12 | THURSDAY, APRIL 1, 2010 the chronicle
final four from page 7 would win it,” Krzyzewski said. “It doesn’t take much to get eliminated. It can be one guy having a bad minute. It can even be a coach making one sub the wrong way.”
“This isn’t an easy tournament. Otherwise, more people would go to the Final Four every year, and more people would win it.” — Mike Krzyzewski Christina peña/The Chronicle
Joanne P. McCallie plans to use the ups and downs of this year as a teaching tool for future Duke squads.
w. bball from page 7 down the nets in San Antonio, this set of Blue Devils set the bar high for future teams in terms of their overall athleticism. McCallie called this year’s squad the strongest she’s seen in her 18 years of coaching—and Duke proved to be one of the strongest teams in the country as well. Rebounding is one of the easiest ways to measure physical strength and toughness. Even though no player averaged more than 6.7 rebounds per game this season, Duke rarely lost the battle on the glass. The Blue Devils out-rebounded their opponents by an average of nine boards per game, the eighthbest mark among all Division I teams. Duke also developed a penchant for scoring points off turnovers, and it ranked second in the nation in steals with 13.3 swipes per contest. Fortunately for the Blue Devils, juniors Jasmine Thomas and Krystal Thomas—the team leaders in steals and rebounds, respectively—will be back to lead the defense. On the offensive end next year, Duke
will miss the contributions of second-leading scorer Joy Cheek, fourth-leading scorer Bridgette Mitchell and Keturah Jackson. Despite the departure of the seniors, the Blue Devils will return their best offensive weapon: third-team All-American Jasmine Thomas. The junior guard averaged a team-high 16 points per game, scored 20 or more points 11 times and posted only the third triple-double in school history Nov. 27 against Marquette. Starting center Krystal Thomas and explosive guard Karima Christmas also have one more year on the hardwood of Cameron Indoor. Even with all the returning talent and experience, McCallie knows that team chemistry does not necessarily transfer from year to year. If Duke wants to replicate and possibly exceed the success it had this season, the players will need to come together and understand their roles all over again. But now that they have been as close as 45 seconds away from the Final Four, the 2010-2011 Blue Devils should be as hungry as ever for some tournament hardware.
However, Duke has shown throughout this tournament that its strengths combat the meltdowns that have plagued it in the past. The Big Three has become a more resilient bunch as the season progressed. After starting out ice-cold from beyond the arc against Purdue in the regional semifinal, Jon Scheyer adapted his game to accentuate another of his strengths: free throw shooting. He ended up with 18 points off of 7-8 shooting from the charity stripe, proving that even without the 3-pointer, the Blue Devils are still dangerous. “We’ve grown a step further in each of our years. It says a lot for our group to get to this point, but we really want to finish it off,” Scheyer said. “I feel like the confidence that comes from just being through it helps more than anything.” Years of playing together has helped foster a mutual belief in and respect for everyone on the team. In the one-and-done era of college basketball, very few teams—mid-majors excluded—can boast a starting lineup of three seniors and two juniors. “Everyone’s gotten better. Nolan and I, and the seniors, we’ve gone through a lot,” junior Kyle Singler said. “We’ve developed a closer bond with each other, and it’s
tougher to break us apart.” The recent emergence of Brian Zoubek has also helped spark the team to a plus-8.3 rebounding margin in its current eight-game winning streak. For the first time since Duke advanced to the final weekend of the NCAA Tournament in 2004, the team has a player who can corral missed 3-pointers, keeping offensive possessions alive. “Zoubs does a lot of stuff that doesn’t show up in the box stats,” junior Nolan Smith said. “He sets screens, he gets offensive rebounds for kickouts. He does all the little things.” In fact, the only similarity between the 2009-2010 Blue Devils and any predecessor from 2006-2009 is the name on the front of the jersey. But forgetting the past could send Duke back home to a national chorus of boos louder than ever before.
michael naclerio/The Chronicle
Jon Scheyer has found ways to hurt opponents beyond simply firing 3-pointers from the perimeter.
m. tennis from page 7
whitaker from page 8
David Holland played efficient tennis, winning their respective matches 6-4, 6-0 and 6-2, 6-2. “Those guys stepped up big today,” Goffi said. “We’ve played without Henrique for the last four matches and it has really gotten our team to come together. [It] has made our team stronger.”
6,102-meter, par-73 Commonwealth course. The senior described her rounds as a blur, mostly because she was having such a great time on the links. “[Davies, Katherine Hull and I] had a blast out there. At the end of the [third round], I couldn’t tell you how any of us played…. I had to look at my scorecard because I couldn’t remember if I played well or if I played bad,” Whitaker said. “I just had fun out there.” According to Whitaker, the lessons she learned from playing against the best have proven to be priceless back at Duke. “Playing with Laura Davies…. She plays the way people play when they’re playing with friends. She just has so much fun with it [and] she’s completely fearless,” Whitaker said. “That’s the biggest thing I’ve taken out of [the experience]…. You just have to be true to yourself out there on the golf course.”
“He was in a little rut, but he worked through it today and beat a very good player at number one.” — Assistant coach Josh Goffi, on junior Reid Carleton Duke (10-5, 3-0), which remained undefeated in conference play, has looked particularly impressive against its ACC opponents. In their three matches, the Blue Devils have defeated conference counterparts by a combined score of 17-4. “We’ve earned our stripes [in nonconference play], and when we go into battle in the ACC, we feel like we can beat anyone,” Goffi said. “The win against USC really gave us a lot of confidence.” Duke’s ACC schedule, however, gets considerably more difficult this weekend as the Blue Devils will face No. 18 Virginia Tech Friday and No. 1 Virginia Sunday, both at Ambler Tennis Stadium. Nonetheless, Goffi remains confident in his team’s ability to compete against the highestquality opponents. “We’re riding a wave of confidence, [and] the most important thing we can keep in our minds is to stay strong mentally and, most importantly, stay positive,” Goffi said. “If we keep on being positive and working towards things, we’re going to get what we want.”
nathan pham/Chronicle file photo
Reid Carleton stepped up a line and cruised to a straight-set win at No. 1. Victories over the Hokies and Cavaliers would be especially sweet given the weekend sweep Duke endured last April. The Blue Devils lost two close matches, 5-2 and 4-3, and are now looking for payback in order to improve to 5-0 in the ACC. “We have our biggest weekend coming up,” Goffi said. “We’re definitely looking to get a little revenge on Virginia Tech first, and look to carry the momentum into Sunday against the No. 1 team in the country.”
Pick up The Chronicle’s special-issue Final Four supplement, featuring a look back at Duke’s recent history with West Virginia, on newsstands Friday. And check it out online at: www.dukechronicle.com