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Duke Basketball: Breaking down Blue Devils’ schedule

By Kyler Proffitt

Mar 10, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski (L) talks to his team in a huddle against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the first half during day three of the ACC conference tournament at Verizon Center. The Fighting Irish won 84-79 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 10, 2016; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski (L) talks to his team in a huddle against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the first half during day three of the ACC conference tournament at Verizon Center. The Fighting Irish won 84-79 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /
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Duke basketball is headed for a historic season after Coach K put together a monster recruiting class and returned Grayson Allen.

It’s no secret that Duke has the top team in college basketball this season. They have the perfect blend of veteran leadership alongside raw freshmen talent.

Related Story: Alex O'Connell commits to Duke

Almost immediately after Duke’s non-conference schedule was released, the critics hopped on to give head coach Mike Krzyzewski and company a hard time for not including a true road game.

It appears every year that Duke gets criticized for their “easy” non-conference schedule, but it actually isn’t that easy by any means. Those who criticize them forget that they play in the top conference in college basketball. Therefore, they play the top ACC teams twice every year, once at home and once on the road.

Duke gets its fair share of true road games and if they can win national championships with the present talent, why does it really matter where they play at?

So in that case, let’s break down Duke’s schedule and projected record for the 2016-17 basketball season.

I’ll start by breaking down the non-conference schedule and then move to the treacherous ACC slate.

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The easy games in November and December will include Marist, Grand Canyon, William & Mary, Appalachian State, Maine, Tennessee State and Elon. All seven of these home games should end in an absolute blow-out fashion of at least 20 points. I will be shocked if the result is anything outside of this.

The Blue Devils should handle Penn State and Florida relative ease, but they aren’t exactly walk-in-the-park contests. The Gators just aren’t the same without Billy Donovan anymore, but should be one of the top teams in the SEC this year. Penn State is a football school, however, they have a loaded recruiting class coming to Happy Valley.

Duke has two potential trap games in their non-conference schedule. The first is in the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip Off. After putting the Nittany Lions down, the Blue Devils will play the winner of Cincinnati and Rhode Island.

Neither team is going to be a cakewalk, and after playing the day before, keeping these freshmen focused for the span of two games in two days could be a tall task. The Bearcats and Rams are also borderline top-25 teams.

The second potential trap game is against UNLV at a “neutral site” in Las Vegas, Nevada. This will practically be a home game for the Rebels and despite an ugly off-season, they aren’t going to lie down for Duke.

Then comes the two goliath match-ups. Duke takes on Kansas in the Champions Classic and Michigan State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

The last time Duke played Kansas in this event, they were competing against Andrew Wiggins. Josh Jackson could be in line to hurt the Blue Devils in 2016-17 in a similar fashion, but with the premier defensive talent the team possesses, led by senior co-captain Matt Jones, Duke should pull out a victory.

Tom Izzo has another solid team, but with the losses of Denzel Valentine, Deyonta Davis and Bryn Forbes, the leadership is gone. And with the Crazies behind Duke, it looks to be another big win for the Blue Devils against Izzo and company.

Worst-case scenario here, I think Duke ends up 12-1 heading into conference play.

There won’t be as many easy games in the ACC, for obvious reasons. The ones that immediately come to mind as walk-away wins for this year are home contests against Georgia Tech, Boston College and Wake Forest. Boston College is self-explanatory after losing every game in conference play in 2015-16, while Georgia Tech and Wake Forest have long ways to go after losing key contributors.

Duke has two games that could really trap them if they aren’t careful. While Florida State is projected to be a potential top-25 team down the road, it’s still a team that the Blue Devils should handle. But heading to Tallahassee and coming out winners isn’t going to be easy. Not to mention it comes after two games against Georgia Tech and Boston College.

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The other trap game is their very first conference slate battle against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. This Hokies team has tremendous continuity and Duke always struggles on Virginia Tech’s home court.

As long as the team stays focused, Duke should win multiple games pretty easy. This includes home games against NC State, Pittsburgh, Clemson, Florida State and Miami, and road games against Wake Forest and Miami.

The Wolfpack is primed for a strong year with Dennis Smith Jr. and Omer Yurtseven. But in the Cameron Indoor Center, the Wolfpack will have a hard time coming out victorious.

Pittsburgh, Clemson and Florida State will all have strong teams, but the home court advantage is the Blue Devils ally here.

The games that will really try Duke’s heart includes the two match-ups against UNC and road games against Louisville, Notre Dame, Virginia and Syracuse.

Worst case scenario, I think Duke drops games on the road against Virginia Tech, Florida State, Louisville and Syracuse. Losing to VT and FSU but beating GT and BC would start Duke out at 2-2 in the ACC.

Duke fans, can you remember any other season when they started 2-2 in the ACC (see 2015 national championship)? Duke should beat their tobacco road rivals twice this season. If this is the case, it would leave the Blue Devils at 26-5 overall and 14-4 in the ACC.

But again, this is just worst case scenario.

Best case scenario? I think Duke finishes undefeated in non-conference play with just two losses in their ACC slate, finishing 29-2 overall.

Next: 20 breakout candidates for 2016-17

Let’s stop the undefeated talk, the ACC is too good for that.

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