Duke is off to a 11-3 start, but it has taken time for the identity of the squad to get formed.
The combination of new coach Jon Scheyer with seven freshmen and three transfers has led to a feeling out period.
Duke is off to a 2-1 start in the ACC with wins over Florida State and Boston College, but a surprising loss at Wake Forest on Dec. 20.
The Blue Devils will play at NC State at 7 p.m. Wednesday on the ACC Network.
Overview
Duke returns junior point guard Jeremy Roach, and he’s surrounded by newcomers.
Freshmen post players Dereck Lively II, Kyle Filipowski and Mark Mitchell all start together and at least 6-foot-8.
Sophomore wing Jaylen Blakes started for the first time in Saturday’s 86-67 win over Florida State, and went 4 of 6 on three-pointers en route to match his career-high 17 points. It didn’t take him long to match it, scoring 17 off the bench at Wake Forest.
Rankings
Duke is No. 17 in the NET rankings, and NC State is No. 63.
ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Blue Devils ranked No. 18 overall, and the Wolfpack are No. 53.
KenPom.com has Duke at No. 15, and NCSU checks in at No. 61.
RealtimeRPI.com has Duke ranked No. 25 in the country, and NC State is No. 65.
Shooting
Duke is averaging 73.9 points per game, and shooting 44.4 percent from the field, 32.5 percent on three-pointers and 78.5 percent from the free-throw line.
Mitchell is shooting 46.2 percent on three-pointers, and Blakes is at 42.4 percent.
Rebounding
The Blue Devils are averaging 39.3 rebounds per game, with 188 on the offensive boards. Opponents are averaging just 29.9 rebounds a contest.
Filipowski leads the way with 8.6 boards and Young is chipping in 7.1 rebounds off the bench. Young has a team-high 46 offensive rebounds.
Defense
Duke is allowing 60.9 points per game, with opponents shooting 40.6 percent from the field and 27.8 percent on three-pointers.
Lively II has 24 blocks in 12 games this season. Fellow post player Filipowski has a team-high 18 steals, plus 10 blocks.
Depth
Former starter Tyrese Proctor went to the bench against Florida State. Freshman wing Dariq Whitehead, Northwestern transfer Ryan Young and Illinois transfer Jacob Grandison bolster the frontcourt.
The 6-10, 235-pound Young had the game of his life against FSU. He went 7 of 7 from the field and 6 of 6 at the free-throw line for 20 points, plus 12 rebounds in 24 minutes of action. He’s averaging 8.1 points and 7.1 rebounds in 21.4 minutes a contest this season.
Whitehead was the Rivals.com No. 1-ranked player in the class of 2022. The New Jersey native attended prep powerhouse Montverde (Fla.) Academy. He is averaging 7.6 points in 17.3 minutes per game.
Star Watch
Rivals.com ranked freshman post player Kyle Filipowski No. 5 overall in the class of 2022.
The listed 7-foot, 230-pounder is averaging 13.8 points and 8.6 rebounds per game, and he’s shooting 42.7 percent from the field and 28.6 percent on three-pointers.
Filipowski has six double-doubles for points and rebounds, with 19 points and 15 rebounds in the 54-51 win over Oregon State on Nov. 24. He also had 17 points and 14 rebounds in the loss vs. Kansas on Nov. 15.
Filipowski has struggled the last two games in ACC action. He has had a combined 15 points and 11 rebounds in 45 minutes at Wake Forest and vs. Florida State.
Filipowski can play both power forward and center, but he is three-point shooting has struggled in December thus far — he’s 2 of 16 over his last five games.
Likely Starters
NC State
PG — 1 Jarkel Joiner (6-1, 180, R-Sr., 15.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.4 apg, 1.1 spg)
SG — 0 Terquavion Smith (6-4, 165, Soph., 18.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 5.3 apg, 1.8 spg)
G — 14 Casey Morsell (6-3, 200, R-Jr., 13.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 0.9 apg, 1.3 spg)
PF — 5 Jack Clark (6-8, 200, R-Jr., 9.1 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.9 spg)
C — 30 D.J. Burns (6-9, 275, R-Jr., 9.1 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.1 apg)
Duke
PG — 3 Jeremy Roach (6-2, 180, Jr., 12.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 3.4 apg, 1.2 spg)
SG — 2 Jaylen Blakes (6-2, 200, Soph., (6.1 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.0 spg)
F — 25 Mark Mitchell (6-8, 220, Fr., 9.7 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.4 apg)
PF — 30 Kyle Filipowski (7-0, 230, Fr., 13.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.3 spg)
C — 1 Dereck Lively II (7-1, 230, Fr., 4.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 0.8 apg, 2.0 bpg)
Numbers Of Note
5 Recruits that Duke signed who are five-star prospects by Rivals.com in the class of 2023. All five players are ranked in the top 21.
45 Points NC State star Kenny Carr scored against Duke on Jan. 2, 1976.
88 McDonald’s All-American’s Duke has signed all-time, the most of any college program.
Game Within The Game: Duke's Jeremy Roach vs. NC State's Jarkel Joiner
Junior point guard Jeremy Roach was a touted prep player at Fairfax (Va.) Paul VI, but he tore his ACL his senior year.
Rivals.com ranked Roach No. 25 in the class of 2020. The 6-2, 180-pounder got off to a slow start at Duke, and he averaged 8.7 points and 2.8 assists per game in 2020-21.
Roach has improved to 12.5 points, 2.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game this season. He’s shooting 37.8 percent from the field, and shooting 33.3 percent on three-pointers. Roach is shooting 32.1 percent from beyond the arc in his Duke career.
Roach erupted for 22 points and went 3 of 6 on three-pointers in the 74-62 win over Iowa on Dec. 6. He also had 21 points and five assists in the 71-64 victory vs. Xavier on Nov. 25.
Roach has scored in double figures in eight games, but he has struggled the last two games in ACC action. He has gone a combined 5 of 17 from the field for 18 points and five assists in the games against Florida State and at Wake Forest.
Ole Miss transfer Jarkel Joiner is averaging 15.7 points and 3.4 assists per game this season. He is shooting 45.2 percent from the field and 35.1 percent on three-pointers. Joiner is coming off a rough game against Clemson, shooting 2 of 11 from the field for six points and five assists.
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