Thursday, March 26, 2009

Duke starts off cold, trails 'Nova

Duke has made a habit of shooting poorly in the first half this season. For the most part, the Blue Devils were been able to get away with it against the ACC.

The slow start could cost the Devils their season against Villanova in the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Devils have made just seven of their first 24 shots and trail Villanova, 26-23 at halftime of the East Regional semifinal in Boston.

No. 3 Nova (10 of 29) hasn't shot much better but has been aggressive with its man defense and forced Duke into bad shots or rushed shots at the end of the shot clock.

Gerald Henderson, Duke's leading scorer, is 0-for-5 from the field with two points. The junior wing hit two free throws with 1:10 left for his first points.

Forward Dante Cunningham leads a balanced Nova scoring effort with seven points.

Jon Scheyer, 1-of-7, leads Duke with seven points.

Pitt (1) beat Xavier (4) 60-55 in the first game in the East Regional in Boston and awaits the Duke-Nova winner in the regional final.

On an officiating note, either the NCAA reads ACC Now (and has a sense of humor) or the luck of the random draw reunited Karl Hess and J.D. Collins — two-thirds of the officiating crew from the infamous Duke-FSU game in Durham on March 3.

-- J.P. Giglio

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Congratulations Duke (University of New Jersey @ Durham) and all your fans! You lasted one game more than I thought. Join your women's team on the sidelines! Have a seat and make yourself comfortable. Carolina will drive the Championship trophy through Durham allowing you a peek! Remember the trophy will be at home only 8 miles away. Again, CONGRATULATIONS. Maybe it's time for a new coach, someone who does not get out-worked, out-recruited and like again tonight, out-coached! Go Tarheels!!!

Anonymous said...

Please. UNC has been overhyped and overrated by the media since day one. "Undefeated?" "Greatest team ever??"

They'll get bounced by OU/Cuse Sunday and then all the Tarhole commentary will go into hiding for 6 months.