Quotes & Notes - March 10
vs. North Carolina
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
“Congrats to North Carolina. It was a disappointing loss for us. It would be one thing if you felt like you controlled the things that you can control, and I don’t think we quite did that. But you have to give them credit, the way they came out…You know, [Cormac] Ryan sees the two threes, he’s wide open, and it all started from bad possessions on offense. Not being strong with the ball or taking some weak shot, and it’s disappointing. I just want to thank our students, our fans, everybody. I mean, this environment – I don’t care where you go – it’s the best environment in college basketball, and there’s a part of you that feels like you let them down. And as a team, you know it’s senior night, and I think we probably got caught up in some of that stuff - and all well-intentioned - but we didn’t play like we’ve been playing. The connectivity on offense and you’ve got to get some of those loose balls. Still, like I said, it’s a one-possession game start of the second half, you cut it to three late, you’re still right there, but just too many plays throughout. I told the team afterwards, it’d be one thing if we lost and we weren’t good enough or it’s something you can’t control; I feel everything here is what we can control. I really do, like this group can do it. We have to learn from this. You have to learn and understand those possessions. It’s not just a bad shot; it’s a bad shot now you’re down three and they have momentum. You know, I could go through the game. This group has always responded, I think it’s going to be nothing different now. But it hurts, it’s disappointing, and we have to get refreshed and regrouped and go into the ACC Tournament fresh and understand what we have to do to get better.”
- Coach Scheyer on the North Carolina game
Stats
Last night’s outcome was disappointing, and congratulations to North Carolina on winning the ACC regular season. Carolina played great, obviously Cormac Ryan, but their entire team made winning contributions. However, in basketball (and life) more than one thing can be true, so please remember what I’m about to say doesn’t mean the previous sentence isn’t true also. UNC led 17-4 with 15:21 remaining in the first half, and then used a 7-0 run spanning the 15:31 to the 14:35 mark of the second half, meaning the Tar Heels outscored Duke by 20 points in 5:35 of game time. Duke won the other 34:25 by 15 points. This illustrates both the importance of being locked in for the full 40:00, and that Duke won the majority of those 40:00. I’m not making an excuse or taking anything away from UNC’s win, of course you add up all the minutes. I could say I made 16 pars and 2 triple bogeys - I still shot +6 over, but I’d also feel encouraged with 16 pars. The point is, I’m taking the glass half full perspective. Coach Scheyer and his staff will have plenty of honest feedback, especially addressing the controllable mistakes such as shot selection. Duke was outscored 19-6 in fast break points (their largest deficit of the season), shot just 2 of 11 from three-point range in the first half, and posted a lower points-per-shot efficiency than North Carolina from all three areas of the floor. There are no moral victories, the final score is what matters, but I’m an optimist and I love this Duke team. Without Caleb Foster, Duke went 3-1 to close the regular season, and is now back to 0-0 heading into the ACC Tournament. Congrats again to Carolina.
With the ACC regular season complete, here are Duke’s per game averages for conference play.
Notes
After the game, Jeremy Roach took responsibility for the loss, saying “It’s a bad feeling, just to lose like this on your home floor and know that I could’ve played so much better. That’s really it. This one’s on me for sure…I think the emotions got to us a little bit, definitely to me, for sure. But we’ve got to just learn from it.” Coach Scheyer appreciated the sentiment but said, “That’s good for Jeremy to take responsibility, but it’s not just on him. It’s on our team, it’s on our coaching staff, it’s on our players, our whole team. We’re in this together. And I learned my first year here, we win together, we lose together - and Jeremy’s heart is always in the right place, he’s sacrificed a lot this season…This is not on him, this is on us.” I hate it for Jeremy that he feels that way, and love the collective responsibility Coach Scheyer continues to emphasize. Jeremy has been a terrific leader this season, and I hope he knows how important he’s been to the Duke program for so many reasons.
Next Play: Thursday March 14 | 7:00 pm ESPN/ESPN2 | Duke will either play Syracuse or the winner of NC State vs. Louisville. Here is the full ACC Tournament bracket.
Thanks for reading, Go Duke!
Sources
Box Score - Duke 79 North Carolina 84