In an offensive set that Duke calls "Flash," sophomore guard Seth Curry took a dribble handoff from Mason Plumlee at the top of the key Wednesday night.
In one fluid motion, Curry rose to bury a 21-foot jumper over UNC guard Dexter Strickland for three of the season-high 22 points he scored in No. 5-ranked Duke's 79-73 win over the 20th-ranked Tar Heels.
The shot demonstrated the progress that Curry has made as the Blue Devils (22-2, 9-1 ACC) prepare to visit Miami (15-9, 4-6) tonight (6:30, FSCR).
"That was as good as a kid could do that," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "So he's getting that shot off a lot quicker."
Curry has had to learn a lot this season after sitting out 2009-10 as a transfer student from Liberty. He entered the season in a reserve role that would have allowed him to ease into ACC-caliber basketball behind senior Nolan Smith and talented freshman Kyrie Irving.
But Irving suffered a toe injury on Dec. 4 that still has him out indefinitely. Suddenly, Curry was thrust into a more prominent and altered role.
When Irving, Smith and Singler all were on the floor, defenses had to pay a lot of attention to all three of them. That allowed Curry to set up at a convenient spot near the 3-point arc and wait for the ball to come to him for an open jumper.
"Now he, we can't do that," Krzyzewski said. "So you've got to come off screens well. He was really coming off screens well [against North Carolina]. And when he did, he went right into his shot."
Against the Tar Heels, Curry had just two points when he got the ball for the final possession of the first half with Smith, Duke's backcourt leader, on the bench. Krzyzewski called for him to create a shot for himself, and he beat Kendall Marshall to hit a 16-foot, pull-up jumper five seconds before halftime.
Then Curry scored 18 in the second half, including seven in a row to tie the score at 54-54.
"You've got a lot of confidence out there," Curry said. "Coaches are calling a few plays for you. I just worked hard to get my shot, and I was able to knock it down."
Curry's efforts to adjust are reflected in his statistics. He is averaging 8.8 points per game for the season; in his last five games, however, Curry's output has spiked to 13.2 points a contest.
Still, producing on a consistent basis is the next hurdle. Duke's last five games include a Jan. 30 loss at St. John's in which Curry was held to three points and zero assists in 23 minutes.
So he has plenty of work left to do. But as a player who was largely overlooked in recruiting until he led the nation's freshmen in scoring at Liberty in 2008-09, he is grateful for his opportunities.
His brother Stephen had some special moments in the NCAA tournament at Davidson before moving on to the Golden State Warriors. Now Seth has a memorable performance in college basketball's biggest rivalry to add to the family legacy.
"I was on the free-throw line late in the game, thinking to myself, 'I've dreamed about being in this situation,'" he said. "And I was out there living it."
