Game Preview: Duke Blue Devils vs Army Black Knights

 FRIDAY., NOV. 12, 2021 | CAMERON INDOOR STADIUM | DURHAM, NC | 7:00 PM

DUKE VETERANS DAY WEEKEND SHOWCASE PRESENTED BY AMERITAS

The Series
Overall Duke leads, 11-3
In Durham, NC Duke leads, 6-0 (6-0 at Cameron Indoor)
In West Point, NY Duke leads, 5-3
At neutral sites No meetings
Last Meeting Duke, 94-72 (11/11/18 in Durham)
Coach K vs. Army West Point 7-0

TV
Network ACC Network
Play-by-Play Dave O’Brien
Analyst Chris Spatola
Sideline —
Producer Matt Bartley
Stream WatchESPN 

RADIO
Network Blue Devil Sports
Play-by-Play David Shumate
Analyst John Roth
Engineer John Rose
Stream GoDuke.com; Varsity app
Sirius/XM 135/193

Duke Veterans Day Weekend Showcase Sponsored by Ameritas

Fresh off a season-opening win over No. 10 Kentucky, ninth-ranked Duke welcomes Army West Point for the Duke Veterans Day Weekend Showcase Presented by Ameritas. Hartford and Campbell are also in the weekend field, with the Blue Devils set to face Campbell on Saturday night at Cameron Indoor. The United States Military Academy is a program and institution that holds special meaning to Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski. Coach K played for, and graduated from, Army, and later served as the program’s head coach.

“It’s always an honor for us to play at Cameron Indoor Stadium and we’re excited to bring in three quality programs for the Duke Veterans Day Weekend Showcase presented by Ameritas,” said Krzyzewski. “As a West Point alum, the opportunity to have my alma mater at Cameron Indoor on Veterans Day weekend, along with Campbell and Hartford, is very special. These games on consecutive days will be a great test for our team.”

Ameritas has been the presenting sponsor of past Duke Men’s Basketball games at Madison Square Garden and will serve as sponsor of the Continental Tire Challenge on Friday, Nov. 26 when the Blue Devils battle Gonzaga at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

“Ameritas is proud to have the opportunity to sponsor the Blue Devils once again,” said Ameritas’ Executive Vice President Karen Gustin. “We’re big Duke fans, and this season is bittersweet as we say goodbye to Coach K during his final season with Duke. Ameritas wishes the Blue Devils and Coach Krzyzewski all the best for the season. We’ll be there to cheer you on!”

About Ameritas

Ameritas is a marketing name for Ameritas Mutual Holding Company and its affiliated subsidiary companies, including Ameritas Life Insurance Corp. and Ameritas Life Insurance Corp. of New York. Founded in 1887, Ameritas offers a wide range of insurance and financial products and services to individuals, families and businesses. These products and services include life insurance; annuities; individual disability income insurance; group dental, vision and hearing care insurance; retirement plans; investments; asset management; and public finance. Securities offered through affiliate Ameritas Investment Company LLC., member FINRA/SIPC and investment advisory services offered through the business name of Ameritas Advisory Services. For more information, visit ameritas.com.

PREVIEW

Army

In their first game of the season the Black Knights employed a rather small lineup with 4 guards all 6’3 and under plus 1 power forward at 6’9. While this lineup paid dividends versus SUNY New Paltz. I’m not certain they’ll use this same structure versus the much bigger Blue Devils. The Black Knights do have 8 players aside from Charlie Peterson, who I believe will start, that are 6’8 or above but I believe Army will most likely run with the same starting 5. Charlie Peterson is coming off of a monster game for the Black Knights that saw him lead all scorers with a career-high 17 points while going 6-for-6 from the field. He tied a career-high in rebounds with a team-high eight. Josh Caldwell scored 14 points, grabbed six rebounds, dished out a game-high five assists and snagged two steals in 26 minutes in the 83-52 win that saw them hold their opponent to 30.4% shooting for the game. The Black Knights shot the ball at a sizzling 54.8% but only shot 27% from beyond the arc.

Duke

With the win, Duke improved to 40-2 in season openers under Krzyzewski and has won 22 consecutive. » In home openers under Coach K, Duke is 40-1 and has won 39 consecutive. » Beginning with Army, Duke plays five home games over the next 10 days before a date with No. 1 Gonzaga on Friday, Nov. 26 in Las Vegas. Four days later, Duke battles No. 17 Ohio State in Columbus in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge to end the month.

The Blue Devils are coming off of an emotional big time victory against the Kentucky Wildcats in the State Farm Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden in New York 79-71 that saw them shoot 50.8% from the field but only 1-13 from beyond the 3 point arc. They were able to defend well, holding Kentucky to under 38% shooting for the game. Freshmen Paolo Banchero and Trevor Keels combined for 47 points with Banchero scoring 22 and Keels leading all scores with 25 points. With the win, Duke improved to 40-2 in season openers under Krzyzewski and has won 22 consecutive. » In home openers under Coach K, Duke is 40-1 and has won 39 consecutive. Beginning with Army, Duke plays five home games over the next 10 days before a date with No. 1 Gonzaga on Friday, Nov. 26 in Las Vegas. Four days later, Duke battles No. 17 Ohio State in Columbus in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge to end the month.

PROJECTED STARTING LINEUPS

Duke Blue Devils

Guard Jeremy Roach, 6’1, 172lbs – Sophomore
Guard Trevor Keels, 6’4, 221lbs – Freshman
Guard Wendell Moore, 6’5, 213lbs – Junior
Forward Paolo Banchero, 6’10, 250lbs – Freshman
Center Mark Williams, 7’0, 242lbs – Sophomore

Army Black knights

GuardJalen Rucker 5’10, 180lbs – Sophomore
Guard Aaron Durhart 6’0, 190lbs – Senior
Guard Josh Caldwell 6’2, 185lbs – Senior
Guard Jared Cross 6’3, 196lbs – Sophomore
Forward Charlie Peterson 6’9, 223lbs – Sophomore

FRESHMAN GUARD TREVOR KEELS

On the team’s reaction to defeating Kentucky on Tuesday night and shifting focus to Friday’s game vs. Army:
“Coach came in the locker room, he was very happy that we started off 1-0, but then he stressed that we’ve got two back-to-back
games coming up. Tomorrow we play Army, and then the next day we play Campbell, so we’ve got to keep moving forward. It’s a
huge win on ESPN. It’s big time, that’s what you want, but then again, playing at home – he stressed the fact that [Duke] lost at home
five times last year. Home court advantage is big, so we’ve got to keep moving forward and get these two wins coming up.”

On if playing physically is emphasized within the team:
“Yeah. We’ve got a lot of strong people on the team. Our wingspan average is crazy, so I think that’s big. We can defend all five
positions – I think that sets us apart from everybody else. All five guys on the court can defend. That’s something that we preach all
the time. When you go against each other in practice, we make each other better. We emphasize in practice to defend and let the
offense flow.”

On what graduate student Theo John brings to the team:
“Theo is super strong. I think he bench pressed 26 (reps at 225 pounds). I’m glad we’ve got him. When you’ve got to go up against
Mark [Williams] to start off the game – 7-1 [height], 7-7 wingspan – and then you’ve got somebody coming in that’s [6-9] and bulky,
it’stwo different types of bigs. I think that’s what helps us a lot. We can switch it out with different play styles, different physicality’s
and I’m grateful we’ve got both of them. Theo gives us a spark every time he comes in the game. He gives us a physicality spark and
I love it.”

GRADUATE STUDENT FORWARD THEO JOHN

On if he takes pride in having a role of playing physically:
“I take a lot of pride in that. It’s kind of who I am, what I’ve been known for and what I like to do. I feel like it helps our team and it
puts usin the best position to win, so I’m going to do that to the best of my ability and at the end of the day, that’s what they brought
me here to do.”

On if toughness is something that has always been a part of his game:
“I feel like it’s always been a part of my game and throughout my college career, I’ve just learned to master it and try to be the best
player that I can be in that role.”

On the team’s transition defense against Kentucky and how important it is moving forward:
“Transition defense – you’ve got to have that in the college game. A lot of it starts with communication and the will to stop a team.
We’re really prideful on the defensive end and defense travels, so that’s something that we’re going to try to keep with us and build
upon for the remainder of the season.”

On if playing against freshman Paolo Banchero and sophomore Mark Williams in practice has helped expand his game:
“Yeah – practice is like war. We’re going against each other, we’re all competitive guys, we all have got that alpha dog in us and
that comes out. It pushes each other and it’s done nothing but make us better.”