With Cameron Boozer's steady play, Duke has a tremendously high floor. No matter what you draw up defensively, Boozer is going to find a way to get his. And if he can't, he's going to facilitate and help others get theirs.
But how high Duke's ceiling is - and thus how far the Blue Devils can go in the NCAA Tournament - will be determined by the others around Boozer. Namely, freshman wing Dame Sarr, who continues to flourish late in the season, turning into a real two-way threat.
Sarr is a big part of Duke's No. 1-ranked defense, but his recent offensive uptick - particularly with his three-point shooting - changes the calculus of how teams will have to defend Duke.
NC State threw a zone at Duke, hoping to force Jon Scheyer's team to force up three-pointers and keep Boozer from feasting in the paint. Unfortunately for Will Wade, Sarr and Isaiah Evans broke the zone with some big-time shot-making as Duke annihilated the Wolfpack in Raleigh.
Evans knocking down threes isn't new, but Sarr trending upward is big. He hit three in the first half as Duke built a 17-point lead at halftime. He finished with 16 points and 8 rebounds in the 29-point win.
Sarr's performance prompted college basketball analyst Jeff Goodman to make a bold proclamation about the rest of the nation's chances when he's playing like that:
When Dame Sarr is playing this way, I’m not sure Duke is gonna lose to anyone.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanHoops) March 3, 2026
Jeff Goodman shouts out Dame Sarr's impactful performance for Duke at NC State
Sarr came into Monday night's game shooting just 31.9% from three on the season, but he's been trending upwards the last few weeks. Over Duke's last eight games, Sarr is 12-of-30 (40%) from deep.
With Sarr and Evans trending up from long-range, and both Boozer and Caleb Foster shooting above 40% from three on the season, suddenly what many thought was Duke's weakness has made them all the more terrifying.
With how Duke defends, if it is hitting shots at a high level, there's just not much you are going to be able to do. If you collapse on Boozer, he trusts his teammates to hit shots on kick-out looks. Recently, those shots have been falling.
And with the way Sarr is playing - confident and free - an already high ceiling just went up another notch.