Duke Drops a Close One to the “Canes”

Coral Gables, FL — The Duke Blue Devils men’s basketball team dropped a hard one in a narrow 77-75 loss to the Miami Hurricanes at Watsco Center in Coral Gables, Florida. This loss marked the end of a two-game winning streak, yet still felt remarkably hopeful for the visiting Duke team. 

To a squad that was recently facing a potential four-game losing streak, this was merely another minor setback. 

The Blue Devils have refocused their efforts in order to jockey for a potential NCAA tournament berth. After a narrow 70-65 loss versus the Louisville Cardinals, the Blue Devils could have easily split at the seams. Instead, Coach Krzyzewski has managed to place his team in the best positions to succeed. 

The Blue Devils entered the game looking to counter their three-game skid with three straight wins but couldn’t get into a good rhythm against a bottom-feeding Miami team. The Blue Devils repeatedly allowed the Hurricanes to recover offensive rebounds and generate second-chance points. This was combined with a series of sloppy passes throughout the game that saw the Blue Devils commit 13 turnovers for 14 points. Duke’s defense allowed 54% of the Hurricanes’ three-point attempts, good for 21 of Miami’s 77 points. 

Wendell Moore Jr. was frustrated with their efforts in the loss, stating that he felt the team didn’t “have the same focus” as the prior two wins. He continued on to say that the momentum carried over, but “all the energy didn’t carry over” between this game and the win streak. He continued on to say that the team’s last practice before the game didn’t feel great— a sentiment echoed by Coach Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils’ shortcomings were apparent throughout the game.

 Coach Krzyzewski became visibly frustrated at several points throughout the contest, even going so far as to throw a plastic cup in disgust at one point. He noted that he was “disappointed in his team” after the loss and that they “did not compete” or “deserve to win” the game. He told his team “if we come to play, we’ll lose. If we come to compete, we’ll win” and felt that they only played. He reflected on the idea of the “one game at a time” principle which posits that you must approach each contest with equal intensity with the goal of playing as hard as you can every time. 

The Blue Devils were in danger of settling in after two good wins. According to Coach Krzyzewski, his team fell right into the trap of complacency and ran through the motions en route to a wake-up call. 

The Duke Blue Devils (7-6, 5-4 ACC) return to action on February 6th to face rival UNC (11-5, 6-3 ACC) at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.