Two words for Maryland fans: DeMarcus Nelson

By the time you read this post all the early model compact and sub-compact American cars that Maryland “students” lit on fire “in protest” for Duke’s win should burning out and many of the now detoxed drunken thugs with books should be posting bail.

So that means that Duke must have won, right? Well, yes, Duke did win, but win or lose the Maryland thugs will riot, so that’s not necessarily indicative of an outcome either way. With that said, I was really impressed with Maryland’s squad and that’s something I haven’t said since Juan Dixon was doing his thing back in the day. Though I hate to admit it, they are a lot better than their record indicates and will be a tough out for several ACC teams going forward as long as they can avoid the classic Gary Williams let downs to weaker teams.

Still, after being down 9 at the half in an emotional game, the Good Guys manned up, lead by the Captain DeMarcus Nelson, and got a tough win on the road with a 93-84 victory at the cable box in Maryland.

(I know, I know Maryland fans, Duke gets all the calls and that’s why they won, not because Duke is just better and this was a foul on Henderson that they missed too, I know.)

Again, the hallmark of this group is team. It’s completely cliche but dammit it’s true. Guys get cold, other guys get hot, some guys just don’t have their best stuff, but with this group, unlike any other Duke team I’ve ever seen, there’s always someone there to pick up the slack. There’s always a man ready to step in and do his duty. Tonight that man was DeMarcus Nelson with 27 points, 19 of them in the second half.

I mean, homey was ballin out there! He was hitting mid range shots, getting and ones, hitting free throws, making defensive plays, distributing the rock, battling on the boards and just being an all around leader out there. You could just feel the guys gravitating toward his example. It’s like he was balling with the fight music from Gladiator playing in the background. In fact, if you want to run that back and understand what DeMarcus was hearing during the MD game, go ahead and hit play.

Great stuff.

Talk about coming of age, a career high on the road at hostile MD with the ignorant thugz/studentz looking on in utter disbelief? And what about young Nolan?!

Geez, could that cat play any better? Homey was DEALING out there with runners, threes, dimes and defensive plays. Bottom line, he was integral in Duke’s win tonight. Forget the future, the future is now. I honestly don’t see how Coach K can’t seriously consider Nolan for the starting job after what we saw tonight. Not only that, but he plays well with his teammates. He finds guys in the right spots for them to make their shots and if they can’t make them, he’s in the right position to take his own. If Elliot Williams is as advertised, Duke’s future backcourt will be very scary.

I would be remiss if I didn’t make note of the hot game turned in by the (near) future NBAer Gerald Henderson.

Homey’s mid range game is taking off like Soul Glo’s home weave products. I mean, this cat is a BEAST on that curl (no pun intended). That elevation, the silky smooth release, the dunks on fast breaks, the polos, the nikes, the grind, empty bottles of No-Doz, I spent that gas money on clothes with logos…my bad, had a Kanye “The Glory” attack. But that’s how Hendo’s game is right now though. This cat is literally taking cats to the Glory and they really “can’t stand it lord” with that choir in the background and Coach K spinning Hendo’s greatest hits on the sideline.

This is a team of men… and I fucking love it.

Go Duke.

Oh, much respek to my main mahn Lance Thomas, him be on the rise right about now, really competing and doing his thing for Duke Blue. Lance, keep sticking with it homey. You’ve been ballin the last couple of games and the squad needs what you bring. Incidentally, I know this cat tries to channel Ben Wallace, but can someone please tell me why this is necessary?

Look, I’m not trying to start no trouble, but I’m just saying. This cat looks like Lord Helmet from Spaceballs out there. It just aint right. I mean, this cat is out here acting like he needs some sort of gimmick. Osby, you’re actually a decent ACC big man with talent. You don’t need that dome to draw attention to yourself….seriously, use some of that illegal Murrland booster money and go git yourself a damn haircut, bottle of Nair, something. At this point, even male pattern baldness would be an improvement. Geez.

Run the stats:

Duke Blue Devils
STARTERS	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	OFF	REB	AST	PF	PTS
K. Singler, F	31	2-10	2-2	1	3	1	5	7
L. Thomas, F	18	2-3	2-4	1	2	0	4	6
G. Paulus, G	19	3-7	4-4	0	1	2	4	12
G. Henderson, G-F	33	9-12	4-6	1	5	1	2	23
D. Nelson, G	38	10-19	6-8	3	7	4	3	27
BENCH	MIN	FGM-A	FTM-A	OFF	REB	AST	PF	PTS
N. Smith, G	20	4-6	5-5	3	6	1	0	14
D. McClure, F	8	0-2	0-0	0	2	0	1	0
T. King, F	5	0-2	0-0	0	0	0	1	0
J. Scheyer, G	28	2-7	0-0	1	2	0	3	4
TOTALS		FGM-A	FTM-A	OFF	REB	AST	PF	PTS
		32-68	23-29	10	28	9	23	93
		47.1%	79.3%
TEAM REBS: 8 TURNOVERS: 10 (G Henderson 2, G Paulus 1, K Singler 3, L Thomas 1, D Nelson 1, N Smith 2) BLOCKED SHOTS: 3 (G Henderson 2, D Nelson 1) STEALS: 13 (G Henderson 1, G Paulus 4, K Singler 2, T King 1, D Nelson 4, N Smith 1) 3-PT FGS: 6-18, .333 (J Scheyer 0-2, G Henderson 1-2, G Paulus 2-3, K Singler 1-5, T King 0-2, D Nelson 1-2, N Smith 1-2)

– Lake

Elliot Williams is a Duke Blue Devil!

Thank goodness. To say we needed Elliot Williams is a gross understatement.

I’m definitely happy that he choose to lace em up with the Duke Blue Devils in 2008, we needed that. Everything I’ve seen and read about this 6-foot-4 combo guard is great for Duke. First, he’s committed to academics which is important for two reasons: 1. school will be a major priority, not just a tool to keep him eligible and 2. if he is a dominant player he’ll likely stick around a long so he can get that degree.

It’s hard to tell how a prep players skills will translate to the college game, especially early on in his career, but the tape on Williams is pretty sick. Peep it.

The thing you notice immediately from the tape is that this kid has handles, passing ability, hops, athleticism, a jumper, finishing skills and an attitude about his game. He kind of reminds me of Jason Williams, only without the power game (yet). Homey is a shifty lefty with all kinds of ability. I’m definitely looking forward to this. Elliot, welcome to the Duke family.

Also, you gotta give it up to Coach K and the crew for landing this guy. One thing we can see is that Duke knows how to bring guards in. Now if we can only catch a decent transfer or something to tighten up that post game and we might really have something.

Picture this in two years though: Two hot combo guards in Elliot Williams and Nolan Smith, G. Henderson at the three, Singler at the 4 and Zoubek or Lance at the 5. Scheyer in off the bench. Now that’s a squad. There may be hope yet.

– Lake