Duke’s Post Season Preview

With the recent loss to North Carolina on Saturday, the Blue Devils are now the 5^th seed in the ACC conference behind North Carolina, Florida St, Louisville, and Notre Dame.  The 1-4 seeds getting a first and second round bye, and the 5-9 seeds getting a first-round bye, this will pit Duke against the winner of 12 seed Clemson vs. 13 seed NC State.  With Duke’s arsenal of offensive weapons such as national player of the year candidate Grayson Allen and 1,000-point scorer Luke Kennard, I see no way Duke loses to any one of those two teams.  However, this means they will face a very good Louisville team.  Louisville has a pair of guards just as capable as Allen and Kennard.  Sophomore and Junior guards Donovan Mitchell and Quentin Snider are often overlooked when it comes to talks about backcourts, especially in the ACC.  Overshadowed by players like Joel Berry, Grayson Allen, and Dwayne Bacon, Louisville’s’ dynamic guards are capable of achieving big numbers in big games.  Not to mention Louisville’s big man inside Anas Mahmoud who was too hot to handle for the Blue Devils earlier in the year.  Going for 17 points while also collecting 11 rebounds.  Even though this is a very winnable game for Duke, I see them losing in a closely contested game.  Even though Allen and Kennard inevitably will score big numbers, Duke’s bench will have to step up if they want to advance.  Earlier in the year, when these two teams met, Allen and Kennard combined for 40 points but the bench, nowhere to be found only scoring 3.  No matter how many points Duke’s superstars score, their bench will need to show some life if they want to advance to the semi-finals.

                Having said that, I would love to see a third Duke UNC game this year.  No matter what seed these teams are, the games are always closely contested.  Both teams bring their overwhelming fan base and the atmosphere at these games is one you won’t find anywhere else.  If Duke beats Louisville, and UNC beats either Syracuse or Miami, then these two teams will compete in a grudge match.  Each team winning one game this season, the winner gaining ultimate bragging rights.  In the first contest, Duke’s superstars performed immensely well.  Allen had 25, Kennard added 20, and Tatum pitched in with 19.  If Duke wants to win this game, their bigs need to step up and contribute in a major way.  Not necessarily in the points column, but certainly in regards to defense and rebounding.  In both games this season, North Carolina’s forwards have dominated, leading in both points in the paint, and second chance points.  With Duke’s lack of a true center, their forwards Amile Jefferson and Jayson Tatum need to be exceptional in order to contain the overpowering presence of North Carolina’s Kennedy Meeks and Luke Maye.

                Even though Duke might not have had the season they wanted, (projected #1 seed in the tournament in the beginning of the year, now projected #5 seed) superstars like Grayson Allen and Luke Kennard thrive in March.  Three years ago, when Allen was just a freshman, he thrived under the immense pressure brought upon by this tournament.  Allen notched 16 points and boosted his team to a national championship.  Even though Duke might not have the best seed, look for Grayson Allen and Luke Kennard to get hot and carry their team further than some people would otherwise think is possible.