The View from Krzyzewskiville: No Way, Jose

Yesterday I traveled to Durham to watch the Duke Blue Devils beat San Jose State 70-51. (Additional summary and links here.) I had seen a couple of Blue/White scrimmages and a few Duke road games since I graduated, but this was the first regular season home game I had seen in years.

That probably makes it sound like a tougher ticket than it is. The secret about fabled Cameron Indoor Stadium is that one can find tickets for most games if one is dedicated enough. And sometimes (like yesterday, a New Year's Eve game played when classes weren't in session) it doesn't even take that much dedication: walking into the building, I saw someone give away a ticket contingent only on the promise that the recipient cheer for Duke. (I'll let Kyle discuss the gift tax implications and whether the cheering promise was enough consideration to convert the ticket transaction from a gift to a contract.)

Still, I was pleased with the turnout and the energy in the crowd. The Crazies had an even longer Christmas layoff than the team did, so they weren't totally in game shape yet, but they had this game and one against Temple Tuesday to warm up before ACC competition begins. I'm sorry this photo is blurry, but I was happy to see some of the grad students dressed up in aprons and chef's hats to remind the Spartans that they were going to get some home cooking:



San Jose State played a gutty ball game, and pulled within three points with about eighteen minutes left, before Duke woke up and pulled away. The Spartans have a lot of juco transfers, and they were tough and athletic and well-conditioned. They don't shoot the ball very well (33%) and don't have a lot of height, and those flaws did them in against Duke. Coach K had 6'10" Josh McRoberts and 7'1" freshman Brian Zoubek on the floor together a good bit. The Spartans had no answer for McRoberts, who finished with 17 rebounds.

A lot has been made of Duke's scoring deficiencies this season. Their average is way down from most years, when it seems like they always lead the NCAA in scoring. But they're getting better at scoring, and the defense is as good as I've seen Duke play in years. I think their prospects in the ACC are good. I think they can compete with UNC, Boston College, and Maryland, all of whom look strong this year. I'd be very happy with a split of those six games, which is possible. I haven't figured Clemson out yet, but the Tigers' win over Georgia was impressive. And a team like NC State or Virginia has enough talent to trip up Duke. And of course, strange things can happen in ACC-land. But overall, I feel good about Duke's chances. Even if they don't make a deep run, I think it's going to be a lot of fun watching this team grow up and figure out what they're capable of, post-JJ and -Shelden.

Have a happy 2007, and I won't even make that wish contingent on you cheering for Duke!