Duke basketball announces fifth starting five of the season

The Duke basketball team is using its fifth starting five in as many games.

Last season, in his 40th year at the helm in Durham, Duke basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski set a personal record by rolling out 14 different starting lineups across the team’s 25-6 campaign.

ALSO READ: Ranking the first 40 Duke teams under Coach K

This season, despite fewer games in the regular season due to current world conditions, Coach K is on pace to shatter that mark. Through the 2-2 start for the Blue Devils, the Hall of Famer has already given starting nods to eight different players and a total of four unique combinations.

As expected, in light of the foot injury to freshman forward Jalen Johnson that will keep the four-time starter out of action indefinitely, Duke has announced a fifth starting five of the season for the matchup on the road against 2-2 Notre Dame at 9 p.m. Wednesday (ESPN).

According to a tweet from the Duke basketball account, the fifth starting five for the Blue Devils consists of freshman guard Jeremy Roach, senior guard Jordan Goldwire, freshman guard DJ Steward, sophomore forward Matthew Hurt, and senior forward Patrick Tapé (his first start at Duke).

Up next for Duke basketball after the Notre Dame trip

Once the horn sounds in South Bend, Duke will have 13 days off until its faces Pitt at home on Dec. 29. And during the lengthy break, the players will have the chance to return home for the holidays; in the case of Jalen Johnson, the time away will serve as a timely chance to continue to heal.

But the rest of the way following the outing against the Panthers — barring any future postponements or canceled contests in ACC play — the Blue Devils will take the floor no less than once every seven days from the beginning of January through the last game of the regular season on March 6 (when Duke is slated to take on rival North Carolina in Chapel Hill).

Stay tuned to Ball Durham for more Duke basketball news and views.