More On Duke’s Big Win Over UNC

There were moments of concern in this game but overall, things are going very well for the Blue Devils

What else can you say about Duke’s smashing win over UNC? The Blue Devils dominated UNC from start to finish, other than a late run by the Tar Heels that took the final score down from humiliating to merely embarrassing. And afterwards, Duke coach Jon Scheyer said that was partly because Cooper Flagg, who pulled 38 minutes, was tired at the end.

Duke got a lot of props for taking the ball away from UNC, but less discussed was Elliot Cadeau’s poor performance: he had five of UNC’s 14 turnovers, just three assists and shot 3-10. But as bad as that is, it’s part of a trend for Cadeau, who has had at least four turnovers in five of his last eight games.

It was pretty clear to us that with four guards UNC would have trouble matching up. Cadeau is 6-1. RJ Davis is 6-0. Seth Trimble is an admirable player who is asked to do too much at 6-3. Ian Jackson is 6-5. Drake Powell, who is a top reserve, is 6-6.

Duke countered with Sion James (6-5), Tyrese Proctor (6-6), Kon Knueppel (listed at 6-7 but says he’s 6-6), Flagg (6-9) and Khaman Maluach (7-2).

UNC’s tallest starter was Ven-Allen Lubin.

Is it possible to overcome that? Yes, and we offer two words to prove it: Rick Pitino.

If Pitino had this roster, he would have them defending fanatically, forcing turnovers and running like Cheetahs on speed.

Chaos, in other words.

But this UNC can't do that, at least not now. And it was more of a problem that they couldn’t use the basketball form of Smith & Wesson’s Equalizer, the three point shot.

Duke shot much better from deep at 10-20 to UNC’s 7-19. But when everyone on your team is looking up at a much taller defender, that gets iffy. And Duke constantly switches, so Davis frequently saw Maluach, Flagg, Knueppel or Maliq Brown in their face. It makes it tough. Davis did hit a three over Maluach, but there were also times when he tried to blow by him and couldn’t. Maluach, may we remind you, is 7-2. Normally a little guy should be able to burn him on the perimeter. That didn’t really happen.

Then there’s Ian Jackson.

He’s a talented player, but he’s young and the ACC is educating him: in his last five games, Jackson has hit for six against Stanford (thanks to former Duke pit bull Jaylen Blakes), seven against Wake Forest, 19 against Boston College, nine against Pitt and now eight against Duke.

Toss out BC, where he hit 8-13, and in the other four games he’s shot 10-35. He’s got a bright future, but right now he’s not doing too well.

We also spotted one play where Knueppel just ruthlessly backed him down in the lane and Jackson had no defense. He’ll be fine in the long run, but right now, he’s struggling.

One of the interesting if subtle changes for Duke in this game was the return of Maliq Brown, who has missed several games since a knee injury suffered against Notre Dame.

Duke coach Jon Scheyer has called rightfully called Flag a savant. In Flagg’s case, he’s a whole-game savant. Brown is not that but he has an extraordinary sense for how to disrupt passing lanes and how to get knock the ball loose from his opponents. Honestly, we’re not sure Duke has ever had anyone who is better at that.

When you think about great Duke defenders, names like Billy King, Shane Battier, Tommy Amaker and Steve Wojciechowski come to mind. Even though it’s just barely February, and he’s a freshman, you’d have to add Flagg to the list, and Kenny Dennard, who still owns the Duke single-game steals record with 11, deserves a mention.

Maybe Battier had a similar knack, but he was more versatile and had more offensive responsibilities.

Brown is pretty unique. The best bet for any opponent? Keep the ball away from him. He’s like the Rainman of take aways.

As you probably know, UNC mounted a decent comeback late, which started after they went to a 2-3 zone with under 8:00 to play.

UNC didn't stay in the zone the entire time, but Duke’s only points from 6:57 to 2:43 were a pair of free throws by Flagg.

That’s going to be reviewed carefully. There were some bad decisions and miscommunications in that stretch and the fact that Duke as so far ahead made it irrelevant to winning or losing, but it still wasn’t good.

In the end, it looks like two programs going in different directions. Duke won its 15th straight and appears to be getting better. UNC has lost four of its last five, with the sole win being an overtime victory over a Boston College team that couldn’t manage an inbounds play at the end of regulation.

The Tar Heels will see Pitt at home and Clemson on the road next and both are going to be tough outs.

Meanwhile, Duke will go to Syracuse before visiting the Tigers themselves. From here, Syracuse looks like a classic trap game and Clemson will be very difficult. If Duke can get through both, the momentum for the closing stretch could be huge.