Duke
Duke faces difficult task in defending Cal's shooters
By Tim Hall Mar 21, 2010
JACKSONVILLE, FLA. — And Duke thought it was the only one with a Big Three. California's Jerome Randle, Theo Robertson and Patrick Christopher might have something to say about that.
Jon Scheyer, Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler are the nation's leading trio of scorers, pouring in 53.2 points per game. But the three Cal seniors aren't far behind at 49.2 points per game. And like Duke, the Golden Bears make a living from the three-point line.
But Duke's Mike Krzyzewski hasn't yet seen a team with three players that will all hit you from beyond the arc.
"I can't remember playing against a team like that. Most of the time there's two (shooters) and a guy's inside, or there's a driver. But all three of these guys stretch you. And they shoot NBA threes.
"It'll be a real challenge to our defense. There's no one in our league like that."
Robertson's three-point percentage (.456) is among the nation's best. Randle is the school's all-time leader in three-pointers, and Christopher is fourth on that list. But it's not just the three's they make. It's the distance they shoot from. It's shots like Randle's halftime buzzer beater from 26-feet against Louisville that really stick the dagger in.
"The thing that can knock you back against Cal is you don't expect guys to shoot shots from the distance that Cal's guys shoot from," Krzyzewski said. "Then when they hit them, you know, you're not supposed to do that. They do it, and it can knock you back."
Coach K said that he's showed his team how far Cal will shoot from. He also told them not to act surprised when they make them from such long ranges.
Randle is Cal's best all-around player and leads the team with 18.8 points per game. He's the reigning Pac-10 Player of the Year and he's the school's all-time leading scorer. Randle leads his team with made three-pointers, but he won't shy away from taking the ball to the basket.
Most ACC fans think Wake Forest's Ishmael Smith is fast with the basketball. Take a closer look at Randle on Sunday night.
Duke's Nolan Smith said that he'll defend Randle on Sunday.
"You know he's quicker than you but you can't give him too much ground because he'll shoot from 30 feet," Smith said. "You just gotta defend him, get in on him, pressure him, speed him up. We're really gonna trust our help with Lance [Thomas] and Brian [Zoubek] back there.
"This is what defenders live for, you live for these types of match-ups."
Duke's level of difficulty will take a drastic increase from first round opponent Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Now it faces a team that won the Pac-10 regular season title, won 23 games overall and was still made the eighth-seed. Smith said if it were Duke being treated that way he'd have an extra edge.
"Definitely. You'd definitely have a chip on your shoulder. And they do. Everybody thought the Pac-10 was down, but they have two teams still playing who are very talented teams," Smith said. "Cal definitely has a chip on its shoulder. We know that. But people were talking trash about us so we have a chip on our shoulder as well."
Two teams have a chip on the shoulder, but only one can go to the Sweet 16.
Copyright 2012 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Most Recent Comments
RE: Duke faces difficult task in defending Cal's shooters
how about rooting for the ACC? after this year dont you think it would look a lot better for the conference if duke wins it all? i mean, i know duke is the arch rival, but root for the conference at least
- Posted by greggw7740
i am, Go Terps !!!!!!!!Go GTech !!!!!!!!!
thats rooting for georgia tech and maryland, not the acc. if you were rooting for the acc then youd of thrown in a go duke
really? oops.
RE: Duke faces difficult task in defending Cal's shooters
how about rooting for the ACC? after this year dont you think it would look a lot better for the conference if duke wins it all? i mean, i know duke is the arch rival, but root for the conference at least
- Posted by greggw7740
i am, Go Terps !!!!!!!!Go GTech !!!!!!!!!
thats rooting for georgia tech and maryland, not the acc. if you were rooting for the acc then youd of thrown in a go duke
RE: Duke faces difficult task in defending Cal's shooters
Yes, rfred16, and we all remember what K did for a certain minority kid and former Duke recruit named J.R. Reid when Duke fans chanted "J.R. Can't Read!" for three seasons. He immediately grabbed the microphone and told them to cut it out, right?
Thank goodness he did. Otherwise Dean Smith might have been moved to point out that the combined SAT scores of Reid and fellow Tar Heel big man (and African-American) Scott Williams were higher than the combined scores of their white counterparts at Duke, Laettner and Ferry.
Yes, K is selfless humanitarian of the highest order. And he never uses foul language either.
- Posted by Chatham Adam
and you know all of this how?
RE: Duke faces difficult task in defending Cal's shooters
how about rooting for the ACC? after this year dont you think it would look a lot better for the conference if duke wins it all? i mean, i know duke is the arch rival, but root for the conference at least
- Posted by greggw7740
Mmmmmmmmmmm, no.
wow, if thats not arrogance, ignorance, and selfishness put into one, just wow man
RE: Duke faces difficult task in defending Cal's shooters
this will be a true test for Duke. People think Cal is a pushover team... but west coast basketball is fast paced... Duke actually being small and semi-athletic should match up well with them.
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