Last night's Duke win vs fellow ACC school, Boston College, may count as one in the standings, but it was not in any way a true win. The Blue Devils are leaving Boston with many setbacks, though that may not be completely apparent at the moment. The unranked Golden Eagles kept up with the 4th ranked Blue Devils, and had a chance to win on the last shot, after Mason Plumlee could only convert on one of two foul shots. The main takeaway from last night's game is that Duke didn't win the game, Boston College lost. This isn't the season's first time Duke has failed to live up to their standards, including 2 road losses in 11 days to rivals, NC State and Miami. Though Duke is still a top 5 team, this leads me to wonder, what is going on in Cameron? How/why is Coach K's system all of a sudden not being as consistent as usual? Duke is still blowing out teams like Maryland by 20, but why can't they get it done within their conference? I no longer am viewing Duke as the safe bet for my March Madness bracket, with their seemingly instability at the moment. Duke is basically muscling the lesser teams, but are struggling versus
more faceted teams or when they can't get on those 10-2 runs. This allows the Dukies to bluff their way into the Elite 8 or even Final Four. However, I am not at all confident that they can beat a complete team such as Indiana when the season is on the line.
Duke's decline began with last year's upset against Lehigh in the the first round of the NCAA tournament, and for now at least, I do not see them as the dominant force as they always have been. There is no question Coach K is up with John Wooden, as the top college coaches of all time, but is there something missing? I understand teams can't win every game, every year, but this is not characteristic of a program trademarked by excellence in college basketball, sometimes to a point where some players cannot succeed in the NBA. Though Duke has only lost 2 games this year, Duke has shown signs of the end of a dynasty. When the opponent's schedule read vs. Blue Devils, a chill would run down most team's spines. Though that same chill is still there, I do not think Duke is what it used to be, and these minor issues will eventually accumulate to form much bigger problems. I am not saying Duke is done, or Coach K's reign as the king of college basketball has ended, but basketball in Cameron is not what it used to be. I never thought I would ever have to say this, but Duke may have to rethink their system.
Duke's decline began with last year's upset against Lehigh in the the first round of the NCAA tournament, and for now at least, I do not see them as the dominant force as they always have been. There is no question Coach K is up with John Wooden, as the top college coaches of all time, but is there something missing? I understand teams can't win every game, every year, but this is not characteristic of a program trademarked by excellence in college basketball, sometimes to a point where some players cannot succeed in the NBA. Though Duke has only lost 2 games this year, Duke has shown signs of the end of a dynasty. When the opponent's schedule read vs. Blue Devils, a chill would run down most team's spines. Though that same chill is still there, I do not think Duke is what it used to be, and these minor issues will eventually accumulate to form much bigger problems. I am not saying Duke is done, or Coach K's reign as the king of college basketball has ended, but basketball in Cameron is not what it used to be. I never thought I would ever have to say this, but Duke may have to rethink their system.
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