By: Ben McCormick
January 23, 2023
The Duke men's basketball team (14-5, 5-3) travels to Blacksburg, Va. to play Virginia Tech (11-8, 1-7) on Monday night.
Despite coming within just one point of then ranked No. 19 Clemson, the Hokies have been dreadful in conference play. After defeating then ranked No. 18 North Carolina on Dec. 4, albeit without Armando Bacot, Virginia Tech was 8-1 overall and 1-0 in conference play. After that, the Hokies closed non-conference play with three more wins to improve to 11-1. Their only loss of the season at that point was to now ranked No. 17 College of Charleston by two.
Now Virginia Tech is 11-8 coming off the heels of its seventh consecutive loss, and just 1-7 in conference play. A team that was once regarded as a team likely to make the NCAA Tournament, the reigning ACC Tournament Champions are in desperate need of a win.
Desperation can bring out a different side of a team, and Duke knows all too well what a Virginia Tech team with a healthy Hunter Cattoor can do.
It is true that Cattoor missed time during this losing streak, but Virginia Tech has not looked like a formidable foe as of late...well...at least not on paper. But the truth of the matter is, this is not a team anyone should easily shrug off. Yes, they have lost seven straight. But five of those losses are by four or less points (or in overtime). In fact, in its last two games Virginia Tech has matched up with two ranked squads: No. 7 Virginia and No. 24 Clemson. It came within 10 of Virginia, which is not a terrible finish considering the matchup, and came within just one point of a Clemson team that was fresh off beating Duke.
The Hokies rank 57th in both offensive and defensive efficiency according to KenPom. There is nothing besides limiting their own turnovers that Virginia Tech does at an elite level, but if you've ever watched a Duke-Virginia Tech game in Blacksburg, you know of one inevitability. The Hokies come to shoot. They only shoot 34% from three as a team, but that number isn't low enough to prompt any level of ease for Duke fans, especially considering the scorching effort the Hokies put up from deep the last time these two teams met in the ACC Tournament Championship last year.
Sean Pedulla leads the Hokies in scoring with 15.9 PPG. Pedulla is also an effective distributtor as he averages 4.2 APG as well. The Hokies big man, Justyn Mutts, is also a high level passer, assisting at the same rate as Pedulla. Mutts is scoring 13.1 PPG and pulling down 7.7 RPG. Senior forward Grant Basille is also scoring at a sold rate for VT, he averages 13.8 PPG.
After getting Jeremy Roach back from a lingering toe injury (that he is now playing through) versus No. 17 Miami on Saturday, Duke is feeling much better going into a very tough stretch of games that includes games at UVA, vs. UNC, and at Miami. Roach was solid in his return, scoring 14 points. He is joined in the backcourt by Tyrese Proctor who has been breaking out offensively lately, averaging 14 PPG in his last three games.
Proctor has looked more confident in the role of the primary ball handler and starter, and as a result much of the team has looked more confident. Speaking of confidence, Dereck Lively II had one of his best games as a Blue Devil to date against the Hurricanes Saturday. The big man pulled down 10 rebounds and blocked a career high 5 shots, while scoring 6 points. A confident Lively could be the difference maker for Duke, especially defensively.
Kyle Filipowski has been a killer around the rim for most of the season, but his production has seen a huge boost lately., He just took home his sixth ACC Rookie of the Week this season, and his second consecutive. In Duke's last three games, Filipowski is averaging 21 PPG and 14.3 RPG. He has been fantastic for the Blue Devils and is beginning to prove that he can in fact be that "go-to guy" Duke has been craving all season.
The keys for Duke in this matchup are to limit threes, dominate the boards, and avoid cold stretches on offense by not settling for too many jump shots. This is a game Duke should win, but not one that can be taken for granted, especially on the road where Duke has struggled this season. The Blue Devils are just 1-3 in road games with the one win coming by a single point at Boston College. Duke is looking to finally get out of its road game funk and get a win streak going.
@Duke_Wisdom
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