Photo by: Nat Ledonne
Overall Analysis Creates Nuance After Duke
January 09, 2021 | Men's Basketball, #ForBoston Files
BC outplayed Duke for much of the game, but a one-point loss still sent Eagles home disappointed.
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. -- A very different Duke program awaited Boston College prior to their game on Wednesday night. The same white and blue uniforms warmed up with freakish athleticism, but the identical Blue Devils failed to pop the same intimidation factor on their home court without the Cameron Crazies. And due to the always lingering COVID-19 protocols, Hall of Fame head coach Mike Krzyzewski was quarantining, handing the reins to associate head coach Jon Scheyer for the Blue Devils' first game in close to three weeks.
It represented a great opportunity for the Eagles to rediscover their stroke against an elite opponent, and it offered a chance for them to win at Cameron Indoor Stadium for the first time in program history. That lofty goal didn't happen, but a one-point defeat revealed another complex story surrounding BC's overall record.
"Guys were excited to play," head coach Jim Christian said. "This is what you sign up for, to play good teams in great environments. I was expecting us to do nothing less other than execute better down the stretch."
The nuance exists because every situational statistic broke every which way for BC after the Eagles shot lights out from the floor. They pummeled the basket with a 69 percent field goal percentage in the first half, and their aerial assault extended beyond the arc with 5-of-7 three-pointers. It spilled from a stingy defensive effort that held Duke to a 38 percent shooting percentage with only a third of threes and half of free throws made.Â
The Duke bench outscored the BC bench, but the Eagles' starters shot lights out from the floor. A modified starting lineup opened opportunities for Rich Kelly and DeMarr Langford, and the backcourt duo went a combined 9-for-13 and 21 overall points. Steffon Mitchell posted 10 points and four rebounds in the process and the Eagles took an eight point lead into the locker room after Duke halved the lead from 16 with two minutes left on the clock.
"Boston College was a really good team," Duke guard DJ Steward said. "They executed their game plan, but in those last couple of minutes, we knew we had to cut the lead going into halftime in order to have a chance to win this game."
BC's numbers didn't even really come apart in the second half, but Duke's improved defense eventually took its toll. The Blue Devils only hit three more shots than the Eagles with three more free throws, and the teams matched up on the free throw line. Their situational numbers stayed relatively even with the biggest difference occurring on the fast break and off of turnovers.Â
None of the numbers lent themselves to a glaring deficiency save for a turnover factor, and the end result still tilted in favor of the hosts after fouls by Kelly and Langford sent Jordan Goldwire and Wendell Moore Jr. to the line in the last 20 seconds.
"You knew they were going to make a run," Christian said. "They made some plays, and we turned the ball over. They feast off turnovers, and we were a little careless with tough decisions early in the second half. I thought we did a great job fighting our way back, but when you turn the ball over 21 times at Cameron, it's tough to win. We had a good rhythm on offense with the matchups we tried to get, but we just have to get strong with the ball."
Therein created the balance between winning and losing. BC experienced a breakout performance from CJ Felder in particular after he went 10-for-13 for 24 points with four rebounds and three blocks, and DeMarr Langford finished with 12 points and eight boards, three on the offensive end, three assists and two steals. Kelly went for 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, and two other Eagles - Steffon Mitchell and Jay Heath - rounded out a double-digit effort offensively for the starting five.Â
"Wynston didn't practice for two days," Christian said, "and we have to be really cautious with his body. So we wanted to start DeMarr after he practiced well, and he's a good player. He's getting better and better, and we want him to concentrate on a couple of different things. He gave us great numbers.
"CJ's gotten better offensively every day in practice," he continued. "He shoots more than everyone in our team, so the ball deserves to go in. He got into a little foul trouble by being unaware on defense a couple of times, but he's getting better. Both of those guys are getting better."
The final score was ultimately the counterweight to the game. BC dropped to 2-8 on the season and remained winless in the conference, a mood likely to dampen any team-based analysis. The growth didn't break through in the win column even after playing Duke tough for the second straight year. It isn't frustrating BC to a detrimental degree, but the hunger to earn that victory is growing as the team readies for a shot at No. 22/21 Virginia, a team it defeated last year at Conte Forum.
"They came out hitting everything," Duke forward Wendell Moore Jr. said. "They played really great. They had a great game plan for us, and they came out and executed it. We just had to fight back. It was a classic ACC matchup. Records don't mean anything, throw everything out the window, and just come to compete. That little run we had at the end of the (first) half was huge for us going into the second half, just carrying (momentum) over and continuing to get over the hump and not look back."
"You have to play off ball screen because (Duke) takes you out of so many different things," Christian said. "We were trying to get matchups for certain guys in the middle of the floor. I thought we did a fairly good job of that, especially early, and that's why we had the lead. We made really good decisions with the ball, and later, we didn't make good decisions with the ball."
Boston College and Virginia will tip off at 2 p.m. from Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The game can be seen on ACC Network with radio broadcast available on WEEI 850 AM.
It represented a great opportunity for the Eagles to rediscover their stroke against an elite opponent, and it offered a chance for them to win at Cameron Indoor Stadium for the first time in program history. That lofty goal didn't happen, but a one-point defeat revealed another complex story surrounding BC's overall record.
"Guys were excited to play," head coach Jim Christian said. "This is what you sign up for, to play good teams in great environments. I was expecting us to do nothing less other than execute better down the stretch."
The nuance exists because every situational statistic broke every which way for BC after the Eagles shot lights out from the floor. They pummeled the basket with a 69 percent field goal percentage in the first half, and their aerial assault extended beyond the arc with 5-of-7 three-pointers. It spilled from a stingy defensive effort that held Duke to a 38 percent shooting percentage with only a third of threes and half of free throws made.Â
The Duke bench outscored the BC bench, but the Eagles' starters shot lights out from the floor. A modified starting lineup opened opportunities for Rich Kelly and DeMarr Langford, and the backcourt duo went a combined 9-for-13 and 21 overall points. Steffon Mitchell posted 10 points and four rebounds in the process and the Eagles took an eight point lead into the locker room after Duke halved the lead from 16 with two minutes left on the clock.
"Boston College was a really good team," Duke guard DJ Steward said. "They executed their game plan, but in those last couple of minutes, we knew we had to cut the lead going into halftime in order to have a chance to win this game."
BC's numbers didn't even really come apart in the second half, but Duke's improved defense eventually took its toll. The Blue Devils only hit three more shots than the Eagles with three more free throws, and the teams matched up on the free throw line. Their situational numbers stayed relatively even with the biggest difference occurring on the fast break and off of turnovers.Â
None of the numbers lent themselves to a glaring deficiency save for a turnover factor, and the end result still tilted in favor of the hosts after fouls by Kelly and Langford sent Jordan Goldwire and Wendell Moore Jr. to the line in the last 20 seconds.
"You knew they were going to make a run," Christian said. "They made some plays, and we turned the ball over. They feast off turnovers, and we were a little careless with tough decisions early in the second half. I thought we did a great job fighting our way back, but when you turn the ball over 21 times at Cameron, it's tough to win. We had a good rhythm on offense with the matchups we tried to get, but we just have to get strong with the ball."
Therein created the balance between winning and losing. BC experienced a breakout performance from CJ Felder in particular after he went 10-for-13 for 24 points with four rebounds and three blocks, and DeMarr Langford finished with 12 points and eight boards, three on the offensive end, three assists and two steals. Kelly went for 16 points on 6-of-9 shooting, and two other Eagles - Steffon Mitchell and Jay Heath - rounded out a double-digit effort offensively for the starting five.Â
"Wynston didn't practice for two days," Christian said, "and we have to be really cautious with his body. So we wanted to start DeMarr after he practiced well, and he's a good player. He's getting better and better, and we want him to concentrate on a couple of different things. He gave us great numbers.
"CJ's gotten better offensively every day in practice," he continued. "He shoots more than everyone in our team, so the ball deserves to go in. He got into a little foul trouble by being unaware on defense a couple of times, but he's getting better. Both of those guys are getting better."
The final score was ultimately the counterweight to the game. BC dropped to 2-8 on the season and remained winless in the conference, a mood likely to dampen any team-based analysis. The growth didn't break through in the win column even after playing Duke tough for the second straight year. It isn't frustrating BC to a detrimental degree, but the hunger to earn that victory is growing as the team readies for a shot at No. 22/21 Virginia, a team it defeated last year at Conte Forum.
"They came out hitting everything," Duke forward Wendell Moore Jr. said. "They played really great. They had a great game plan for us, and they came out and executed it. We just had to fight back. It was a classic ACC matchup. Records don't mean anything, throw everything out the window, and just come to compete. That little run we had at the end of the (first) half was huge for us going into the second half, just carrying (momentum) over and continuing to get over the hump and not look back."
"You have to play off ball screen because (Duke) takes you out of so many different things," Christian said. "We were trying to get matchups for certain guys in the middle of the floor. I thought we did a fairly good job of that, especially early, and that's why we had the lead. We made really good decisions with the ball, and later, we didn't make good decisions with the ball."
Boston College and Virginia will tip off at 2 p.m. from Conte Forum in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The game can be seen on ACC Network with radio broadcast available on WEEI 850 AM.
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