The Duke Basketball team picked up a road win at Georgia Tech on Wednesday night and head coach Mike Krzyzewski might have found his closing lineup.
Wednesday night against Georgia Tech was the first time the Duke Blue Devils found itself in a close game down the stretch since the loss to Stephen F. Austin.
Duke has been in some close games, specifically the win over Kansas, but since November 26 it has been relatively smooth sailing for the Blue Devils, until Wednesday night against Georgia Tech.
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An 11-point halftime lead was gone and Duke found itself down by three points on the road against a team that was oozing confidence.
Mike Krzyzewski turned to a lineup primarily made up of Tre Jones, Jordan Goldwire, Cassius Stanley, Matthew Hurt, and Vernon Carey Jr. to erase the deficit and come up with the victory and they delivered.
One substitution Krzyzewski made was Jack White replacing Matthew Hurt and it paid dividends as White made a 3-pointer which put Duke up 58-57, a lead Georgia Tech would never regain.
Javin DeLaurier also replaced Carey Jr. as the senior came up with two big free throws and a big block, but the core of the rotation remained the same in Duke’s mini-run.
The Blue Devils have a floor general and leader at point guard in Tre Jones. A defensive stopper and mastermind in Jordan Goldwire. An athletic freak and walking highlight reel in Cassius Stanley. A ‘bucket getter’ who can score from the inside and outside in Matthew Hurt. And a beast in the pain in Vernon Carey Jr.
Those five players looked very comfortable playing with each other and everyone understood their role in Duke’s comeback victory.
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The Blue Devils were obviously without Wendell Moore who has been ruled out indefinitely with a broken bone in his hand, and while he may not have cracked the rotation in the final minutes, Moore has proven he can be a weapon in a close game.
Moore has shown that in the second half in wins over Georgetown and Brown.
Duke will ultimately play in more close games as conference play continues and the postseason rolls around, but how Mike Krzyzewski utilizes his deep and talented roster will be a major focal point going forward.
The Hall of Famer pushed all the right buttons on Wednesday night and Duke fans should be confident in Krzyzewski handling his roster in the future.