All Things Duke

Duke is used to 30 point victories in the early part of the season. By the end of their season opener against Presbyterian on Monday, Duke tacked on another, 80-49, but the game was far from a resounding success in the eyes of the Duke coaches, players, and knowledgeable fans.

Duke struggled to open up a big lead in the first half before Greg Paulus came in and provided a spark. After the game, players talked about not being on the same page. Then in the second half, Duke failed to run the plays that Coach K called three out of four trips down the court. This is something that even young Duke teams haven't struggled with significantly in the early going for a long time.

This may come as a mild hit to the psyches of fans who have been getting their hopes up hearing about how Duke now has the experience they've lacked for the past two years, the athleticism to replace and exceed Demarcus Nelson's in Nolan Smith, Elliot Williams, and Gerald Henderson, and a surprisingly effective big man in freshman Miles Plumlee. However, in the opener, while the athleticism was evident in plays like Elliot Williams' 360 degree dunk, Miles Plumlee was largely ineffectual and the experience, while providing spark from time to time, did not supply the leadership needed to give Duke consistency throughout the game.

But it's a mild hit at most. It's very, very early, and the Duke coaching staff has some time to build the hustle and consistency back into the team from top to bottom. If they do, then as we hope, Duke could remain a legitimate top 10 contender all year.

Already in their second game against Georgia-Southern, Duke is playing more cohesively. Czyz and Pocius are both seeing some action, and the usual suspects are in double digit figures.

We'll have an early look on freshman production after the game on Sunday.

Go Duke!