Game facts
No. 20 Duke (14-5, 3-3 ACC) at NC State (11-8, 1-5 ACC)
Game time: Saturday, Jan. 23, 2 p.m. — PNC Arena in Raleigh
Television: CBS
Probable starters
NC State
PG — 12 Anthony Barber (6-2, 190, Jr., 22.3 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 4.8 apg)
SG — 24 Maverick Rowan (6-7, 215, Fr., 13.3 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.7 apg)
SF — 15 Cody Martin (6-7, 210, So., 5.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.2 spg)
PF — 0 Abdul-Malik Abu (6-8, 240, So., 11.9 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 1.3 apg)
C — 21 BeeJay Anya (6-9, 285, Jr., 4.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 0.5 apg, 2.6 bpg)
Duke
PG — 12 Derryck Thornton (6-2, 175, Fr., 8.5 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 2.9 apg)
SG — 3 Grayson Allen (6-5, 205, So., 20.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 3.6 apg, 1.1 spg)
SF — 13 Matt Jones (6-5, 200, Jr., 12.7 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 2.5 apg, 1.2 spg)
SF — 14 Brandon Ingram (6-9, 190, Fr., 16.6 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 1.6 apg, 1.3 spg, 1.6 bpg)
C — 40 Marshall Plumlee (7-1, 250, Sr., 8.2 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 1.0 apg, 2.0 bpg)
Duke
Location: Durham
Nickname: Blue Devils
2014-15 record: 35-4 overall, 15-3 ACC
2015 postseason: Defeated Wisconsin 68-63 in the national title game of NCAA Tournament
Head coach: Mike Krzyzewski, 36th season at Duke (959-256) and 41st season overall (1,032-315)
Notes
Duke overview: The Blue Devils enter Saturday’s matchup with NC State on a three-game losing streak and clearly missing senior power forward Amile Jefferson.
Jefferson has been out last 10 games with a foot injury, and that has caused Duke to play small ball with freshman Brandon Ingram at power forward. Jefferson was averaging 10.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game — all career highs — and was shooting 68.3 percent from the field.
The Blue Devils have also utilized a seven-man rotation, similar to NC State. In Duke’s 64-62 loss to Syracuse on Monday, six players combined to play all but two minutes.
Backcourt: Grayson Allen had 16 points in 21 minutes to help Duke top Wisconsin in last year’s national title game, and he was hailed as a potential All-ACC candidate going into this season.
Allen has gone from 4.4 points per game in 2014-15 to 20.1 this season, and he is shooting 49.2 percent from the field and an impressive 41.1 percent on three-pointers.
The 6-5, 205-pound Allen has scored at least 14 points in all but two games this season, both of which Duke suffered losses (Kentucky and Utah). Allen has scored at least 30 points in three games, including a season-high 33 against Long Beach State Dec. 30. He also went 5 of 6 from three-point range en route to 32 points in a 86-84 win over Georgetown Nov. 22. Allen has hit at least three three-pointers in six games.
The 6-2, 175-pound Derryck Thornton was expected to be a senior in high school this year at Henderson (Nev.) Findlay Prep. Instead, he reclassified and picked Duke to help replace point guard Tyus Jones, who entered the NBA Draft after one season in Durham.
Thornton is averaging 8.5 points and 2.9 assists per game, while shooting 41.9 percent on three-pointers. However, he making just 39.2 percent of his shots from the field.
Thornton has struggled in ACC games, shooting 11 of 36 (30.6 percent). He last cracked double figures when he had 18 against Long Beach State, and he went for a season-high 19 versus Virginia Commonwealth Nov. 20.
Junior small forward Matt Jones has solidified his starting spot this season. He averaged 6.0 points and 2.3 rebounds per game last year, but has improved to 12.7 points and 2.9 rebounds per contest this season. The 6-5, 200-pounder is shooting 41.4 percent from the field and 39.8 percent on three-pointers.
Jones has cracked double figures in 13 games and had a season-high 23 points and five three-pointers in the 94-74 win over Indiana Dec. 2. He has struggled a bit in the six ACC games, shooting 18 of 53 (34.0 percent) from the field.
Freshman wing Luke Kennard has helped fill the offensive void with Thornton and Jones both struggling in ACC games. The 6-5, 180-pounder is averaging 12.3 points and 3.8 rebounds in 24.6 minutes per game off the bench (two starts in 18 games). He is shooting 42.9 percent from the field, 30.2 on three-pointers and 92.4 percent at the free throw line (61 of 66).
Kennard lit up Notre Dame for 30 points and eight rebounds, and he shot 4 of 6 from beyond the arc in the 95-91 loss to them last Saturday. But then he followed up by going 0 of 9 from the field and 0 of 7 on three-pointers against Syracuse’s zone defense.
Kennard has scored at least 10 points in 11 games, including four contests with at least 22.
Frontcourt: The slender 6-9, 190-pound Ingram started off at his preferred small forward spot, but then switched to power forward. The Kinston, N.C., product has responded with 30 blocks this season, including a season-high six against Virginia Tech in a 82-58 win Jan. 9.
Ingram is shooting 40.4 percent from three-point land. He is second on team in both scoring (16.6 points per game) and rebounding (6.2 caroms per contest).
Ingram has averaged 19.3 points per game since Jefferson got injured, and he has three double-doubles. He had 26 points and 14 rebounds versus Georgia Southern Dec. 15, and 26 points and 11 boards against Elon Dec. 28.
Ingram had an ACC-best 25 points in the 95-91 loss to Notre Dame last Saturday. He hit four three-pointers against the Fighting Irish, which was the fourth time he made that many from beyond the arc.
Marshall Plumlee has saved his best ball for his senior season. The younger brother of former Duke players Miles Plumlee (Milwaukee Bucks) and Mason Plumlee (Portland Trail Blazers) is averaging career highs across the board with 8.2 points, 7.9 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game. He is shooting 67.9 percent from the field and 59.8 percent at the free throw line.
Plumlee has four double-doubles, including 19 points, 17 rebounds and four blocks in the loss to Syracuse. He had a career-high 21 points along with 10 rebounds in the 82-58 win over Virginia Tech Jan. 9.
Rivals.com ranked the 6-10, 195-pound Chase Jeter as the No. 16 overall player in the country in the class of 2015. However, the son of a former UNLV player has struggled to find consistent minutes. He is averaging 1.8 points and 1.8 rebounds per game, and he hasn’t played in three games.
Rice transfer Sean Obi has also failed to carve out a role this season. He previously averaged 11.4 points and 9.3 rebounds per game at Rice in 2013-14, and he shot 59.1 percent from the field. Obi had 11 double-doubles for points and rebounds.
The 6-9, 265-pound Obi has three points and six rebounds in 20 minutes in nine appearances this season.
