Photos by Chuck Liddy - cliddy@newsobserver.com
Duke forward Josh Hairston steals the ball from Virginia Tech's Victor Davila (14).
As the video highlights play overhead before every Duke home game at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Josh Hairston usually walks over to the student section and implores them to make more noise.
If Hairston makes his second consecutive start today when the seventh-ranked Blue Devils (19-3, 6-1 ACC) host Miami (13-7, 4-3) , Duke will have to see if another one of its reserves flaps his arms in front of the students.
There figures to be someone who can fill that role for today's game (3 p.m., ESPNU). If nothing else, Duke's players have proven to be remarkably interchangeable this season.
The Blue Devils have used six different starting lineups since ACC play began, underscoring the fluidity of their rotation.
"We're constantly looking at things," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "It's not like anybody has cemented spots."
Only forward Mason Plumlee has started all of Duke's last eight games. He's also the only Blue Devil to start every game this season.
Austin Rivers and Seth Curry have started seven of the past eight. Andre Dawkins has started five games, while Miles Plumlee and Quinn Cook have started four. Ryan Kelly (three starts), Tyler Thornton (one start) and Hairston (one start) have begun the majority of the games on the bench.
Hairston's start may have been the most surprising of the roster tweaks. The sophomore forward had been averaging only seven minutes per ACC game before Thursday's win over Virginia Tech, contributing 1.5 points and 0.3 rebounds.
But Hairston had a strong week in practice, and the coaching staff also likes how vocal he is on the defensive end. Krzyzewski said Hairston is the team's best communicator among its big men.
"I know coach trusts me," Hairston said. "I want to show he could trust me some more; that I could do anything he needed me to do."
Hairston did nothing to hurt his cause against the Hokies, scoring six points and grabbing three rebounds in his 15 minutes. His powerful finish of an alley-oop pass from Rivers was one of the highlights in the second half.
"I think I did well," Hairston said. "I couldn't have asked for anything better. I know I can play this game. I just wanted to go out there and do what coach needed me to do, which was play defense and bring energy.
"I think I did a good job with that - just staying sharp on defense and helping my teammates out. When I had opportunities to score, I did."
In the end, it probably doesn't matter who starts for Duke.
Since the beginning of the ACC season, Kelly has begun three games on the bench after starting the previous game.
In those three games (Georgia Tech, Wake Forest and Virginia Tech), Kelly has averaged 18.6 points, including a 21-point effort against the Yellow Jackets that matched his career high. In his other 19 games, the junior forward averaged 11.8 points.
