Duke’s Derryck Thornton, Matt Jones expected to play against FSU

Both Duke guards Matt Jones and Derryck Thornton are expected to play Thursday against Florida State, coach Mike Krzyzewski said Monday on the ACC teleconference.

“Matt is doing much better. Derryck is sore, but there is no structural damage to his shoulder,” Krzyzewski said. “I would expect both of those kids to play on Thursday.”

Jones sprained his left ankle about 12 minutes into Duke’s 74-73 win at North Carolina this past Wednesday, and he left the Smith Center on crutches. The considerable swelling went down to the point where he participated in warm-ups before Duke’s loss Saturday at Louisville, but he was not healthy enough to play at full speed.

Thornton injured his right shoulder as he collided with Louisville center Chinanu Onuaku on a drive to the basket with about nine minutes left in the game. Thornton stayed bent over in pain for an extended period of time and eventually headed back to the locker room. When Thornton left the floor, the Blue Devils were ahead 54-49 with 9:05 left on the clock. Chase Jeter had to come in for Thornton, forcing Duke to use two bigs. By the time Thornton was able to return to the court, Louisville had taken a 66-59 lead with 3:55 left. Thornton hit two shots down the stretch to cut the Cardinals lead to 66-64 with 1:30 remaining, but Louisville iced the game at the free-throw line.

This story was originally published February 22, 2016 at 1:57 PM with the headline "Duke’s Derryck Thornton, Matt Jones expected to play against FSU."