How Tyrese Proctor’s intense attention on defense keyed Duke basketball win streak
A young player adjusting to college basketball a year earlier than planned, Tyrese Proctor experienced plenty of growing pains this season.
That’s not unlike his Duke basketball team, which started the season ranked in the top 10 and tumbled out of the national rankings in January.
But just as the Blue Devils (22-8, 13-6 ACC) are surging with five consecutive wins and eight wins in their last 10, Proctor is comfortable and playing his best basketball as the regular season winds down.
That’s particularly true on defense, where the 6-foot-5 freshman point guard from Australia played exceptionally well during Duke’s winning streak.
“He just never stops, you know? He just never stops,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “He’s always in a stance. He’s got great attention to detail, great focus. And then he has really good balance when he’s guarding the ball.”
Duke’s 71-67 win over N.C. State on Tuesday night was a prime example of what Proctor is doing defensively.
Guarding N.C. State high-scoring sophomore guard Terquavion Smith, Proctor helped limit the Wolfpack star to eight points. That’s just the second time this season Smith, a sophomore who averages 17.3 points per game, had a single-digit scoring game.
Proctor had the primary defensive assignment in Duke’s man-to-man sets, though Smith would occasionally get paired up with another player due to a switching situation, a fast break or when Proctor was on the bench.
Aided by Synergy Sports basketball analytics and reviewing game film, Duke’s analytics staff determined Smith was 1 of 5 from the field, scoring three points, with two turnovers when Proctor was guarding him.
That’s on the heels of Saturday night when Duke topped Virginia Tech, 81-65. Proctor guarded Hunter Cattoor, the Hokies’ 6-3 senior guard who leads the ACC in 3-point shooting percentage (43.9%) while averaging 10.8 points per game.
On Saturday night, Cattoor attempted only four shots, missing his only two 3-pointers, while scoring six points in 38 minutes of play. Proctor forced him into two turnovers while he made just two of his four shots.
As he did with Smith, Proctor shadowed Cattoor in half-court defensive sets. The pushing and shoving with Smith away from the ball eventually led the officials to give Smith a technical foul.
“That’s what I’ve been emphasizing,” Proctor said. “Just trying to get in their best player’s head. I’m just doing my part on defense, just locking in on stuff that we talked about in scouting and just being confident.”
During Duke’s five-game winning streak, Proctor has mainly guarded Notre Dame’s Cormac Ryan, Syracuse’s Joe Girard and Louisville’s El Ellis in addition to Cattoor and Smith. Synergy analytics and Duke’s research shows Proctor has allowed players to hit a combined 8 of 27 field goals (29.6%) for 22 points (4.4 per game) while committing nine turnovers (1.8 per game) over those five games.
“It’s hard to get him up on fakes and he just is really disciplined,” Scheyer said. “When someone does score on him, it’s a really tough shot.”
For the season, shooters guarded by Proctor have hit 30.8% of their shots overall, including 29.2% of their 3-pointers. That puts him in the 92nd percentile nationally as a defender.
On Saturday night, Proctor’s defense will be tested again when the Blue Devils play rival North Carolina at the Smith Center in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels rely on scoring from guards Caleb Love (16.9 points per game) and RJ Davis (15.8).
Proctor and junior guard Jeremy Roach will be charged with checking those two. It’s the kind of challenge Proctor welcomed when, last May, he decided to finish high school a year early and enroll at Duke to play this season.
Now March is here, when solid guard play is usually a factor in how long teams remain alive in conference and NCAA tournaments.
Proctor is showing he’s capable of helping Duke find March success. His matchup with UNC is a chance to further solidify his reputation.
This story was originally published March 3, 2023 at 7:00 AM.