Duke Wins Motion Bracket Of the Phil Knight Invitational Tournament

For the second game in a row, it took a second half comeback for the Duke Blue Devils to pull out a win. They came back this time from 17 down to beat the Florida Gators. This the second game in a row they’ve been down by double digits in the second half and came back to win.

Let’s just get this out of the way now: Duke had no business being in this game late.

Okay now that that’s out of the way.

This team has heart that cannot be measured. For the third game in a row, they came out and got punched in the mouth. Florida was running up and down the floor on the Blue Devils and scoring at will to start the game. Duke settled down midway through the first half with Grayson Allen and Gary Trent Jr. having a competition to see who could hit the most threes but ended up faltering late in the half, going into halftime down 53-49.

The second half started bad. Duke couldn’t hit really anything. Trent went into the witness protection program and was nowhere to be found. Allen was right behind him. Marvin Bagley and Wendell Carter were getting good looks at the rim but left a ton of points on the front of the rim. Florida was up 17 with 10:17 to go and I was more than ready to call this a game and go to sleep.

Then Duke started chipping away at the lead.

Little by little they clawed their way back into it. Cutting the lead to eight then it went up to 10 then back to eight and it didn’t look like there was any way they were going to get enough stops to really make a run. Bagley hit two free throws to cut the lead to six with 3:44 left in the game and from there it was on. An Allen pump fake, dribble and three (which I’m very certain my eyes have never seen him miss such a shot) cut the lead to three. Florida made a tough jumper followed by a Bagley layup and it’s suddenly a one point game. Trent was allowed an opportunity to leave the witness protection, made four free throws down the stretch and came up with a huge steal before his final two free throws to seal it.

Observations:

Next: Duke Basketball vs. Texas Recap

–Marvin Bagley is not human. He was not made by two humans who really liked each other and decided to take their like to the next level. He had 30 points and 15 rebounds while shooting 9-10 from the line. Whenever the ball is in his hands, the only way to stop him is hope he misses. He’s that freaking good.

-Transition defense and defense in general was another major issue tonight. Duke struggled to get back in transition and still over committed on guys a lot. However, when it mattered most they got stops. We need to see more of that throughout the game and not just when it matters most.

–Wendell Carter and Marvin Bagley have telepathic powers that allow one another to pass like 12 year NBA veterans in the post without speaking or looking at each other. They are very skilled at passing to each other and passing to cutters. It’s really not fair.

-This team has a lot to improve on but the heart and will to win is there. Carter had four fouls with just over 10 minutes to go and somehow didn’t foul out. Trent was on the milk carton for most of the second half until he somehow reappeared to make four huge free throws and top it off with a steal. Allen was 5-12 from the field but still had seven assists and hit the games biggest shot. Trevon Duval only made three shots but hit all four of his free throws and had six assists. Bagley’s going to get his but it’s the guys around him that are constantly finding ways to rise up when it matters. It may not show in the stat sheet but for these freshman to play like seniors is huge in November.

-If you went to sleep do not talk to me ever again.