All’s Well on Tobacco Road: Big Four Start 5-0
It was a good start for the teams of Tobacco Road, as they started their campaigns Friday and Saturday.
Duke is already 2-0 on the early basketball season, with early wins against Presbyterian yesterday and Fairfield today. In both games, Duke reached the hundreds in the points and held their opponents to under sixty.
Jahlil Okafor had a good first outing, taking advantage of the small size of Presbyterian to lead the way with 19 points. Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow each contributed 15 points. Quinn Cook had 14 and Rasheed Sulaimon had 12. Grayson Allen saw a lot of minutes in the cleanup parts of the game and he contributed 18 to the cause. Amile Jefferson had ten rebounds for the Blue Devils.
Against Fairfield, Duke faced a more formidable opponent. The result was a more restricted rotation by Coach K, but similar results all around. This time it was freshman Justise Winslow who led Duke in scoring with 18. Okafor went for 17 and nine rebounds. Cook scored 17 and Amile Jefferson went for 15 points and nine rebounds.
Much of this will sound like normal early season fare, but Duke is sharing the basketball and not expecting one player to rise up and dominate. At least not yet.
Asheville is a step up in competition over either of Duke’s opponents and they gave a rebuilding Wake Forest team plenty to look at last night. Generally speaking, a twelve point deficit is no man’s land. It can become a blowout or a tight game from that margin. Asheville only lost by eleven.
Asheville got a monster game from guard Andrew Rowsey, who poured in 26 points despite going 2-7 from three. His biggest help came from Kem Ubaru and David Robertson, both of whom had ten points.
Nov 14, 2014; Winston-Salem, NC, USA; Wake Forest Demon Deacons forward Devin Thomas (2) shoots the ball while North Carolina-Asheville Bulldogs forward Giacomo Zilli (21) defends during the first half at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports
Wake relied on a familiar face and a not so familiar face to hold off the Bulldogs. Forward Devin Thomas delivered down low with 25 points, 13 rebounds, and an assist. That continued the good reputation he had built last year. Freshman Konstantinos Mitoglou found ways to get the line and sank nine of ten foul shots to bolster his 4of 7 shooting. He had 17 points and eight rebounds.
The toughest draw of the night last night had to go to the North Carolina Tar Heels, facing the North Carolina Central Eagles fresh off their MEAC championship last year. The Eagles got down early at 15-2, but used a box and one to slow down the Tar Heel offense and keep Marcus Paige occupied. It worked for much of the game.
Nov 14, 2014; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels forward Brice Johnson (11) shoots in the second half. The Tar Heels defeated the Eagles 76-56 at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports
The Heels did not prove to have any shooters besides Paige in this one. Nate Britt did make a late three, but the Tar Heels avoided or missed that particular shot when they saw it. The Heel defense kept a lid on any rally by collecting a number of blocked shots.
For the Heels, Brice Johnson went 12 points and eight rebounds. Kennedy Meeks went 10 points and nine rebounds. JP Tokoto also reached double figures.
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