No. 2 Duke basketball won its season-opening game but did so without a starting player
No. 2-ranked Duke has four starters back from last season’s ACC championship team, but one of them didn’t play when the Blue Devils opened the college basketball season with an easy win Monday night.
Sophomore forward Mark Mitchell sat out Duke’s 92-54 win over Dartmouth at Cameron Indoor Stadium with a sprained ankle.
This injury is not expected to be a long-term issue, Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. But there’s no guarantee when he’ll return to play for the Blue Devils.
“I’m not too concerned,” Scheyer said after the game. “I don’t want to get ahead of myself, either. I think it’s important tomorrow to see how he’s doing and then Wednesday. My hope is he plays Friday, but it’s too soon to tell. I do not think there’s some long-term thing.”
The 6-9 Mitchell started 35 of Duke’s 36 games last season, averaging 9.1 points and 4.5 rebounds. He missed Duke’s 65-52 NCAA Tournament second-round loss to Tennessee in Orlando, Florida, with a knee injury.
Mitchell played in Duke’s 109-64 exhibition win over UNC Pembroke last Wednesday night. In 19 minutes, he scored 11 points with two rebounds and three assists.
After playing Dartmouth on Monday night, Duke plays No. 12 Arizona at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Friday night before heading to Chicago to play No. 4 Michigan State in the Champions Classic.
Scheyer said Mitchell wanted to play against Dartmouth.
“He tried,” Scheyer said. “He wanted to go for today, he just wasn’t ready yet.”
This story was originally published November 6, 2023 at 8:01 PM.