Info Center

Each victory makes the next game even bigger. After a huge win at #12 Clemson in Wednesday night, the Hokies welcome #7 Duke into Cassell Coliseum on Saturday afternoon. A win would guarantee Tech at least an 8-8 record in ACC play, and it would strengthen their case for an NCAA tournament berth.

Duke beat Virginia Tech 69-44 back in early January, but this should be a much more entertaining game. The Blue Devils aren't defending nearly as well as they were early in the season. They are also on their third starting point guard of the year.

Another important factor is that this will be Duke's third game in just seven games. They beat Wake Forest in a very fast-paced game on Sunday night, and then they won at Maryland in a hard fought game on Wednesday.

Duke Starting Lineup
Pos.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	PPG	RPG	APG
G	Jon Scheyer	6-5	185	Jr.	13.8	3.7	2.9
G	Elliot Williams	6-4	180	Fr.	3.7	1.8	0.5
G	Gerald Henderson	6-4	215	Jr.	16.4	4.8	2.2
F	Lance Thomas	6-8	220	Jr.	5.8	3.5	0.4
F	Kyle Singler	6-8	235	So.	16	7.9	2.6

Elliot Williams has replaced Nolan Smith in the starting lineup for the last three games. He has played at least 30 minutes in all three contests, and former starting point guards Smith and Greg Paulus have seen their playing time cut quite a bit. In fact, Smith probably won't even play on Saturday thanks to a concussion suffered against Maryland.

Williams is a McDonald's All-American who has put up good numbers in his three games as a starter. He wasn't seeing much playing time early in the season, but the Blue Devils were in a slump, and Coach K felt he needed to change something up. Here is a look at Williams' numbers over the last three games.

Elliot Williams, Last Three Games
Opp.	Points	FGM	FGA	FG%	Assists	TO
St. John's	11	5	6	83.3%	0	3
Wake Forest	11	5	8	62.5%	1	1
Maryland	15	6	8	75.0%	1	0
Totals/Averages	12.3	16	22	72.7%	2	4

He is a young, energetic player who has given the Blue Devils a spark. However, Seth Greenberg will have three full games of film to study, and the Hokies should be better prepared than St. John's, Wake Forest and Maryland.

With Williams in the starting lineup, Jon Scheyer is Duke's primary ball-handler. Scheyer is a very dangerous outside shooter. He is hitting three-pointers at a 35.5% clip this season. However, neither he nor Elliot Williams are true point guards. If Nolan Smith misses this game, Greg Paulus will be the only true point guard available for the Blue Devils.

Gerald Henderson is having an excellent season. He is averaging 20.1 points per game in ACC play, which ranks fifth in the league. Henderson is a slasher who can get to the glass and finish well, and he's also a competent three-point shooter at 36.8%. He is the most athletic player on the team, and a major argument can be made that he deserves First Team All-ACC honors. He could also draw the assignment of guarding Malcolm Delaney or A.D. Vassallo.

The other major threat in Duke's starting lineup is Kyle Singler. Singler is a 36.2% three-point shooter who can go inside or outside. He is the toughest player on the inside for the Devils, averaging 7.9 rebounds per game. Some consider Singler to be the best player on Duke's team.

Greg Paulus is the most dangerous offensive threat for Duke off the bench. He started at point guard for the first three seasons of his career, but is coming off the bench as a senior. He has very deep range on his three-pointers. Paulus is also a battler who will give constant effort and who is no stranger to diving on the court for a loose ball.

David McClure is a wing who is Duke's defensive stopper off the bench. He averages 15.9 minutes per game, but he is no offensive threat when he's in the game. Brian Zoubek is a seven-footer on the inside, but he averages just 13 minutes per game.

This is a Duke team that will play offense at a fast pace. They have a penetrator in Gerald Henderson, as well as a number of dangerous outside shooters. They are a very difficult team to defend offensively, though they have no true post player on the inside.

Duke vs. VT, ACC Games Only
Category	Duke		VT
Category	Stat	Rank	Stat	Rank
FG%	42.10%	8	44.30%	4
FG% Def.	44.40%	8	43.90%	7
3-Pt.%	33.90%	7	36.10%	5
3-Pt.% Def.	34.50%	4	35.60%	7
FT%	70.10%	8	67.40%	10
Reb. Margin	+0.5	5	-0.8	8
TO Margin	+5	1	+0.69	5
Assist/TO Ratio	1.1	3	0.9	7
Scoring Off.	75 ppg	4	73.9 ppg	6
Scoring Def.	66.9 ppg	1	75.5 ppg	8
Average		4.9		6.7

The Hokies are shooting the ball better than the Blue Devils this year, but Duke does have more scoring threats than the Hokies. This game is basically even in most of the statistics, but Duke has a big advantage in turnover margin. Duke plays a pressure defense and forces a lot of turnovers, and they do a good job of protecting the ball themselves.

Duke Defense, Last 5 Games
Opponent	Points	FGM	FGA	FG%	3PM	3PA	3P%
UNC	101	34	62	54.8%	6	15	4%
at Boston College	80	30	51	58.8%	8	18	44.4%
at St. John's	69	27	50	54%	2	3	66%
Wake Forest	91	36	59	61%	5	9	55.6%
at Maryland	67	24	50	48%	3	8	37.5%
Average/Total	81.6	151	272	55.5%	24	53	45.3%

Early in the season, Duke was regarded as one of the top defensive teams in the country. They were easily atop the ACC in field goal percentage defense in conference games. However, they've now slipped to eighth in that category. They've lost part of their identity as the season has progressed. They are still a very good basketball team, but without that defense, they are very beatable.

The thing that is keeping Duke's head above water is turnover margin. In their 10-point victory over Wake Forest, the Blue Devils were an astounding +14 in turnover margin. They turned the ball over just six times. When you maximize your opportunities like Duke does, it's much easier to win basketball games. The Hokies have to take good care of the basketball tomorrow to try and negate one of Duke's advantages.

Duke has had their struggles on the road this season. They are just 5-4 in road venues, losing at Michigan, Wake Forest, Clemson and Boston College. The Blue Devils haven't scored more than 74 points in their four road losses, and they hit a season low 47 points at Clemson. Overall, they don't play nearly as well when they are away from Cameron Indoor Stadium.

With Duke on the road for the second straight game, and with this game being the third game in seven days for the Blue Devils, Virginia Tech has a great opportunity in front of them.