Duke basketball report card for Week 3 of conference play

Overall Duke basketball team grade for Week 3 of ACC play: C+

The Duke basketball players got their first taste of a top-level ACC matchup this week, and it definitely showed. Last-second efforts came up short for No. 19 Duke (5-3, 3-1 ACC) on Tuesday night in Blacksburg, in what was a very telling 74-67 loss against the No. 20 Virginia Tech Hokies (10-2, 4-1 ACC). It was the Blue Devils’ only game in their third week of conference play.

ALSO READ: Duke report card for Week 2 of ACC play

Back-to-back postponements and little time on the floor in several weeks are now proving to have an effect on this team. When it comes to playing strong opponents like the Hokies, who have played most of their scheduled games so far, they just can’t seem to match their energy.

However, along with the bad, there were still a few promising factors. In a game where they were almost down by 20, the Blue Devils’ grit got them back to within one, showing they will fight to the very end — they just weren’t able to close out this one for a win.

With that, before Duke’s return to action at 9 p.m. Tuesday, when the group travels to take on a Pitt squad (7-2, 3-1 ACC) that has won seven of its past eight and is coming off a 20-point victory over Syracuse on Saturday, let’s dive deeper into the team’s offensive and defensive performances for this past week…