Game Preview: Duke hosts Wake Forest who sorely needs a statement win

Duke and Wake Forest will meet for the 260th time on Monday in a series that dates back to the 1905-06 season. The Blue Devils have won 24 consecutive home games against the Demon Deacons, Duke’s longest home win streak. Wake Forest last won in Durham on Jan. 11, 1997.

Series & Game Info

Overall Duke leads, 179-80
In Durham, NC Duke leads, 81-18
at Cameron Indoor Stadium Duke leads, 66-16
In Winston-Salem, NC Duke leads, 52-41
at LJVM Coliseum Duke leads, 19-13
Neutral Sites Duke leads, 33-9
Last Meeting @Duke 75, Wake Forest 73 (Jan. 31, 2023)

TV/Video Stream ESPN
Play-by-Play Dave O’Brien
Analyst Cory Alexander
Producer Kim Belton

Radio Blue Devil Sports Net.
Play-by-Play David Shumate
Analyst John Roth
Engineer John Rose
In Durham 96.5 FM & 620 AM
SiriusXM 84

The Teams

Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Wake Forest enters Monday with an overall record of 16-7 and an 8-4 record in the ACC. They are coming off a big home win against NC State 83-79. Wake is second in the country in free throw shooting percentage at just over 80%. They are also second in the ACC in defensive rebounding, first in scoring an second in field goal percentage.

Four Demon Deacons average more than 14 points per game, led by junior guard Hunter Sallis, the ACC’s third-leading scorer with 18.5 points per contest. Sallis is shooting 40% from beyond the arc. Redshirt sophomore Kevin Miller comes in at second in scoring at 16.3 points per game and leading the team in assists at 3.9 per game. Cameron Hildreth and Andrew Car round out the double-figure scorers at 14.3 and 14.1 respective. Gonzaga transfer Efton Reid leads Wake in rebounding at 8.4 per game.

Duke Blue Devils

Duke (18-5, 9-3 ACC) closes out its three-game homestand, taking on Wake Forest (16-7, 8-4 ACC) as part of ESPN’s Big Monday slate. Tip-off on Feb. 12 is scheduled for 7 p.m. Duke is the only team to rank among the top four ACC statistical leaders in both scoring offense (3rd/80.7 points per game) and scoring defense (4th/67.6 points allowed per game). The Blue Devils lead the ACC in scoring margin (+13.0) and field goal percentage (.481). Duke ranks 10th nationally in fewest turnovers (9.3 per game) and 13th in assist/turnover ratio (1.67).

Kyle Filipowski ranks seventh in scoring (17.2 ppg), sixth in rebounding (8.2 rpg), fourth in blocked shots (1.7 bpg) and 10th in field goal percentage (.495). Kyle Filipowski has tallied double figures in scoring 50 times during his two-year Duke career. The Blue Devils own a 40-10 record in those contests. Jared McCain has grabbed double-digit rebounds in three of the last four games with a pair of double-doubles, including 11 points and 10 rebounds versus Boston College. Mark Mitchell topped the Blue Devils with 17 points in Saturday’s home win over Boston College. Duke is 7-0 when Mitchell leads the team in scoring the past two seasons. Jeremy Roach tops the ACC and is 16th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (3.19), while Tyrese Proctor is positioned fourth in the conference and 45th nationally (2.67).

Thoughts

Hunter Sallis is a machine from the outside, he can get his shot off of curls, off the dribble and at 6’5 he’s going to be a tough cover for the Blue Devils. Sallis is by no means the only worry for the Blue Devils, Wake has multiple ways to put the ball in the basket – Cameron Hildreth is a name Duke fans will know as he has on occasion given the Blue Devils fits with his Euro style of play, adept at finishing at the rim but also very dangerous in the mid-range with his turnaround. Wake’s size is also going to be a concern for the Blue Devils – Efton Reid is a load inside and as he rounds into form Wake is going to get better and better. Reid has the potential of giving the Blue Devils fits with his ability to push guys around and take up space. Kyle Filipowski will have to contend with a weightier player that can also match him in height – the other side is Andrew Carr, another big with the ability to stretch the floor with his shooting stroke. He shoots 40% from 3 and over 50% overall.

For me the player to watch is going to be Kevin Miller, not the most heralded guard on the ACC but he’s putting together a great year – second on the team in scoring and the leader in assists, he’s not much of a threat from beyond the arc but he has the ability to change the game in other ways and he must be accounted for. Duke will be playing on a short turnaround as will Wake but with Duke’s youth how they deal with that will be something to pay attention to. With Duke’s fairly short bench rotation it will be important for Duke to get out to an early lead so that John Scheyer can sub with confidence and get his starting lineup the rest they need to content with a very good Wake team.