A night arranged to honor Mike Krzyzewski led to a two-way performance that surely made the legendary coach proud.
No. 4 Duke visited the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, N.Y., on Veterans Day and beat Army 114-59, with Krzyzewski on hand to take in the game between his alma mater and the school he coached to five national titles.
It was far from a mere exhibition for the Blue Devils (3-0). They’ll hope to carry their workmanlike effort into their next game Friday night against Indiana State in Durham, N.C.
“For us to do this on Veterans Day was incredibly meaningful, especially to share this with Coach K and our players,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said postgame. “They don’t get a lot of time to be around him. For Coach K to share in it with our players was very meaningful for me.
“Then, I thought it was just a very business-like approach (Tuesday). They obviously played (hard). They did a great job sharing the ball. I thought just our commitment to defend, rebound and share the ball was what stood out for me.”
Five Duke players scored at least 15 points, led by Dame Sarr’s 19 on 6-of-8 shooting from the field. The Italian freshman had a standout game after totaling just 10 points in his first two outings, and he added three steals.
“I think last game I wasn’t so aggressive on defense. After talking with the coaches, that’s not who I am,” Sarr said. “So (Tuesday), I just wanted to bring myself, be aggressive on defense, and everything else came together. Whenever I’m focused on defense, then everything else comes by itself.”
Duke’s defense has been outstanding through three games. The Blue Devils rank sixth in Division I in field-goal percentage allowed (31.2) and have kept Texas, Western Carolina and Army to 60 points or less.
Sarr also was the third different player to lead Duke in scoring this season, after Isaiah Evans put up 23 points against Texas and fellow freshman Cameron Boozer dropped 25 on Western Carolina. Boozer leads Duke with averages of 18.3 points and 9.7 rebounds per game, and twin brother Cayden Boozer averages a team-high 5.0 assists.
The Blue Devils now will turn their attention to the Sycamores (2-1), who are preparing to play the only high-major team on their schedule this season. So far, Indiana State has taken a 16-point loss to Charlotte and has beaten Division III Illinois Tech by 31 and SIU Edwardsville by nine.
The Sycamores have eight players averaging at least 13 minutes and five scoring at least 9.3 ppg, led by Ian Scott (14.3 points, 10 rebounds per game).
“I don’t know that we’ll have a very, very clear, head-and-shoulders MVP throughout this year. I think the MVP of our team will be our team,” interim coach Mark Slessinger said after the Illinois Tech game. “And being able to have guys that can play — whether that’s a two-minute run, three-minute run, four-minute run — and really elevate our level of play will be very, very important throughout this season.”
Slessinger is in charge while head coach Matthew Graves recovers from triple-bypass surgery he underwent in October. Slessinger spent 12 seasons as the head coach of New Orleans.
