Bloggin' Rick in the building to help you through the start of a new work week.
Another magical home victory for us against Duke. Every opponent is different. You examine each team with meticulous preparation in not only what they do physically, but find out where they are mentally and emotionally.
We knew Duke would be motivated to give it their all, but with a short bench. We had to try and physically wear them out. Emotionally, coming off a tremendous road victory against a rival, most teams could be affected. That's not going to happen with a Coach K team. That being said, you not only have to wear them out with defensive pressure, but offensive paint touches. We had our run and it proved to be the difference maker to turn the game in our favor. Duke will get healthy at the right time.
It's interesting with Mangok, who was supposed to be out 6-8 weeks. He just started doing drills and is not even close to being ready and it's been nine weeks. I believe Amile Jefferson of Duke has a similar injury.
MVP Chart:
Pittsburgh is another difficult road game. They are #1 in the ACC in bench scoring (26.4 points per game) and are an excellent foul shooting team, ranking sixth in the nation in assisted field goals made. You won't find any more difficult road games than our next three.
Let's get ready for senior night!
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