0 - 0 It’s the middle of February and it is definitely starting to feel like the end of the regular season is upon us. Duke’s annual out of conference game against a likely tournament team this year featured the 24th ranked Temple Owls, who took advantage of another slow start by the newly minted (again) Duke Blue Devils at home. While the two senior leaders were the only players to score in double digits, the contending (or leading) candidate for National Player of the Year was not Duke’s leading scorer like he had been for 5 games. Instead, his teammate of 4 years Kyle Singler broke out of a mini-slump by scoring 28 points on 10-19 shooting.
How Did Kyle Do It?
Strangely enough for him, this was one of the four games all year where Kyle didn’t make a 3-pointer. While it may be of some concern that this was the 3rd game in a row where he didn’t notch one from beyond the arc, in this game it seemed to be more by design. Time and time again, Ryan Kelly would hover around the perimeter with Kyle taking his defender down on the block. Whether through a pass over the top or a simple post entry pass, Kyle received the ball in position where he could either take his man off the dribble or body him down into easy scoring position. It was a brilliant move by Coach Mike Krzyzewski to put one of his best players, struggling from the outside, in a place where he could get much higher percentage shots. K said after the game,
“He’s had some of those shots in the last two weeks, and I think he’s been taking them like a jump shooter. Tonight he took them with more physicality, much more force and finished. The first shot he took tonight was like the shots he has been taking. He missed that layup. You got to attack the rim. We reminded of that and he did attack the rim the rest of the game.”
Kyle scored a lot of points, but Coach K put him in the position to do most of that damage.
What Could This Mean Down The Stretch?
If Kyle is able to take his man down on the block, it will help get more scorers on the floor for the Devils as most of their most potent offensive players are guards or wings. While Ryan hasn’t been hitting the outside shot, he has that ability and will have a mismatch outside if his man has to follow him out there. If his man decides to stay down low, Kyle will be at an advantage against a bigger, slower post guy. It also shows Duke’s other post players that they can get the ball down low and score with the right moves, and should take one of their men out high, opening up the lane more.
Up Next?
Duke travels to Blacksburg, VA to take on the Hokies in ESPN’s College Gameday Matchup at 9 PM on Saturday.
