensified the defense.  After Dunleavy had airballed a three in the corner, Jason insisted on setting up the same play once again and this time Mike hit it.  Then Chris hit Dunleavy for a long three at the top of the key to give Duke a 29-12 lead.

  The Devils couldn't quite deliver the knockout punch in the first half, however.  Behind Greer and Brian Polk, the Owls went on a 6-0 run, cutting the lead to 29-18 with 6:42 left in the half.  But Temple's fouls were starting to pile up as Duke tried to take them off the dribble, and Jones and Williams hit 4 straight foul shots.  Jones then found Dunleavy for a short jumper after a mad scramble at the basket.  Temple was still hanging around and was within 35-23 with four minutes left and had the ball.  Duhon dove to the floor to pick up a steal, and batted it ahead to Dunleavy for a dunk.  Boozer then got a strong rebound in traffic and outletted ahead to Jones on the break.  Dahntay then hit Jason perfectly for a finishing layup.  But the Owls held Duke to just 2 Dunleavy free throws in the last couple of minutes of the half and kept the score to a respectable 41-28 count.

  Now, for a team that prefers to play a ball control offense like Temple, being behind by 13 is like being behind by 26 for an uptempo, pressing club.  Still, if any team was mentally tough enough to come back from such a deficit, it was Temple.  They proved that by pulling within 11 a couple of times early in the first half.  But Jason responded once again with a three from the wing on a pass from Duhon and Dunleavy rebounded a miss to make the margin 16 again.  Duke started to play harder and harder on defense and became ever more efficient on offense in the second half. In the early going, Duke followed up Temple twos with threes 3 times in a row, with the aforementioned Jason three, a Dan Ewing three and another Jason three.  Duke led 54-36 with sixteen minutes left, and Temple had to feel helpless because they were playing great basketball but falling further behind.

  The next few minutes saw a lot of intense defense on both sides but very little scoring.  The biggest Duke highlight was Jones driving  and finding Boozer underneath.  Still, Duke had a 58-44 lead with eleven minutes left, and time was starting to run out for Temple.  At this point in the Clemson game, Duke started to look distracted and played sloppy ball.  But this time, Duke's focus was much greater and they actually increased their overall lead.  Dunleavy scored 5 straight points for Duke on a three and some foul shots.  Duke got the ball back and Temple's defense was such that they men on all of Duke's shooters and on Boozer. Duhon noticed this left the middle wide open and he simply drove all the way to the basket.  After a Temple score, Williams returned the favor of Chris' passes by finding him for a wide-open three, and Duke had a  20 point lead at 68-48 with seven minutes left.

  The next three minutes saw very little scoring, but Duke started to drive on an increasingly aggressive Temple defense to get free throws and layups.  A Williams drive made it 73-50 with over four minutes left. Duke continued to play sound, disciplined basketball at both ends of the court.  The highlights included a Dunleavy steal that he outletted to Ewing for big-time slam and Ewing finding Jones open for a three.  Duke's attention to detail is really what won this game for them.  They exploited the weaknesses in Temple's zone patiently while at the same time trying to create a more frenetic pace to the game.  They challenged Temple on the boards and came out on top, with the exception of giving up a couple of rebound slams to Polk.  It was one of those nights where the coach, the team and the crowd all seemed to be in synch.     

  ** Negatives:  

1. Valuing the ball.  In the second half, Duke made some silly, unforced errors.  While 10 turnovers isn't a horrible number, getting that many against a zone not designed to force miscues was a small problem.  

2. Getting inside touches.  There were times that Duke was lulled into taking too many outside shots without at least trying to get Boozer the ball.  Even if he wasn't going to take a shot, he's still quite adept at making the relocation pass.  

  ** Positives:  

1. Ball movement.  Duke penetrated the zone early on and kicked it out to the open man effortlessly.  

2. Defensive pressure.  This was classic Duke defense: no gimmicks, just straight-up ball pressure and movement.  

3. Rebounding.  Granted, Temple was without their best post player.  Duke still had a magnificent effort on the boards, especially from the guards. They knew Temple wasn't going to run, so Williams and Ewing were able to crash the boards along with the big men.  Player-by-Player:  

  ** Boozer: Because of the zone, he didn't see the ball that often.  When  he did get it, he had a couple of shots blocked by the massive Rollerson. It would have been nice to have seen him take it a little stronger to the hoop on those occasions.  But 'los did do a nice job on making himself available when Temple went to a 1-3-1 and got a couple of easy scores when he slipped behind the zone.  Carlos did a good job on cutting off Rollerson and making it difficult for him to score when he did get the ball.  He was mostly solid otherwise, getting 5 strong rebounds, a block and an assist.  Boozer managed to reach double figures in scoring despite getting only 6 shot attempts.  

  ** Dunleavy: A return to form for Mike D, my favorite Replicant.  He downloaded the Battier shooting protocols against Temple hitting a couple of trailer threes from the top of the key.  He also scored on a cut, a transition dunk and a short jumper in the lane on his way to a 16-point first half.  He was less of a factor on offense in the second half as Temple made some adjustments, but he compensated by dishing for a couple of assists and continuing his strong work on the boards.  Mike's defense was also very good throughout, forcing a 5-second call and taking a charge. I sense that Mike will lead the team in the latter category this season. The only other problem was his occasionally careless passing, usually into traffic.  This is a measure of his aggressiveness and trying to make a play happen, but it needs to be mixed with caution at times.  

  ** Jones: Looked lost out there against the zone at times.  The best thing about his game offensively was that he was passing very well, finding Dunleavy twice and Boozer once for easy scores.  He played his usual solid defense, but he missed blockouts on a couple of possessions and wound up with only 1 rebound.  Duke definitely needs more from him there on a  consistent basis.  The three he hit off a Ewing pass shows that he's a better stationary shooter than off-the-dribble.  As per usual, the man he guarded for much of the game (Alex Wesby) was non-existent on offense: 1-9 from the floor and 4 turnovers.    

  ** Williams: This was the first time since the Seton Hall game that we truly saw the passion of Jason Williams on the court.  He demonstrated most forcefully that he is still the most dangerous player in college basketball.  This game was also an excellent demonstration of Jason's role as a true off guard, as he let fly without hesitation--and with the coach's full approval.  Hitting his first couple of threes helped his confidence from long range and generally loosened him up a bit.  Jason looked like he was having fun instead of trying to live up to some ideal of The Perfect Basketball Scholar-Athlete.  He had 12 of Duke's first 21 points and still had time to dish out assists to Sanders and Dunleavy to push Duke's lead into double figures again after Temple made a run. He looked smooth and relaxed at the foul line, swishing all 4 of his attempts.  Williams hit 2 threes early in the second half that essentially helped seal the outcome.  He also attacked the boards ferociously, getting 10 since his first game as a freshman.  Even his defense was excellent, staying in front of his man reasonably well.  I still await a game where he has a true hot streak and scores 30+ points, but I'm sure it'll come soon.  

  ** Duhon: As brilliant a floor game as you will ever see.  Chris racked up 11 assists, most on ball reversal after penetrating the zone.  Duhon certainly took his role as floor leader seriously, making sure that everyone had looks at the basket.  He had assists to Williams, Boozer, Dunleavy and Ewing and could have had a couple of others.  His defense on Greer was excellent.  Chris couldn't completely shut him down, but that wasn't his job.  He was to shadow him and stay in front at all times, getting his hand up when Greer took a shot.  When Greer tried to drive, Chris always made sure to use the help defenders coming around to help him (usually a big man).  Of course, Duhon's 4 steals and a forced 5-second call show that he wasn't too shabby on the ball, either.  Chris did have a  careless pass or two and is still adjusting to having the ball in his hands  more often.  Duhon also proved that if a team lays off him, he will make them  pay.    

  ** Ewing: Dan looked a bit ragged out there at times, with his preferred open-floor game not meshing all that well with the way Duke was playing. Despite that, he learned to adjust as the game went on and finished up quite strong.  He scored 4 of his 7 points in the last few minutes of the game and also passed to Jones for a three.  I liked the fact that when Duhon passed him the ball earlier in the half, he didn't hesitate to shoot when he was open and nailed his jumper.  I will continue to note that Ewing looks very calm, confident and poised for a freshman. His teammates should also be commended for helping him fit in so quickly.  

  ** Sanders: This was the first time all year that I've really seen Casey trust his instincts instead of trying to think his way through every play. Scoring is not his main mission out there and Coach K won't take him out if he misses a shot.  However, he will get yanked if he's out of position on defense or on the boards.  In his first stint in the first half, Williams penetrated and whipped a pass to Casey, who took it and jammed it home. That pumped him up, and he played with a lot of energy whenever he was in there.  While he was beaten out for some boards and mistimed an alley-oop slam, he did have a couple of big blocks, including one on Greer that triggered a break.  Another positive: Casey only picked up 1 foul.  

  ** Horvath: Nick continues to struggle with his shot, but his energy on the court and his aggressiveness on the boards are now up to Duke-level standards.  He went after a rebound that was perfectly positioned for a Temple player and forced a held ball.  Duke scored on that possession, so it was a big swing.  Nick avoided turning the ball over and simply worked hard on the offensive boards.  Duke doesn't really need him to be a big scorer, but they need him to play defense and rebound.  He can still certainly improve in both areas, but one senses that he's feeling more comfortable in this role.  

  ** Buckner: Andre saw his first official action of the year, to the  delight of everyone.  He played great defense on Greer for one possession (forcing a turnover) and pulled down a board.   

  ** Cameron Craziness:  This was a great game overall from the fans.  The pregame was very emotional, with both Coach K and Coach John Chaney being honored for being inducted into the half of fame--and the Duke crowd gave both a standing ovation.  The crowd was on Greer the whole time: "Lynn's a girl's name", "Ballhog" and "Pass, pass" with the latter two referring to his taking so many shots.  The enormous Rollerson drew a number of comments, including "Fe Fi Fo Fum" and yelling "boom" and jumping whenever he ran down the court.  One could also hear "Jason's winning" and "More than double" at the appropriate times.  There were also a ton of students in assorted holiday costumes adding to the randomness factor.  It seems that both the fans and the team are starting to round into form--and this was with finals looming.  

  ** Next Game: Saturday, December 8th on the road against Michigan.   

Reported by Rob Clough, tmc@duke.edu

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