Duke Basketball: 2019-20 keys for Blue Devils against Brown

EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN - DECEMBER 03: Head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils talks to his team during the first half while playing the Michigan State Spartans at Breslin Center on December 03, 2019 in East Lansing, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 22: Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski talks to Tre Jones #3 (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /

1. Don’t let Brandon Anderson go off

The 25 points against the Red Storm wasn’t an anomaly for the senior guard. In nine games this season, Anderson is averaging 21.0 ppg on 43% shooting and 36% from deep, while also leading Brown in assists (3.8 apg) and steals (1.9 spg). The 6’1 guard averaged 17.3 ppg as a sophomore but saw his production cut nearly in half last year so the early bounce-back has been huge for Brown’s hopes of a top-4 Ivy finish.

For the Bears to have any hope in this game, Anderson will have to go for 25+ points in an efficient matter. In the past, Duke has been susceptible to individual guards having huge games (Shamorie Ponds in 2018) so it’s not impossible that the Brown scoring machine can have a big outing.

It also will depend on the status of Tre Jones, Duke’s starting point guard and elite defender. He limited Michigan State’s Cassius Winston to just 12 points on 4/14 shooting in their matchup and will have the size advantage against Anderson. But a lingering foot issue could be a problem in terms of keeping up with an athlete who can score in a variety of ways. As long as Jones and the other guards make Anderson work for it all 40 minutes, the Blue Devils will be in good shape.

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