Preview: #3 Duke Blue Devils (21-3, 13-1 ACC) vs. Stanford Cardinal (16-9, 8-6 ACC)

#3 Duke Blue Devils (21-3, 13-1 ACC) vs. Stanford Cardinal (16-9, 8-6 ACC)

Saturday, Feb. 15 • 4 p.m. ET

Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) • Durham, N.C.

TV: ABC

Radio: Blue Devil Sports Network from LEARFIELD

The Duke Blue Devils take on their second West Coast foe at home as they face the Stanford Cardinal Saturday in Cameron Indoor Stadium. Dick Vitale returns to Cameron Indoor Stadium as a member of the ABC broadcast team.

TV/Video Stream ABC
Play-by-Play Dave O’Brien
Analyst Dick Vitale
Analyst Cory Alexander
Producer Kim Belton
Director Adam Bryant

Radio Blue Devil Sports Network
Play-by-Play David Shumate
Analyst John Roth
Engineer John Rose
In Durham 96.5 FM & 620 AM
SiriusXM 209 & 194

Overall Duke trails, 1-2
In Durham, NC First meeting
at Cameron Indoor Stadium First meeting
In Stanford, CA —
at Maples Pavilion —
Neutral Sites Duke trails, 1-2
Last Meeting Duke 70, Stanford 59 (Nov. 22, 2014 – Brooklyn, N.Y.)

The Cardinal step into the weekend with an 8-6 record in the ACC and an overall record of 16-9. Stanford ranks second in the ACC and 15th nationally in free throw percentage (.785). The Cardinal are third in the conference in 3-point attempts per game, averaging 24.4 shots from distance per game.

Standard is led Maxime Raynaud who averages a double-double with 19.9 points and 11.5 rebounds per game. Raynaud, a 7-1, 245-pound senior from Paris, France, leads the nation with 20 double-doubles. His 19.9 points per game leads the ACC, and his 11.5 rebounds ranks third in the nation.

Former Duke guard Jaylen Blakes is averaging 14.5 points for the Cardinal along with 5 assists to lead the team. Oziyah Sellers rounds out the double figure scorers for Stanford, coming in just behind Blakes at 14 points per game.

The Blue Devils have an overall record of 20-3 and an ACC record of 13-1. The Blue Devils lead the country in scoring margin (+19.6) and rank fifth in the nation in scoring defense (60.4), seventh in field goal percentage defense (.384), 10th in assist-to-turnover ratio (+1.65), 16th in rebound margin (+7.8), 18th in effective field goal percentage (.565), 25th in three-pointers per game (10.0) and 33rd in assists per game (16.5) – all top marks in the ACC. Duke is the only team in the country ranked among the top-five in both offensive (5th) and defensive efficiency (3rd), according to KenPom. Duke is the only Division I team to score 80 points or more per game (80.0) and hold its opponents to fewer than 61 points per game (60.4).

Cooper Flagg, who turned 18 years old on Dec. 21, tops Duke in points (475), rebounds (182), assists (95), steals (38) and blocked shots (29). Flagg ranks among the ACC’s top-10 in four of the five major statistical categories – scoring (3rd), rebounding (8th), assists (8th) and blocks (8th), and is 11th in steals. Flagg leads Duke in scoring at 19.8 points per game, rebounding at 7.6 per game and assists at 4 per game. Freshman Kon Knueppel is the second freshman in the starting lineup to average double figures at 13.2 points per game. Tyrese Proctor has averaged 18.5 points in Duke’s last four games, while shooting 27-of- 52 (.500) from the field, including 13-of-29 (.448) from three-point range. On the season, Proctor is averaging 11.8 points per game. In the last seven games, Sion James has distributed 26 assists to just five turnovers, a 5.2 assist-to-turnover ratio. James ranks third in the ACC in that category (2.71). Khaman Maluach recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 10 points and 12 rebounds versus California on Wednesday night.

PG Sion James 6’6, 220lbs – Grad Transfer
SG Tyrese Proctor 6’6, 183lbs – Junior
SF Kon Knueppel 6’7, 217lbs – Freshman
PF Cooper Flagg 6’9, 205lbs – Freshman
C Khaman Maluach 7’2, 250lbs – Freshman

G Jaylen Blakes 6’2, 200lbs – Grad Student
G Oziyah Sellers 6’5, 190lb – Junior
G Ryan Agarwal 6’6, 195lbs – RsSophomore
F Donavin Young 6’8, 215lbs – Freshman
F Maxime Raynaud 7’1, 245lbs – Senior

The Blue Devils face a difficult task in trying to guard and matchup with Stanfords Maxime Raynaud. Raynaud is adept at so much and has become a force in his first year in the ACC. Raynaud has the ability to affect the game in many ways, both offensively and defensively. He can step out and shoot the ball from the outside but can also do a lot of damage in the paint. Duke will have to make some decisions on how to guard Maxime who operates a lot of this time around the 3-point line, but even when his offense isn’t dominant he’s a playmaker that both draws a lot of attention and can deliver and set up his teammates. The Blue Devils will also have to work on keeping the 7’1 senior off the glass, averaging a double-double that includes 11.5 boards per game, Raynaud has been good for 3+ offensive rebounds each night for the Cardinal. For a more expansive write-up on Maxime Raynaud’s usage, check out Brian Geisinger’s post.

Duke fans will be very familiar with guard Jaylen Blakes, who holds a Duke degree and was a defensive stalwart during his time in Durham. Blakes is having his best collegiate year so far and has expanded his offensive game this season.