Tough game awaits Duke at UNC. First, Blue Devils showed grit by beating Virginia Tech
Facing a tough test, on the eve of the toughest test, brought toughness Duke sorely needs if it wants this season to be a special one.
The No. 7 Blue Devils headed to Cassell Coliseum on Monday night, playing the experienced Hokies just two days after needing two Tyrese Proctor free throws with one second left to beat Clemson, 72-71, at home.
That two-day turnaround before a road game is tough enough. Duke suffered a 78-75 loss at Virginia Tech last season in similar circumstances.
These circumstances were more daunting. Duke prepared for Monday night’s game at the Hokies with Saturday’s game at rival North Carolina looming. The Tar Heels lead the ACC and are playing like one of the best teams in the country.
But that’s a challenge to come. Monday night, Duke took care of business with solid defense, strong rebounding and scintillating shooting to topple Virginia Tech, 77-67.
“It was incredible,” Duke sophomore center Kyle Filipowski said, “especially with the last game against Clemson as well. Just in that being a battle. I don’t really think we’re getting nervous. We’re staying poised pretty well when we’re in situations like this. That’s just a credit to us for staying together, coming together during these hard moments and just pushing through.”
Blue Devils were well prepared
Any slippage in game preparation or attention to detail could have doomed Duke to a loss before playing at UNC on Saturday. Instead, the Blue Devils limited Virginia Tech to 6 of 22 (27.3%) shooting on 3-pointers. This from a Hokies team that averages 8.5 made 3-pointers per game and hits 36.2% of its attempts.
Duke senior guard Jeremy Roach knew the stats by heart, particularly those for Virginia Tech guard Hunter Cattor. He made seven 3-pointers when the Hokies beat Duke, 82-67, in the 2022 ACC tournament final and five more in last season’s Virginia Tech win at Cassell.
But Duke held him to just two 3-pointers on four attempts Monday night while backcourt mate Sean Pedulla went 0 for 6.
“It’s been a big thing just trying to limit their 3s,” Roach said. “....I think the switching (defense) that we did kind of messed them up a little bit.”
The Blue Devils, one game after losing the rebounding battle to Clemson by nine, grabbed 18 more rebounds than Virginia Tech on Monday night. Guard Jared McCain led the team with 10.
“We’ve been a little inconsistent with the rebounding,” said Filipowski, who grabbed eight despite being slowed with four fouls. “The last few games, some we’re doing great and some we’re not. We just keep needing those reminders.”
Duke added its shooting touch to those tougher aspects of the game. This happened to be a night when the Blue Devils were hitting their 3-pointers. Duke made 9 of 17, with Roach making four of five. Caleb Foster hit both his 3-point attempts while Tyrese Proctor made 2 of 3.
Even with Jared McCain making just 1 of 6, the Blue Devils had enough firepower to grab its first lead with 12:58 to play in the first half and never surrender it again.
“Proud of this win,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “When you get a chance to play two games in three days, to win both of them is really good. Looking forward to building from here.”
Looking forward to Duke-UNC
Where Duke (16-4, 7-2 ACC) goes from here is what’s important. The first Duke-UNC game of the season is a barometer for both programs.
Last season, the Tar Heels were struggling on the way to missing the NCAA tournament. Duke helped keep the Tar Heels home in March with wins over UNC in Chapel Hill and Durham.
This season, No. 3 UNC (17-3, 9-0 ACC) is at least two games in front of every other ACC team as the league regular season schedule reaches the halfway point.
Even having won 11 of its last 12 games overall entering the UNC game, Duke is the team with proving to do. In contests decided by five points or less, the Blue Devils lost four of their first five games this season.
The one-point win over Clemson showed Duke can make plays late to secure a win. At Virginia Tech, the Blue Devils showed maturity by preparing well on a short turnaround and by keeping their focus on the Hokies and not ahead to Saturday night’s game at the Smith Center.
Now Duke gets four whole days to think about, and prepare for, the short ride to Chapel Hill to face its fierce rival.
Losing Monday night would have taken some of the shine off the battle of top-10 teams that awaits Saturday night. Duke showed enough moxie to prevent that and now will need even more to handle the next challenge.
This story was originally published January 30, 2024 at 6:00 AM.