All posts by Matt Saldaña
Matt Saldaña ·
24 Jun 2009, 1:10 PM ·
1 Comment
According to a Wednesday press release, breakout guard Elliot Williams will be leaving Duke’s basketball team after one season to be closer to his family in Memphis, Tenn., due to family medical reasons. The release notes that Williams plans to appeal the NCAA rule that transfers must sit out one season, and play for a school “closer to his hometown of Memphis.” We extend our best to Williams and his family, and offer the following two observations:
1. This will be a huge loss for Duke. (See Jacob Swiger’s post for more.)
2. Duke’s loss will most likely be the University of Memphis’s gain. The Tigers are losing their own standout quasi-point guard, Tyreke Evans, in this year’s NBA draft, and would be a natural fit for Williams’ up-tempo game.
In April, I bumped into Williams—who I’d only encountered previously in post-game interviews—at a bar in downtown Durham called 1013 West Main, where he was watching another Memphis guard, Derrick Rose, battle Rajon Rondo and the Boston Celtics in perhaps the most thrilling first-round NBA series of all time. (It was Game 2, which Boston won on an assist from Rondo—his 16th—and a three-pointer by Ray Allen.) Continue reading »
ACC, Basketball, Duke Elliot Williams, Gerald Henderson, memphis tigers, seth curry, tyreke evans
Matt Saldaña ·
25 Apr 2009, 4:06 PM ·
1 Comment
According to Duke University, Gerald Henderson has declared for the NBA draft:
“After a lot of thought and discussion with my family and the Duke coaching staff, I have decided to enter the NBA Draft,” said Henderson. “Playing in the NBA has been a goal of mine since a young age and I am thrilled to have the opportunity. My three years at Duke have been a tremendous learning experience and have helped me develop both as a person and as a player.”
Along with Kyle Singler, Henderson led the Blue Devils this year in scoring with 16.5 ppg, and was the second-highest contributor in assists (2.5 ) and rebounds (4.9) per game. Other than seniors Greg Paulus and David McClure, he is the only player from the 2008-09 roster to leave.
Duke has been top-heavy behind the arc, and Henderson’s departure–though it will deal a big blow to the team’s offensive production–may open up the 3-spot to Elliot Williams, a natural swingman who filled in as a point guard late in the season. That would leave the starting point-guard slot to Nolan Smith and/or … John Wall?
ACC, Basketball, Duke Duke, Elliot Williams, Gerald Henderson, john wall, Nolan Smith
Matt Saldaña ·
23 Feb 2009, 2:00 AM ·
1 Comment
CAMERON INDOOR STADIUM/DURHAM - As Gerald Henderson and Jon Scheyer left the court in the final minute of No. 9 Duke’s demonstrative victory over No. 8 Wake Forest, they received bear hugs from their coaches for having the offensive games of their careers. The two juniors combined for 65 points (Henderson had a career-high 35, Scheyer a career-high 30), propelling Duke past Wake Forest in an unusually high-scoring shootout at Cameron Indoor.
Wake, who shot 60 percent from the field, battled back from a 22-point deficit in a turnover-ridden first half, and were within two points when Scheyer leaned in and executed a pitch-perfect Reggie Miller flop behind the three point line, resulting in three free throws, and a Duke lead that Wake could never overcome.
It was a “huge play,” Coach Mike Krzyzewski said after the game, which he called the team’s biggest at Cameron in three years.
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Basketball, Duke Duke, Gerald Henderson, Jeff Teague, Jon Scheyer, Wake Forest
Matt Saldaña ·
22 Feb 2009, 8:55 PM ·
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Gerald Henderson has 18 points, including several dunks off steals, and freshman PG Elliot Williams has four steals, including three in a row off inbounds passes.
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Basketball, Duke Duke, Elliot Williams, Gerald Henderson, Wake Forest
Matt Saldaña ·
20 Feb 2009, 5:40 PM ·
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In the Indy’s basketball preview issue last December, we took a position-by-position look at Duke’s roster. Sophomore Nolan Smith had recently replaced senior Greg Paulus as the team’s starting point guard, but we noted that Coach Mike Krzyzewski seemed content to keep a rivalry between the two brewing. At the time, Coach K insisted that Paulus would either play “with [Smith], or for him.” Indeed, following Duke’s 27-point loss to Clemson, Paulus replaced Smith in the starting rotation, reclaiming his role as the team’s leader–in what would, apparently, be a brief coup d’etat.
After squeaking by Miami in overtime, a Paulus-led Duke team went on its first losing streak in a calendar year, falling consecutively to UNC and BC. Yesterday, Coach K turned to his number three option on the flow-chart to start against St. John’s: freshman McDonald’s All-American Eliot Williams, who we said in December could “provide relief–and bursts of energy–down the stretch.” We meant, like, mid-way through the second half, not the season. Nevertheless, Duke won, 76-69, and Williams went 5-for-6 for a neat 11 points. He’s scrappy, and not the best defender (certainly not as good as Smith), but he gives it his all, approaching his defense much like a linebacker. His eyes are always on the ball, even if he’s not quite sure where his feet are. According to the AP recap, Coach K said he was impressed by Williams’ “verve” in practice.
There was one thing missing from Williams’ performance yesterday, however: he didn’t log a single assist. We suspect that may have been intentional–or at least tolerable–on the part of Coach K. (He also played Smith for 20 minutes, at both guard positions, and, as usual, power-forward Kyle Singler led the team in assists.) In fact, as we predicted back in December, the point position may be “less about dropping dimes, and more about leading the team up the court with confidence.” Make that, leading the team up the court, and getting the ball into the hands of Singler, Gerald Henderson or John Scheyer (all of whom have been known to dribble the ball up-court themselves). All three can pass, and create shots, on their own, and they’ve been at the core of Duke’s successes this season. The problem is, 3-out-of-5 dependable starters hasn’t quite cut it. In any case, we’ll be anxious to see who Coach K starts at the one-spot versus Wake, and–more importantly, perhaps–if he utilizes that player as a true point guard.
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Basketball, Duke Duke, Eliot Williams, Gerald Henderson, Greg Paulus, Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith
Matt Saldaña ·
17 Feb 2009, 9:31 PM ·
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A funny thing happened in the Bull City last night. Durham’s mayor, Bill Bell, wore a UNC Tar Heels hoodie over his suit at a City Council meeting. Find out why in David Fellerath’s Triangle Offense post (hint: it has to do with Duke losing), then check out the exclusive gameday photo, along with a meeting report (kind of like a recap) over at our sister blog, Triangulator.
Basketball, Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill Bill Bell
Matt Saldaña ·
8 Feb 2009, 10:52 AM ·
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CAMERON INDOOR STADIUM/DURHAM – After losing by 27 to Clemson, Duke looked like it was headed for another loss Saturday against Miami. But after relentless three-point shooting (Duke attempted an astonishing 38 treys in regulation–many of them unassisted shots–and made just 12), and forcing a few key turnovers, Duke was up by three with 31 seconds to play. It was Miami’s Jack McClinton (34 points), however, who hit the most clutch three-pointer of the game, stepping back against Kyle Singler to fire a long distance shot from the shoulder, and tie the game at 68-68. Regulation ended with yet another missed-three pointer from Duke, who lived and died by the shot all game.
Overtime was a different story, as Gerald Henderson scored the first shot on a driving layup, at the 3:19 mark. Singler followed, by finding the rim after a frustrating series of blocked and altered shots, and called charges, in regulation, as he tried–with little success–to drive against a much larger Miami team. (Singler ended up with 17 points, on just 5-for-23 shooting.) Meanwhile, thanks to several critical offensive rebounds by David McClure, who was playing a reserve center role (in for Lance Thomas, who started over struggling big-man Brian Zoubek) that wound down the clock, Miami didn’t score until the one-minute mark. The Hurricanes got several good looks inside–particularly by its hulking “forward” Dwayne Collins, guarded by McClure–that went in and out of the basket. Duke managed to shut down McClinton, who scored Miami’s first points–a three-pointer–by the time the game was nearly over. It ended in the Blue Devils’ favor, 78-75.
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Basketball, Duke David McClure, Gerald Henderson, Greg Paulus, Jack McClinton, Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler, Miami, Nolan Smith
Matt Saldaña ·
10 Jan 2009, 2:46 PM ·
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CAMERON INDOOR STADIUM/DURHAM – Thursday night, Duke kept a sleeping giant relatively subdued, holding the best college-basketball guard in the country to eight first-half points–and surviving a late run in the second half–to defeat Davidson, 79-67. All eyes were on Stephen Curry, the player who last year led his 23rd-ranked team to the Elite Eight, losing narrowly in that round to Kansas, the tournament’s eventual champion. But thanks to Duke’s help defense, and particularly pesky coverage by Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith, Curry missed his first four shots, and didn’t get on the board for the first 14 minutes of the game.
In the second half, Davidson chipped away at a 25-point deficit, with Curry piercing holes through double-team D on several nifty plays, and got as close as 69-61. But Lance Thomas grabbed a critical offensive board with less than three minutes to go, and was fouled by Curry. Thomas, a 53-percent free-throw shooter, hit both shots in a one-and-one situation, and Davidson never got closer.
“Those two free throws were huge. They were the biggest points of the game,” Coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “If he misses–it’s a one-one, too–it’s eight points, they come down and hit a three, it’s a different ballgame. We could lose that game.”
Later, Scheyer picked the ball from Curry, brought the ball up, and nailed a pull-up three-pointer, sealing the victory. He finished the game with 22 points, matching Kyle Singler’s offensive contribution. Curry, who finished with 29, looked flustered as he tossed up early shots–including one flat-footed airball–but took over the game midway through the second-half. In one four-minute strech, which Krzyzewski put to a halt by calling a 30-second timeout, Curry scored nine points, to go with an assist, a block and a rebound (and several unrecorded defensive stops). But Duke’s lead proved insurmountable, and a late start prevented Curry from leading his team to an upset victory in January. As Davidson returns to Southern Conference play (in which, last season, they were a perfect 20-0), Duke heads out for two ACC road games: Flordia State, and Georgia Tech.
Basketball, Duke Jon Scheyer, Lance Thomas, Nolan Smith, Stephen Curry
Matt Saldaña ·
6 Jan 2009, 1:00 AM ·
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CAMERON INDOOR STADIUM/DURHAM – In their first game versus an ACC opponent this season, No. 2 Duke held Virginia Tech to 13 points in the second half, and came away with an impressive 25-point victory Sunday night. Today, the team advanced three spots in the national rankings, up from No. 5 last week.
Kyle Singler led the team in scoring, with his routine near-triple-double: 19 points, 8 rebounds, 7 assists. Gerald Henderson was equally impressive as a passing swingman, scoring 15 points, dishing out 4 assists, and grabbing 8 boards. Emblematic of Duke’s versatility was Singler standing at the top of the key, feeding starting point-guard Nolan Smith on the low-post for several nifty layups. The starting five looked comfortable, smiling often and communicating on the court as they steadily built the second-half lead. As promised, Coach K played former starting point guard Greg Paulus alongside Smith, his replacement, on several plays, and occassionally slotted shooting-guard Jon Scheyer to the three-spot against a small VT team. Even with three guards on the court, Duke succeeded in driving–and passing–inside.
Perhaps more impressive, Duke looked like a cohesive unit, even while rotating out three centers and two point guards. When starting center Brian Zoubek (6 points, 4 rebounds) missed a wide-open layup, on an excellent feed from Scheyer, both Paulus and Smith patted him on the back, and Smith held his neck with encouragement. Even Coach K joined in the body language of camaraderie, stepping onto the court and offering Paulus an emphatic high-five after he hit a crucial three late in the game (his only points).
Next up for the Blue Devils is Davidson, whose star player, Stephon Curry, Coach K said on Sunday may be the best college player in the country–and certainly the best guard. Depending on Curry’s performance Wednesday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, Duke may be gritting their teeth and smiling less. No doubt, it’ll be an exciting match.
Basketball, Duke, Uncategorized Brian Zoubek, Gerald Henderson, Greg Paulus, Jon Scheyer, Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith, Stephon Curry
Matt Saldaña ·
18 Dec 2008, 10:52 AM ·
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CAMERON INDOOR STADIUM/DURHAM – With less than two minutes to play in the first half of Duke’s 43-point rout at Cameron Indoor Stadium, UNC Asheville was within striking distance of the No. 6 team in the country. After Asheville’s leading scorer, Reid Augst, hit a pair of free throws to make it 46-35, Duke turned the ball over, then committed a lazy foul. Yet on the ensuing inbounds pass, backup point guard Matt Dickey watched as the ball went through his hands and out of bounds. The Blue Devils responded with a soaring dunk, on their own inbounds pass, by Gerald Henderson. Two plays later, Henderson stole the ball, and passed it up the court to Kyle Singler, who dunked once again, making it 50-35. The Bulldogs never got closer.
The story of Wednesday night’s game was Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s decision to start a group of B-Teamers, led by now-backup point guard Greg Paulus: David McClure, Miles Plumlee, Martynas Pocius and Elliot Williams. The starting nods were mostly nominal, as Duke’s “bench” scored 72 points, including 12 or more points from each of its traditional starters. After the game, Krzyzewski said the move was intended to boost his backup players’–and in particular, Greg Paulus’–confidence. Paulus played well, going 4-8 from three-point range, and finishing with 12 points and 3 assists. But, sophomore point guard Nolan Smith was the star of the night, mimicking Paulus’ stat line and commanding a true presence on the court.
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Basketball, Duke Gerald Henderson, Greg Paulus, Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith, UNC-Asheville
