Stock Up, Stock Down: Duke basketball shows concerning signs in victory
Joey Baker
Joey Baker is the reason why Duke was able to stay afloat in the middle of the second half.
The sophomore who did not play on Saturday night against Syracuse scored all of his eight points in a four minute span in the second half, none bigger than the 3-pointer highlighted earlier in which the BC lead was cut from four to one.
Baker’s three baskets all were energy plays, two coming on ‘and-one’s’ and the 3-pointer really turned the tide and gave the Blue Devils the life it needed to snap out of its funk.
When Joey Baker has been on the floor this season, he has been a great source of energy, but more importantly, he’s produced for Duke this season with timely baskets.
Mike Krzyzewski must put his best shooter on the floor more often if he wants to squeeze all the potential out of his 2019-20 team moving forward.
Tre Jones
As Joey Baker led the charge for Duke in the middle of the second half, Mike Krzyzewski made the call to the bullpen for his closer for the final four minutes of this game and put the ball in the hands of Tre Jones.
Jones’ play in the final minutes flipped him from the ‘Stock Down’ list to the ‘Stock Up’ list.
The sophomore point guard started the game 4-of-12 from the field but made his final three shots to finish the game with a team-high 18 points on 7-of-15 shooting in addition to three rebounds and four assists.
Tre Jones showed signs of his brother, Tyus, in the final four minutes of Tuesday’s victory in giving the Blue Devils everything they needed to close out an ugly road win.
Vernon Carey Jr.
Vernon Carey Jr. continues to be an absolute monster on the floor.
The reigning ACC Freshman and Player of the Week recorded his eleventh double-double on Tuesday night with 18 points and ten rebounds in 28 minutes.
The dominance of Carey is truly highlighted in his game because the Florida native missed numerous shots around the rim in which is normally converts and was hampered for the majority of the second half due to having four fouls.
Vernon Carey Jr. was 5-of-13 from the floor in just 28 minutes but going 7-of-8 from the free throw line has been a major improvement from the beginning of the season and will need to continue going forward for Duke.