NCAA Basketball: North Carolina, Kentucky, Auburn rise in latest top 25 power rankings
By Joey Loose
12. Duke (24-7)
There’s been a lot to like about this young and talented Blue Devils roster. It’s not really been a stellar season in the ACC, but Duke has certainly established themselves as one of the league’s few elite teams. Sure, there have been a few tough performances, though the Blue Devils were playing great basketball coming into this week, still hoping for a regular season title.
Monday went according to plan, as Duke won 79-64 at NC State for their third-straight win. Jeremy Roach scored 21 points, while stellar freshman Jared McCain had 16 points and 5 rebounds. Senior Night on Saturday did not go according to plan, as the Blue Devils got behind early and fell 84-79 at home to rival North Carolina. Kyle Filipowski had 23 points and 7 rebounds and McCain added 19 points and 7 rebounds but it just wasn’t the Blue Devils’ night.
Getting swept by rival North Carolina hurts in more ways than one, but finished 2nd in the ACC is nothing to scoff at. Everything that Duke wants to accomplish is still right in front of them, and this roster is seemingly coming together and playing better as time goes on. We’ll see if there’s another rematch with the Tar Heels at the ACC Tournament next week, but it’ll certainly be more interesting to see where Duke gets placed in the NCAA Tournament bracket.