Quotes & Notes - February 29
vs. Louisville
After every game I always watch the press conference, read the quotes, and study the box score. Quotes & Notes is my wrap-up of Duke’s most recent game(s).
Quotes
“Great to get that win. I thought our sharing was terrific overall. I thought we were a little sloppy in the first half, but once we settled into the game, overall our defense was really good. Besides they got a few transition baskets in the first half, I thought we did a really good job. Then, unfortunately for us, we have to adjust without Caleb [Foster]. My heart breaks for him that he couldn't play today; he has had such a good year and he impacts winning in so many ways besides just the box score and the stats. We’re going to be without him for some time. I do not know what that time is, but we have to adjust. We have to step up, just like we have had to do throughout the year with different injuries, whether it be Jeremy [Roach] or Mark [Mitchell] or Tyrese [Proctor]. We looked at some different lineups. We went bigger with TJ [Power] and Sean [Stewart]. Getting them more minutes was a really good thing for us tonight. We need to move on quickly and get ready for a really tough game on Saturday, but I am proud of the team responding from [last] Saturday and to get this win.”
- Coach Scheyer on the Louisville game
“I thought we had great effort. It helps when off the bench, Sean has four offensive rebounds, Ryan [Young] has three. Collectively we’ve learned that we have to gang rebound. Early in the year, you guys have asked me a lot of questions and we’ve talked about it as a staff, how are we going to rebound? We’re smaller and we’ve done a great job defensive rebounding. That hasn’t been a thing. Offensively, we’ve gotten better as the season has gone on. That’s something we’re going to have to do moving forward. Winning those extra possessions tonight, those plays added up.”
- Coach Scheyer on Duke’s rebounding
“One, your heart breaks for Caleb first and foremost. That’s where my mind went right away. He was basically in tears on Saturday on the bench. He wanted to play so badly, he had it going in the first half and that’s the first thing. And after that, everybody has to step up…it’s all about preparing for the next game. And we have to look at things differently, that’s just the bottom line. It’s not all the sudden you plug somebody in for Caleb. Nobody does what Caleb does on our team, and that’s where you talk about TJ stepping up, Sean who already has been playing but more of an opportunity. And then the guys that started. Look, those starters tonight, they’ve been in a lot of big time games already. We need all of them to compete every game and to be really good…we have to find something during this period we haven’t found yet. And I think it’s an opportunity for individuals and it’s an opportunity for our team where, when Caleb comes back, we’re even better, we’re stronger and we’re a different team.”
- Coach Scheyer on adjusting without Caleb Foster
Stats
Duke matched a season-high with 23 assists, including 7 dimes from Tyrese Proctor and 6 from Kyle Filipowski. The Blue Devils did turn it over 10 times in the first half, including 5 in the first seven minutes, but committed just 4 turnovers after halftime. In the second half, Duke grabbed 9 of their 13 offensive rebounds for a 10-3 advantage in second chance points. The Blue Devils’ +19 margin on the glass also matched a season-high. Without Caleb Foster, the lineup of McCain, Roach, Power, Mitchell, and Filipowski was Duke’s second most used rotation last night. Those five guys generated 1.78 points-per-possession and were +11 in 5:36 on the court.
Notes
In Case You Missed It: The Duke Women’s Basketball team took down two ranked opponents last week, with a 58-45 win at #17 Syracuse and a 69-58 win over #6 NC State in Cameron. Coach Lawson’s team will finish up the regular season at home tonight against Virginia, before traveling to Chapel Hill on Sunday afternoon.
Duke Baseball remained undefeated to start their season with a series win at home against Northwestern, and a 17-0 shutout over Davidson on Tuesday. Duke has a home series with Akron and a match-up with Appalachian State, before starting ACC play at #1 Wake Forest next weekend.
Next Play: Saturday March 2 | 6:00 pm ESPN | Duke welcomes Virginia to Cameron.
Thanks for reading, Go Duke!
Sources
Box Score - Duke 84 Louisville 59
Postgame Press Conference - Coach Scheyer
Postgame Quotes - Coach Scheyer