Wendell Moore Jr. leads Duke past Army
Duke dropped Army 82-56 behind Wendell Moore Jr.'s triple double.
DURHAM, N.C. — Duke opened its regular season home schedule Friday with a hard-fought 82-56 win over Army West Point in the Veterans Day Weekend Showcase.
Despite the lopsided score, the Blue Devils’ win was not necessarily the most beautifully orchestrated, as the Black Knights pushed them for most of the night. However, after struggling to put together a fluid offensive showing for much of the first half and parts of the second, the Blue Devils leaned on junior co-captain Wendell Moore Jr. to provide stability.
And did he ever, as he registered a triple double with 19 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists.
“I thought Wendell really had a helluva game,” Mike Krzyzewski said. “From day one this year he has been really good. He’s just a really good basketball player. He’s our leader. He’ll do anything that we need to have done. He can even play at the four if we went small. We didn’t do that tonight. He’s handled the ball probably the most. He has a really good presence on the court.“
Duke outscored Army 31-16 over the final 11:19 to open up the game, but until that point things were certainly still in question.
Army was hanging around just enough to make it interesting.
Jeremy Roach was also huge for the Blue Devils during that final stretch, scoring 12 of his 14 points in those final 11:19.
“I thought in the second half, Jeremy, especially in the period of time it’s like 10, 11 and all the sudden it’s 17,” Krzyzewski said. “He made really big plays for us.”
Paolo Banchero put together another strong outing, registering his first double double of his career, scoring 18 points and grabbing 12 rebounds.
WENDELL MOORE JR. SHINES
Moore was simply spectacular. The junior became the fifth player in Duke history to record a triple double, and he did it in a mostly unassuming and undoubtedly consistent manner.
He was on top of his game from the opening tip, dishing out his first assist to Paolo Banchero just 48 seconds in to the game, while having grabbed two boards within the first two minutes.
It was not all about Moore quietly putting together one of the best statistical performances in Duke history, though, as he placed his improved athleticism and confidence on full display with a steal and tomahawk dunk in the middle of the lane early in the first half.
His confidence was evident. Offensively, Moore was aggressive and made moves to the basket with conviction. The result was highly calculated shot attempts and an outstanding level of awareness.
For the game, Moore shot 7-of-13 from the floor with five of the six missed shots coming from beyond the arc. Only one of those attempts was ill advised - a transition three at the top of the key that resulted in an empty possession.
As good as he was offensively, Moore was a nightmare for the Army offense. His on-ball defense was as good as we’ve seen at Duke since Tre Jones put on nightly clinics inside Cameron Indoor Stadium two seasons ago.
Moore finished with two steals in the game, but he disrupted shots and passing lanes all night long.
It was as impressive of a complete performance as anyone has put together in quite some time.
KEEL MODE
Keel Mode isn’t designated just for offense. It’s a total mindset. And after seeing it on display against Kentucky on Tuesday from an offensive standpoint, Trevor Keels was absolutely dominant defensively.
As good as Wendell Moore was on the ball, Keels stole the show with his ball pressure. He picked pockets. He broke up passing lanes. He forced Army ball-handlers into other defenders. He crowded ball-handlers.
The result was six steals and numerous disruptions in Army’s halfcourt offense - several of which resulted in a teammate registering a steal of his own.
Duke ultimately forced Army into 21 turnovers — 14 via steals. The Blue Devils turned those 21 miscues into 27 points.
Keels finished the day with 10 points, three rebounds and two assists in addition to his six steals.
OFFENSE STILL STAGNANT AT TIMES
As a whole, Duke’s offense was out of sync at times. Krzyzewski gives Army credit for some of that, but also points out that his team must be better in moving the basketball.
“I did not think we were strong with the ball and that has to do with them playing so hard,” Krzyzewski said. “I thought we passed and stood. We don’t practice that way. Almost everyday, you hit, cut, shallow cut. You move the ball.
“Part of it is they play man-to-man, but it’s a top of the key man-to-man — somewhat like a really good matchup zone. So it stands you up and it invites multiple dribbles.
“We need to move the ball better.”
To Krzyzewski’s point, Duke did move the ball, but it resembled simply swinging the ball around the horn multiple times with no real intent. It never really created driving lanes or open shots.
That said, there was improvement from Duke’s game with Kentucky, when assists were at a premium. Tonight, Duke handed out 21 assists on 31 made baskets, so that is significant progress.
Of course Moore had 10 of those assists, and Roach had four. Beyond that, Krzyzewski wants more widespread movement.
Very good recap. Mark is struggling to find his niche right now, but he will find his way. These games now are very instrumental in developing chemistry and working on different combinations.
What a write up! You went deep Brian! Only thing I’d even slightly disagree with is nitpicking on saying I don’t think the game was ever in question but more just when would we put them away. Having said all of that, there are real concerns with this team. Good news is we are learning in wins. I think the first two games are a huge wake up call to Mark and Duke fans who just assumed he’d pick up right where he left off at the end of last year. Yes that “could” have happened, but let’s be real, he’s got to be consistent. I think he will be and it won’t take long. These two games will be big for him. It was a tough matchup for him against Kentucky and this one was tough bc of the size of Army. Once we start playing teams with more traditional bigs, I think he will be able to hit his stride.