NCAA Tournament: Duke-Yale Round of 32 matchup a treat

Duke and Yale’s Round of 32 NCAA Tournament matchup figures to be an entertaining affair featuring plenty of offense and intrigue.

One team has been an enduring staple in NCAA Tournament lore. The other just made its first tourney appearance in 54 years.

Yet on Saturday, Duke and Yale will face off in a West Region second round contest that promises to feature enough storylines to fill up the Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence.

Anyone familiar with coach Mike Krzyzewski’s pedigree wasn’t surprised when the Blue Devils held off UNC-Wilmington in the opening round Thursday. While the Seahawks entered the contest known for an explosive attack that averaged 79.4 points per contest, Duke was more than happy to match styles with Kevin Keatts’ club.

After all, the Blue Devils are an offensive juggernaut in their own right, having scored 81.5 points on 46.4 percent shooting in 2015-16.

The result was a 93-85 victory in which Duke connected on 29-of-54 shots and scored 53 second half points to rally from a three-point halftime deficit.

Most impressive was Duke’s ability to penetrate the lane after UNC-Wilmington’s 7-foot center C.J. Gettys drew his fourth personal foul with 17:09 remaining in regulation. The Blue Devils attacked the paint relentlessly from there on, drawing 33 Seahawks fouls while connecting on 31-of-43 free throws for the game.

Krzyzewski has always been a master of adjustment, and with his team trailing 43-40 at the break, it became clear Duke’s second half plan was to pound away inside against the smaller Seahawks.

Blue Devils center Marshall Plumlee was more than happy to take advantage, scoring a season-high 23 points on 9-of-10 shooting. Add-in the 23 points scored by Grayson Allen, along with Brandon Ingram’s 20 points, and the Blue Devils simply had too many weapons for the foul-plagued Seahawks to overcome.

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As much as Duke relied on their front-court to down UNC-Wilmington, Yale got past Baylor behind a big-time performance from point guard Makai Mason. The 6-foot-1 sophomore was superb against Scott Drew’s Bears, scoring 31 points on 9-of-18 shooting while committing just two turnovers in the Bulldogs’ 79-75 victory.

With forwards Justin Sears and Brandon Sherrod battling foul trouble of their own, Mason helped his team build a 13-point second half lead before knocking down several key free throws to help the Bulldogs hold off a late Baylor charge.

For the game, Mason connected on all 11 of his attempts from the line, including going 4-for-4 in the game’s final 59 seconds. Sherrod also came up huge on that front, sinking two free throws in the final two seconds to seal the victory.

Yale is certainly no slouch offensively, having averaged 75.3 points on 47.3 percent shooting for the season. They have three players who score in double-figures and connect on 37.2 of their three-point attempts.

To top it off, the Bulldogs emphasize precise player movement and execution in their offensive sets, often leading to pretty passing combinations.

But will they be able to handle a longer, more athletic team for the second consecutive game?

Yale’s tallest player is 6-foot-9 Sam Downey. Sears and Sherrod, the Bulldogs’ two most important front-court players, stand 6-foot-8 and 6-foot-6 respectively. When comparing that with Duke’s front-line grouping of the 7-foot Plumlee, 6-foot-9 Ingram and 6-foot-10 Chase Jeter, it’s clear Yale will be facing another size disadvantage.

In their previous meeting back in November, the Bulldogs were able to hang around for a half before Duke pulled away for an 80-61 win at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

On that occasion, Blue Devils guard Matt Jones led all scorers with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Duke had four players score in double-figures and held the Bulldogs to just 39.7 percent marksmanship from the floor.

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But as the old saying goes, that was then and this is now. Can Yale rise up with another upset or will Duke march on to another Sweet 16?

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