NEW YORK — The primary six days of the boys’s NCAA Match gave us some thrills and large upsets as anticipated, however have a look round. It is a mighty chalky Candy 16 general. Just one double-digit seed (NC State) has damaged by way of to the regional semifinals. There is not a group from a mid-major convention nonetheless standing.
Past the dominant performances from prime seeds UConn (which appears practically unbeatable, frankly), Purdue and North Carolina, we additionally watched the remainder of the No. 1 and a pair of seeds make it by way of to the regional semifinals for simply the fifth time because the tourney expanded; 2024 joins ’89, ’95, ’09, ’19 as the one years the place zero of the groups on the highest two seed strains had been felled within the first and second rounds.
The dominance we noticed play out throughout the nation was prominently on show at Barclays Heart over the previous few days. Two colleges bought out with 2-0 data and the precise to maintain shifting deeper into this blessed occasion. They’re each blue bloods. The primary: No. 1 general seed Connecticut. The Huskies obliterated Wagner 91-52 on Friday after which bought previous No. 9 seed Northwestern on Sunday to the tune of a 75-58 dusting.
Duke, the 4-seed within the South, is the larger story popping out of Brooklyn, nevertheless. The Blue Devils had been by no means threatened vs. No. 13 seed Vermont on Friday. On Sunday, No. 12 seed James Madison was a stylish upset selection. JMU blitzed Wisconsin. May it pull off a second straight upset?
Not. A. Likelihood.
“I do not know if we anticipated this, however I simply thought our guys got here out with such an excellent competitiveness they usually had been clearly able to play,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer stated. “Not simply able to play. It’s important to be able to compete in these video games, and all people that was on the ground I felt had that.”
Duke broke out to a 24-9 lead halfway by way of the primary half … and it was performed. James Madison was enjoying from behind as quickly as its star, Terrence Edwards, picked up his second foul lower than two minutes into the sport. Duke’s 93-55 evisceration of an excellent JMU group (which finishes 32-4) was a throwback to some Blue Devils groups of outdated. This group is not simply peaking on the proper time — it completely performed its finest sport of the season on Sunday.
It was exhausting to see Duke able to this flip, however that is the mark of a superb teaching employees and a mature group. Duke appears older now than it did even three weeks in the past. Scheyer instructed me that the additional days supplied to the group after getting kicked out of the ACC Match quarterfinals by NC State (nonetheless on this factor!) did the group loads of good.
“This sport can humble you. I do not care if you happen to’re a coach, if you happen to’re a participant,” Scheyer additionally stated on the postgame press convention. “Our final common season sport, the ACC Match sport, you need to have nice humility to grasp what you need to do higher. Clearly all of us needed to do one thing higher, and you understand, there isn’t any replicating the work you could put in. The silver lining in that was, it gave us every week to work on ourselves, to look within the mirror, to not hearken to what individuals might imagine or had been performed.”
Scheyer’s been on his group privately and publicly about their general reluctance to dig in and compete constantly over 40 minutes. Or, even past that, to indicate want-to and dedication to excellence sport over sport over sport. Now, when it issues most, Duke has discovered its approach to profitable with out leaving a hint of doubt. Certain, it beat two groups that had been 12- and 13-seeds, however the event is kill or be killed. Duke feasted. Bear in mind, Scheyer fell quick final yr, his first season on the job, when Duke was punked by Tennessee within the second spherical.
“None of us forgot about what occurred with Tennessee within the second spherical. I feel that simply added a bit bit extra hearth to us, to the returning guys,” sophomore middle Kyle Filipowski stated. “I feel we discovered our lesson enjoying final yr. We did not wish to repeat that in any respect.”
Blue Devils freshman Jared McCain made certain that wasn’t an choice vs. James Madison. Ne set the Duke document for 3s in an NCAA Match sport. That additionally cracked the nation’s longest profitable streak, ending JMU’s run of 14 in a row.
“It is the very best feeling on the planet when you understand the work that you just put in is displaying up on the courtroom, particularly in such a giant sport like this, to go to the Candy 16,” McCain stated.
That is precisely what Duke is doing.
Duke is into its twenty ninth all-time Candy 16 look (second most in historical past to North Carolina’s 31) and it did it by touchdown its third-largest win by margin (38) within the second spherical or later within the event. Not simply that, however Duke’s 38-point beatdown of Northwestern was the fifth-largest second spherical margin of victory within the occasion’s historical past. There’s much more: McCain set a college document by sinking eight 3-pointers to whole 30 factors, plus 5 boards. You wish to know the checklist of Duke gamers to get 30 factors and 5 rebounds within the NCAA Match prior to now 35 years? Christian Laettner, Zion Williamson and Jared McCain. That is the checklist.
There’s some concern about Jeremy Roach’s pinky, which was dislocated, however no probability he will not be a go for Duke’s big battle that awaits vs. No. 1 seed Houston on Friday within the South’s regional semifinal in Dallas. The Cougars had been taken to additional time by upset-minded Texas A&M, which practically pulled off an all-time comeback (A&M already owns the most important comeback in NCAA historical past, within the 2016 event vs. Northern Iowa) late Sunday in Memphis.
Houston held on. It is such a tricky group. Via the primary two video games of the event, Duke’s seemed harder. It seemed just like the group that was ranked No. 2 within the preseason ballot again in October. The bounce in competitors goes to be huge. Duke can be an underdog for the primary time in weeks.
If Scheyer is correct and his backcourt of McCain, Roach and Tyrese Proctor are enjoying as collectively as they’ve all season, Duke can beat Houston. If Scheyer’s proper that this group has lastly purchased in to all of the issues that require the fullest effort and unrelenting toughness, then Duke has a shot.
The one piece we have not seen come collectively is Duke enjoying at an A-level with Filipowski taking up a sport. McCain’s capturing, Proctor’s playmaking, Roach’s management — they’re all essential. If Duke goes to get out of Dallas, Filipowski is the ultimate piece. And he is about to get the hardest take a look at of his season vs. Houston’s bodily frontcourt. An enormous battle of wills awaits Friday night time.
If Houston performs prefer it did vs. A&M and Duke can replicate its Brooklyn kind, Duke will win and get to the Elite Eight. We’ll have to attend 4 days to search out out. Scheyer had been asking his group to search out an edge for months; it heads into the regional semis trying its sharpest all season.