Duke Men’s Basketball 2020 NCAA Tournament Capsule

March 6, 2020 · Joel Welser
 

Duke Blue Devils

ACC (25-6, 15-5)

 
This has been an odd season for Duke. They beat teams like Kansas and Michigan State, proving that this young team can be very, very good. But there have been some tough losses too. Duke fell to Stephen F. Austin early in the year and had some bad losses at Clemson, North Carolina State and Wake Forest too.
 
Big Wins: 11/5 vs Kansas (68-66), 12/3 at Michigan State (87-75), 2/10 Florida State (70-65)
Bad Losses: 11/26 Stephen F. Austin (83-85), 1/14 at Clemson (72-79), 2/25 at Wake Forest (101-113)
Coach: Mike Krzyzewski
 
Why They Can Surprise:
Duke has a very talented and explosive offense. Vernon Carey has lived up to his hype as a freshman, averaging 17.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.6 blocks. The 6-10 forward is loaded with talent and he certainly has shown that on many occasions this season. Point guard Tre Jones has turned into a great leader of this team. The sophomore was always going to play tough defense and set up his teammates, but he has turned into a prolific scoring threat as well, averaging 16.2 points on top his 6.4 assists and 1.8 steals. With Cassius Stanley and Matthew Hurt able to score in a variety of ways, Duke certainly does not lack in talented scoring options.
 
Why They Can Disappoint:
By the numbers, Duke only has a couple weak spots. Turnovers are the biggest one that can cause them problems during the NCAA Tournament. Jones does not deserve all of the blame by any means, but he does need to keep the Blue Devils under control. The outside shooting is also not that great. Jones, Stanley and Hurt will make some and they do relatively consistently, but this is not a prolific three-point shooting team. Normally Duke does not need to make up a bunch of points in a hurry though so it has not been much of an issue so far. The far bigger potential issue is foul trouble. If Carey or Hurt must spend a significant amount of time on the bench, Duke will need Wendell Moore and Justin Robinson to step up and be more dangerous on the offensive end of the floor.
 
Probable Starters:
Tre Jones, Sophomore, Guard, 16.2 ppg, 6.4 apg, 4.2 rpg, 1.8 spg
Jordan Goldwire, Junior, Guard, 4.7 ppg, 2.3 apg
Cassius Stanley, Freshman, Guard, 12.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg
Wendell Moore, Freshman, Forward, 7.4 ppg, 4.2 rpg
Vernon Carey, Freshman, Center, 17.8 ppg, 8.8 rpg, 1.6 bpg
 
Key Role Players:
Justin Robinson, Senior, Forward, 2.8 ppg, 1.5 rpg
Matthew Hurt, Freshman, Forward, 9.7 ppg, 3.8 rpg
Alex O’Connell, Junior, Guard, 5.2 ppg
 
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 82.5 (2nd in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 68.0 (138, 8)
Field-Goal Percentage: 47.0 (27, 1)
Field-Goal Defense: 41.7 (103, 9)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.0 (200, 9)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.2 (79, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.0 (132, 7)
Rebound Margin: 5.7 (29, 3)
Assists Per Game: 15.5 (24, 2)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.2 (185, 11)
 
Recent Postseason Appearances:
 
2019 NCAA Round of 64 win over North Dakota State
2019 NCAA Round of 32 win over UCF
2019 NCAA Regional Semi-final win over Virginia Tech
2019 NCAA Regional Final loss to Michigan State
2018 NCAA Round of 64 win over Iona
2018 NCAA Round of 32 win over Rhode Island
2018 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Syracuse
2018 NCAA Regional Final loss to Kansas
2017 NCAA Round of 64 win over Troy
2017 NCAA Round of 32 loss to South Carolina
2016 NCAA Round of 64 win over North Carolina-Wilmington
2016 NCAA Round of 32 win over Yale
2016 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Oregon
2015 NCAA Round of 64 win over Robert Morris
2015 NCAA Round of 32 win over San Diego State
2015 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Utah
2015 NCAA Regional Final win over Gonzaga
2015 NCAA National Semifinal win over Michigan State
2015 NCAA National Final win over Wisconsin
2014 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Mercer
2013 NCAA Round of 64 win over Albany
2013 NCAA Round of 32 win over Creighton
2013 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Michigan State
2013 NCAA Regional Final loss to Louisville
2012 NCAA Round of 64 loss to Lehigh
2011 NCAA Round of 64 win over Hampton
2011 NCAA Round of 32 win over Michigan
2011 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Arizona
2010 NCAA Round of 64 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff
2010 NCAA Round of 32 win over California
2010 NCAA Regional Semifinal win over Purdue
2010 NCAA Regional Final win over Baylor
2010 NCAA National Semifinal win over West Virginia
2010 NCAA National Final win over Butler
2009 NCAA Round of 64 win over Binghamton
2009 NCAA Round of 32 win over Texas
2009 NCAA Regional Semifinal loss to Villanova
2008 NCAA Round of 64 win over Belmont
2008 NCAA Round of 32 loss to West Virginia
2007 NCAA Round of 64 loss to VCU
 
*all team stats through 3/8