With Wendell Moore close to return, No. 9 Duke heads to Syracuse
Duke reaches the halfway point of its expanded ACC schedule this weekend still in search of the right combination of players to help it reach its ultimate goal in early April.
The No. 9-ranked Blue Devils play at Syracuse on Saturday night (8 p.m., ESPN) as they start a stretch of three league road games over an eight-day stretch.
At some point during this time, which also includes trips to Boston College on Tuesday and North Carolina on Feb. 8, Duke (17-3, 7-2 ACC) should have its full roster of players available again.
Freshman guard Wendell Moore, out since having surgery to repair a broken bone in his right hand on Jan. 6, returned to practice this week and is on the verge of being cleared for game play — either Saturday at Syracuse or Tuesday night in Boston at the latest.
The 6-6 Moore has missed six games since breaking the fourth metacarpal bone during a Jan. 4 game at Miami. A versatile, athletic defender and able rebounder on the perimeter, Moore’s absence goes beyond his season averages of 7.4 points and 3.9 rebounds.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has said several times the Blue Devils aren’t the same team without Moore, who started five of his 14 games played an average of 22.2 minutes per outing.
While junior Alex O’Connell and sophomore Joey Baker are considered better pure shooters, Moore’s ability to solidly defend at different spots and handle minutes at point guard on offense are important to the Blue Devils.
The brace that covered Moore’s healing right hand was removed this week and, for the first time since his injury, he was in uniform and participated in pre-game shooting with his teammates for Tuesday’s 79-67 win over Pittsburgh at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
He looked comfortable knocking down shot after shot.
With the ACC now playing 20 league games, Duke has plenty of time to regain its rhythm before March arrives. The Blue Devils play nine ACC games in February before home games with N.C. State and UNC the first week of March to close the regular season.
“You’ve got to bring it every single game because they mean a lot,” Duke sophomore point guard Tre Jones said. “I’m just trying to come out, bring it every single game, continue to build. We’re in the second half of the season now, so we’ve got to keep building to the team we want to be.”
While Moore has been sidelined, a few notable things have occurred with the Blue Devils’ backcourt.
Jordan Goldwire, a junior guard, played 37 minutes off the bench in Duke’s first game without Moore, a 73-64 win at Georgia Tech on Jan. 8. Goldwire has started the next five games and has played better and better.
Over the last four games, he’s committed just two turnovers over over 129 minutes played. He scored a career-best 13 points, hitting three 3-pointers, against Pitt.
“Nothing really changed,” Goldwire said. “I still do the same routine I did coming off the bench. (There’s) just a little bit more responsibility starting the game off, trying to get off to good starts, faster starts. Nothing in my routine has changed. I’m still required to do the same things from the start of the game. It’s not added pressure. You’ve just got to go out there and play.”
Goldwire’s play has allowed Duke to use the same starting five in each of the last five games, with Jones and freshmen Vernon Carey, Matthew Hurt and Cassius Stanley rounding out the group. That’s the longest stretch of consecutive games with the same starting lineup for Duke this season.
At the same time, O’Connell and Baker have seen their minutes shrink even with Moore unavailable.
O’Connell has played two, five and one minute over the last three games. Baker started the Georgia Tech game and played 17 minutes off the bench in a 90-59 win over Wake Forest on Jan. 11.
He missed a 79-72 loss at Clemson with a sprained foot and hasn’t played more than 12 minutes in any of Duke’s last three games.
Two of the better games O’Connell played offensively last season came against Syracuse as his 3-point shot was effective against the Orange’s 2-3 zone. He scored 16 and 20 points in those two games, making a combined nine 3-pointers.
Even with Moore ready to return, O’Connell might get a chance to shine again on Saturday night at the Carrier Dome.
Krzyzewski has touted Duke’s depth, regularly using 10 players in the first halves of games prior to Moore’s injury.
Now that Moore is close to returning, it appears he and seniors Jack White and Javin DeLaurier comprise the eight players the Blue Devils will use the most as the calendar flips to February with March approaching.