Maui Invitational: Duke Looks Scary on Off Night, Gonzaga Sets Up Marquee Matchup With Blue Devils
There’s not a team in college basketball that can be reasonably expected to beat Duke—if it happens, it will come by shock or not at all—but coming into Tuesday’s Maui Invitational semifinal there was some sense that eighth-ranked Auburn had a puncher’s chance. The Tigers feature an athletic, tough cast, blitz opponents with energy and love to bomb from outside. It’s no use for anyone running with Duke, but if Auburn could scramble effectively in transition and make enough timely shots, there was a pathway to keeping it close.
To nobody’s surprise, that was decidedly not how this thing went down. The Blue Devils took a punch or two, and it wasn’t all smooth sailing, but an impressive, unified showing (from a team driven by freshmen, no less) made a world of difference in a 78–72 victory. Whenever Auburn strung together positive plays, there was an adequate answer, and though an absurd free throw discrepancy (they shot just nine to their opponent’s 32) was a major factor, Duke’s cohesion and poise in a big-game, neutral site environment was wildly impressive. This wasn’t a flashy, open-court game replete with highlights. For a title contender of this caliber, it’s just as important to prove you can win the ugly ones.
Much has (appropriately) been made of Duke’s ridiculous collection of future NBA players, and much of that discussion has centered on the offensive end. But in an uptempo game, it was actually the Blue Devils’ team defense that most noticeably swung the day. No matter the opponent, the central challenge will be trying to dictate tempo against a group with Duke’s level of athleticism, skill and intelligence. It’s near-impossible when they can sustain their focus on defense. Auburn’s smaller guards struggled to penetrate as Duke’s bigger perimeter players stepped out onto to them. The star of the night was resurgent junior Marques Bolden (11 points, nine rebounds and six critical blocks) who looked mobile and motivated while turning in one of the best games of his college career. If Bolden can continue to be this impactful defensively in the middle, there might not be much hope for the rest of Division I basketball.
