Paulus Leads, Duke Wins

New York City, Madison Square Garden. Many people have made their names at the Garden. Patrick Ewing, Michael Jordan, Reggie Miller, and JJ Redick. A new guy stepped up when it mattered most. His name is Greg Paulus, the Duke point guard that everyone loves to criticize. Even I have been guilty of saying he is no good. But tonight was all about Paulus. Without him, Duke would be looking at a lose, and wondering what the rest of the season would hold.

Everyone feed off Paulus, as this was a total team effort. Every player on the floor contributed and lead Duke to a big win on the biggest stage.

The first half was a complete embarrassment to college basketball. The score was 21-20, with Gonzaga holding the slight advantage. Of course, most couldn't see it because of the Pitt, OSU game going to OT's. Thanks to Yahoo! Sports for keeping me up to date within three seconds of the ESPN update.

The first half doesn't matter, what matters is the way this team adjusted for the second half. The main rotation for this game was Henderson, Nelson(fouled out), McRoberts, Paulus, Scheyer, and McClure.

Henderson played a solid game contributing in anyway he could. Nelson had some big rebounds late in the game, but had a stupid foul, and was forced to leave the game. Scheyer had a rough night shooting the ball, but was able to settle down and still get 14 points. McRoberts had a great game in every aspect. His stat line was 11 points, 11 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks. That is versatility, and you can't teach that. McClure played great, and really helped keep this game is Duke's favor. If only he could of came down with the dunk that was blocked....It would of been unbelievable. The defense was great. And that was a huge key to victory. Stopping this explosive Gonzaga team will be a real lift come ACC play. I think all of Blue Devil nation realizes now that this defense is for real, and it can take us a long way.


PLAYER OF THE GAME
Greg Paulus
Big players come up in big games. That is exactly what Greg Paulus did tonight. He played like a Duke point guard should play. He was all over the court, and when he went down my heart skipped a beat. Then he comes back out a couple plays later, and continues to play hard. Unbelievable performance that will hopefully continue.


*I wish every reader of THE BLUE DEVIL BLOG, a very Merry Christmas, and a very happy and safe New Year!!!

Duke Rallies, Improve On Offense

Last night, Kent State took the challenge of ending the Blue Devils national leading non-conference home winning streak. The came close, but the Blue Devils were able to buckle down and come up with the big plays when it mattered most.

The knock on Duke was that their offense was non-existent, but their defense was solid. In last night's game the opposite occurred. Duke used a twelve point burst from Jon Scheyer early to have their second best scoring output of the season. However, on the defensive side of the ball, which Duke has prided themselves on, they allowed the second most points by a team this season.

Down by a handful of points, mid second half, Duke needed someone to step up. McRoberts was just the one to do it. After having a rough first half, he shoot the ball more and actually converted on his shots. Because of the offense of McRoberts, the Blue Devils took the lead and never gave it back.

Nelson, Scheyer, McRoberts, and Nelson were in double figures. These are the four guys you expect the most out of, and this night they proved their worth. If not for a stall in scoring for about four minutes in the second half, the score would have been much more impressive.


PLAYER OF THE GAME
Josh McRoberts
Nelson had a great game, but Josh finally had a game were he was aggressive and put the team on his shoulders. It is great when I have to think about the player of the game. It means that the whole team is playing great.


In what will be one of the toughest tests this season, Duke will play Gonzaga on Thursday at Madison Square Garden. Should be a great game to watch, and will tell us where the Blue Devils are at this time in the season.

*As reported by The Devils Den, Duke has made an offer to Greg Monroe. Monroe is the number one rated prospect in the class of 2008. He has offers from Kansas, LSU, Texas, Georgia Tech, and many others. Keep an eye on this as Coach K looks to continue his recruiting excellence.

It's Been a While......

It has been nine days since Duke took down George Mason, in a victory that gave Duke Nation hope of improved play. Finals week for most of college basketball, put a stand still on the season. But now, college basketball is ready to return to the national spotlight. You get the feeling that everything up till now is somewhat of a pre-season. However, now it is time for the big match ups, and exclusive conference play to being. Duke has an exciting, and busy week ahead. Tomorrow they will have host Kent State, in what seems like another warm-up match to the big one later this week. The Blue Devils will travel to the "Mecca" of sports arenas, in a match up against the Gonzaga Bulldogs at Madison Square Garden. Most people call this the match up that is one year to late. Last year it would have obviously been a marquis match up with JJ Redick and Adam Morrison going head to head. However, it will be a true test for each team, as they are both young, and full of talent. Obviously, you should never look past a team, and Kent State will definitely bring their A game to Durham.

After watching DeMarcus Nelson and Jon Scheyer post career highs in points, and Josh McRoberts playing Magic Johnson, we are all ready to see what player is going to step up against Kent State. Hopefully, Greg Paulus can keep the mistakes low like last game and continue his improvement. Should be a fun game to watch, and it has been a long time since we have seen Duke take the floor. I for one am ready for some DUKE BASKETBALL, are you?

Duke takes done Cinderella

Coming in, Duke had been dealing with critizism. People saying they couldn't score. That their defense wasn't going to carry them all year. 69 points isn't something to call home about. But an impressive "team" effort gave Duke fans a chance to watch one of the most efficient games this season.

In the first half Duke came out strong. Making fewer mistakes, and moving the ball around to the open man. Nelson continued to prove that he is the offensive machine that drives this team. And an unlikely figure had a coming out party. Everyone knew Jon Scheyer had the ability to be a great scorer. Now he proved it. Shooting the ball from all over the court. The off the ball moving, and the shoots he took reminded me of a young Redick. Is it possible that Scheyer is better than Redick was as a freshmen? Who knows, and who cares. As long as Scheyer continues to put up points like this he could be on his way to Duke lure.

Every game, the announcers for the game continue to talk about Josh McRoberts inability to score. Yes, he should score more than 7 points a game. However, he had 8 boards, 8 assists, and only commited 2 turnovers. The scoring will hopefully come. But no other big man in college basketball gets assists numbers like this, and that is a very valuable talent.

Paulus looked like he tweaked his foot injury a few times throughout the game. But even so, he looked more comfortable running this offense. He didn't make the mistakes you are used to seeing, and that is all I ask of him.

No other performances stood out. Everyone played hard when they were in the game. Some of the shoots that were taken were not good ones, and if not for that the score would have been higher.


PLAYER OF THE GAME
Jon Scheyer & DeMarcus Nelson
Scheyer had his best scoring game of his young career, and gave us all something to look forward too. Nelson did what he does best, score points, and shutdown defending. He is a true captain.


The whole team played their best game of the year in my opinion. Fewer mistakes lead to a solid win. Let's see if we can keep it going.

The Blue Devil Nation reported that 2008 recruit Drew Gordon was in the house today. Hopefully he liked what he saw.

Next up for the Blue Devils, will be Tuesday night against Kent State.

Thoughts on Jamal Boykin, and Nolan Smith

This morning news broke of Duke sophomore, Jamal Boykin, annouced that he was not returning to Duke. Jamal was home in California resting up from a case of so-called mono. He called Coach K, and told him he was staying home, and not coming back to play at Duke. Coming out of high school Boykin was a stud player, but a lack of talent lead to him sitting on the bench most of his short career. Myself, and most everyone in Duke nation wish him well.

Last night the country got their first chance to see future Blue Devil, Nolan Smith. Smith is on the number one ranked team in the country Oak Hill Academy. Smith looked sharp in the first half and lead his team in scoring. He gave every Blue Devil fan a reason to be excited to see him play in the future.

Horrible Play, Yields Duke Win

Tonight in my hometown there was a great high school basketball game to go see. Instead of going to that, I watched the worst first half of Duke basketball I am saw. Nothing was going in. We hardly were able to shoot, because every time we passed the ball it went out of bounds or someone fumbled it. Just a painful first half to watch.

In the second half, much like the Georgetown game, the play picked up for Duke. Shoots were going in, and Holy Cross didn't have the talent to keep up with Duke.

Duke fans might not want to think about this, but the question has to be asked.......Is Greg Paulus good enough to be "the man"? I have watched this kid play since last year, and I haven't seen any sort of consistence. Can his play get better, and will he be effective in the heart of the season? Only time will tell.

Is this all we are going to see from Josh McRoberts? McRoberts, in my mind still hasn't showed us what we all expected from one of the best players in his class. He still can't score in the twenties and that is what Duke needs right now.

These two questions hopefully will be answered by the only man who can......Coach K.

If Duke continues to play like this, I am not looking forward to ACC play. I hope that December is the month when Duke works out the bugs, and turns into the team I know they can be.


PLAYER OF THE GAME
Gerald Henderson
Fans might not agree, but his two three pointers in the second half, gave Duke the confidence they needed to start the 20-4 run that was the end of Holy Cross. He also contributed four rebounds.


Duke will host George Mason on Saturday. Early game folks.....12e/11c

Preview of Duke vs. Holy Cross

Coming off an emotional win over Georgetown, the Blue Devils will host the Holy Cross Crusaders. Duke comes in with only one lose, and Holy Cross is enjoying a 6-2 record.

All eyes will be on the sophomore captains for Duke. Greg Paulus took the reins of "his" team in the second half against Georgetown, and he was the reason they won that game. For the first time this season Paulus showed what he is capable of. Leading the team when it looks like they have nothing left. Josh McRoberts looked more aggressive when it came to scoring. When he got the ball instead of passing it off, he challenged the man who was guarding, and tried to take it to the hole. This effort from both these guys could be what Duke needed to get back to consistent "Duke" basketball.

The freshmen have been silent as of late. Scheyer the only consistent one, as he is averaging a shade under 10 ppg. Thomas is starting to sputter after signs of dominance. Henderson hardly ever takes a shot, and Zoubek doesn't look comfortable on either side of the floor. This could be a game where these four can have big games. Look for these guys to get chances for big plays tonight.

The solid defense that we have come accustomed to will be challenged again tonight. Holy Cross has speed at the 1 and 2 guard, and this is the only way they stand a chance of winning. Duke needs to use that great defense to produce offense. Hopefully a big game on the offensive side will give this team more confidence, as they get ready for the long and grueling ACC season.

Duke Gets Their Revenge

Coming in to this game Duke was struggling. Not really knowing what the identity of this team was, they hung their hat on defense. They held most of their opponents in check, and never let games get out of hand.

In the first half of the game Saturday, the mistakes and offensive play continued to haunt Duke. The ball just wouldn't fall, and passes were being thrown away. On top of that Georgetown was using their familiar back door cuts to shred Duke. Georgetown dominated the first half.

And then......

Whatever adjustments were made, they were the right ones. Duke came out of the locker room, and played with the pride and passion everyone from Duke plays with. The defense picked up, and when a mistake was made they got up and tried harder next time. They were limiting what Georgetown could do with the basketball, and making them play at Duke's pace.

Greg Paulus everyone's favorite underacheiver, took hold of the reins and played like a true leader. This was Paulus's best game of the year. And hopefully this will be the defining moment where he then goes on to becoming a great leader.

Josh McRoberts(although not early on) finally control of his offense, and at times looked very solid. Just like Paulus, I hope this is McRobert's way of saying I am ready to be a force.

Nelson, and Scheyer also had solid games. But this game was marked by the way that Paulus and McRoberts played when it counted.


PLAYER OF THE GAME
Greg Paulus
He picked the Devils up in the second half, and carried them on his shoulders. He deserves this.


*Next up for Duke is Wednesday against Holy Cross