A West Virginia judge has put a temporary hold on a decision that OJ Mayo can't play.  In fact, Mayo is headed to the Bull City for tonight's Durham Hoopball Classic.

The Classic features the long awaited battle between the Taylor King led Mater Dei and Oak Hill, who is anchored by another Duke commitment, Nolan Smith.

The nightcap, will pit Huntington High, West Virginia versus Lakewood Artesia of California.

Huntington is the home of the aforementioned OJ Mayo, but more importantly, Patrick Patterson, who is the Blue Devils only remaining target. 

Tickets are available Cameron, and the event starts with a battle between two Durham teams, Southern HS versus Jordan.

Duke fans who can make the event are sure to see a bevy of future college and NBA players, including Renardo Sidney, Brandon Jennings and many more.

The Blue Devil Nation will cover this event, both on the free and premium boards. The game is not scheduled to be televised, but will be carried on the Duke flagship station, WDNC 620 AM, beginning around 7:00.

You will hear much about the event on local sports talk radio stations, 850 the Buzz and 620 the Bull.

See you there!

Congrats to the winners of the trivia contest, which earned them two free months of premium.

1- What was the nickname of Gene Banks High School team?

A- The Speedboys

2- What NBA team drafted Gene Banks?

A- San Antonio Spurs and ended his career with the Chicago Bulls.

3- What happened after the UNC game on February 28th, 1981?

A- Gene (nicknamed Tinkerbell) threw roses to the crowd.  Earlier, he hit a shot from beyond the top of the key over the outstretched arms of Sam Perkins to send the crowd into a frenzy and the game into overtime.  Duke rode the emotion and went on to upset UNC 66-65.

4- Name the team that ended two of his seasons while at Duke?

A- Purdue beat the Devils in the NIT in Coach K's first season at Duke.  The Boilermakers ended the Devils season the year before, 68-60 in the NCAA Tournament.

Kenny Dennard was drafted by the Kansas City Kings (Sac) and finished his career with the Denver Nuggets.

He still holds the ACC record for steals in one game with 11 against Maryland on 2-3-79.  The closest a Dukie has come to the record is a tie between Grant Hill and Steve Wojciechowski.  Both had 8.

Mannella's was the name of the pizza place they both frequented.

You haven't joined the Blue Devil Nation Premium Newsletter yet?  We have the scoop on a couple of guys from the class of 2009.  Remember, you have two more days to take advantage of the special introductory price of 75.00 a year, 25.00 off the regular and soon to be permanent price.  There is so much coming up, that I don't know where to start.  I will be talking in Patrick Patterson, Taylor King and Nolan Smith tomorrow. 

Taylor King and his Dad enjoyed the Boston College game.  Mater Dei faces Oak Hill tomorrow in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

When Huntington takes to the court tomorrow evening, it will be without star OJ Mayo, who has been suspended.

Al Featherston did one heck of an article on the history of the Cameron Crazies.  For the older crazies, it brings back a lot of memories, like the Fred Lind blitz.  For the younger fans, it gives you an idea of how they have developed over the years ...  it's roots.

You will not regret taking up some of your time with this well reasearched read.  It's the best article I have read in months.

Boston College came into Durham as the first place team in the Atlantic Coast Conference, but on this day Duke was not about to be denied.

Not on a day where a loss would put them in the second division.  Not on a day when Lord Shelden Williams would have his number retired to the rafters.

If that weren't enough, Duke commitment, Taylor King and the Mater Dei team sat behind the Duke bench, as did prospect Patrick Patterson with his Huntington teammates.

It was clear that Duke came to play, never really being ahead less than five points and ultimately winning by a fourteen point margin, 75-61.

There was a definite bond between the team, and it's fans which gave Cameron a feeling of intensity.  There was no alternative but to win the game.

There was quite a bit drama on the court.  Jared Dudley had a nice game, scoring 17 points, grabbing 8 rebounds and 3 assists.  But while he was spirited, some of his antics would incite the crowd.

Whether it was emotion or not, he needs to harness himself a little better.  On one play his arms flailed about as he punched at the sky.  He then turned to taunt the crowd, saying "who can stop me?"

In another sequence, Duke commit ed a foul and Dudley went into more animation, walking by and slapping Lance Thomas on his rear in the process.  A ref did have something to say, whispering in his ear and Dudley nodded as if saying, okay.

In the end, the Devils took BC's best shot, but their defense shined again, holding the Eagle's to less than 40%  from the field.  Dudley, Spears, Marshall and Rice were a combined 17 of 52, a stat that showed how intense Duke's defensive play was.

That, combined with excellent team play spelled doom for BC.  Duke shot 50% from the field and hit 16 of 19 FT's, but don't even think they got all the calls, because BC was 17 of 25.

There were bad calls both ways, but at times it seemed as if the Dukies were being penalized for the ending to the Clemson game, but that is all I will say about the silliness of the media on this subject.

Josh McRobert's brought on that patented Cameron surge of emotion and noise with his thunderous dunks.  The sophomore had his usual stat stuffing game, scoring 16 points, grabbing a game high 12 boards and blocked 5 shots.  Oh, and he had 3 assists to boot.

I found myself cringing at one Paulus decision, but the Duke PG had 6 assists to 1 turnover, some of his better numbers on the season.  However, he did struggle from the field, having a couple of threes rim out.  Still, he played one of his better games in a quiet kind of way.

The biggest surprise was the play of Lance Thomas who snared 9 huge rebounds to go with his 10 points.  It was clearly his best game in a month.

More of the aforementioned drama was added by Marty Pocius.  He came off the bench to give Duke a big lift.  His stat line was 4 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist in just 7 minutes of play.

Scheyer wasn't particularly aggressive in the first half, but had a steady game.  Jon did not turn the ball over one single time in 34 minutes of play and was his usual 4 of 4 from the free throw stripe.

DeMarcus battled all day long and drew the toughest defensive assignments.  Markie had 17 point and 8 rebounds to go with 2 assists.

Now, back to the drama ... Dave McClure was clearly carrying over the confidence from his amazing game winning shot at the buzzer versus Clemson.  He has 9 points, 3 boards, 1 huge block and a single steal, but he never played over 19 minutes.

His lack of time was due to his going to the floor clutching a knee just in front of the Duke bench.  At this point, you could hear a pin drop in Cameron as concerned fans looked, as a player that has become a hero from his work ethic and basketball smarts was clearly in pain.

If that weren't enough, Dudley who got tangled up with Dave (rolling eyes), came to mid court, much to the disgust of many fans.  Needless to say the silence was broken with cat calls of "sit down" from a few fans.

Dave slowly got up and made his way to the locker room, but did return.  The injury will be evaluated by team physicians today.

So, in the end Duke came out the winner and it is a good thing.  A quick look around the ACC shows just how heated the race is. Low and behold, Virginia Tech is in first place and the team we play next, Virginia has identical record as the Devils.

On a day when Shelden addressed the crowd during half time and Topps trading cards were handed out, which featured the 12th men's player in history to have his jersey retired, the emotion was simply more than than BC could handle.

Simply put, it was another great day in Cameron.

Thanks for the wonderful memories!

 

Coach K quotes and comments on the Blue Devils win over Boston College.

The Blue Devil Nation Premium Newsletter has the latest on Patrick Patterson's unofficial visit to Cameron Indoor Stadium.

Team Patterson after the huge Duke victory over Boston College. 

Yep!  The Blue Devil Nation attended today's event and was all over the many happenings, be it the game, Shelden's number being retired, the latest on a commitment and the nations top prospect.

Awesome day in Cameron - much more to come!  Please check back for my thoughts on the game. and more on Shelden.  Some good things are coming to the the Blue Devil Nation Premium Newsletter concerning the Patterson and King families visit to Cameron.  The special rate runs until the end of January.  The paypal link towards the bottom of the menu is where you can subscribe and save 25% off the yearly price.

 

Topps gave away a special edition card.

Shelden signed a few autographs before leaving.

Courtesy: Duke Photography

 

 

 

Yes indeed, today's Duke game against Boston College is big in many ways.

First of all, Shelden Williams will have his #23 hang in the rafters forever more.  This will surely set the tone for what will be another great Cameron experience.

Then there will be a huge target in the stands.  That being the nations top uncommitted player in Patrick Patterson.

Patterson stands 6-8 ... who does that remind you of?  Exactly.  Duke hopes he will be the next power player in a long successful line, starting with Brand.

Brand handed the torch to Boozer and Carlos handed the torch to Shelden Williams.  The combined NBA salary of these three players is about as good as it gets.

The most important scene of the day will belong to the Duke team, as they go for their fifth straight ACC win against the leagues 1st place team.

Don't make too much out of the suspensions of a couple of players.  Williams was a power player but was scoring just 11 ppg this season and the other kid was nothing more than bench fodder.

To beat BC, Duke must contain Dudley, who may be the ACC's POY at seasons end.  Another key will be whether three of the four freshman find their game.

Home cooking awaits the Eagles when Duke goes for it's fifth straight conference win.  Shelden Williams returns to have his number retired.  Does anyone have tickets?!?!?

I could go into to much more detail, but let me get right to the point in what I see happening.

BC will hang around a bit, especially if they hit their three point shots, but I think this is a day when the Cameron atmosphere proves to be too much.

If Duke can prevent an early slump from too much emotion, I think they will pull away and get into the thick of the ACC race.

Today's pick is Duke by 11

Boston College Off vs. Duke Def Duke Off vs. Boston College Def 78.1 Pts F 55.8 Pts A 48.2 FG% 39.1 FG% 36.5 Reb. 27.4 Reb. 69.5 Pts F 70.2 Pts A 47.3 FG% 42.8 FG% 27.4 Reb. 31.8 Reb.

 

 

Needless to say, something is rather fishy around here.  First, the Clemson article below disappeared.  Then this strange greenish tint appears around many of the posts below. Please be patient.  I am working on this glitch, but the server has no support until Monday morning. 

There are three two month premium memberships waiting for the first person to answer the contest questions.  I know the questions pertain to the late seventies, but fans learning  about the history of Duke Basketball is important to me. 

I promise to get into the ninties for the next contest.  Until then, pull the record books out and nail the answers.  Oh yeah!  There will be three different winners.  I am sure somebody knows all the answers, but let's spread it around.

The Duke-bound guard played a nearly perfect game, making 12-of-14 shots and 10-of-11 free throws for a game-high 34 points in another Oak Hill win. Here is the link.

Taylor is King scored 19 points and pulled down 12 boards, leading his Mater Dei team to anothe victory.  His game will be on display in Cameron this coming Tuesday, in the Durham Hoopball Classic.  Here is the link.

Kyle Singler scored 37 points in another South Medford win.

Here is an article I did on Patrick Patterson for my friends at the Duke Baskteball Report.

Those were the words of Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski after the Blue Devil's fourth straight conference win.

With just one tenth of a second left on the game clock, the ball rolled off Dave McClure's fingertips into the rim as Cameron erupted.

McClure sprinted down court, as Jon Scheyer recognized the mismatch and got him the ball.  Dave puts the shot in here with one-tenth of a second left on the clock.

Players piled on the hero just under the winning basket in jubilation.  A quick look in that direction provided a look at fans with their hands on top of their heads, lots of teeth flashing and a bit of bouncing.

Yep! Grown men were seen high fiving one another as their wives and girlfriends clapped along.  Children were jumping up and down and ushers were gushing ... and that was simply the upper deck.

The bench and the crowd erupted in a deafining roar.  Fans could be seen giving one another a high five as Coach K showed some rare emotion. You can clearly see the joy and togetherness of the team in this picture from the Associated Press.

Just below, students were howling, memories of their school work having temporarily subsided.  Some were red faced, some falling all over each other and some so giddy with excitement that they could do no more than look on with their hands covering their mouths.

After McClure's basket dropped through the basket and the buzzer echoed, one could see Coach K arms raised, red faced and smiling as he defied his age with some pretty good leaps while turning to the crowd.  By the time he turned back around, he regained his composure, but before he did, one saw a smile almost bust wide open, but then his steely composure kicked back in.

It was a rare look at a different side of Coach K letting his hair down.  But why not? 

Earlier in the week he had met with students or the Cameron Crazies in an attempt at unification.  It is no secret that the Clemson game was huge for Duke.

This is just after the basket and right befor the entire team piled on Dave for making the gam winning shot.  Marty Pocius was on of the first players there.  He is still not 100% ready since injuring his ankle.

 

In the meeting he told them that the team was young and needed their support as they grew.  Whatever else he said worked because the Crazies and the upper deck did their job on this night and were rewarded for their cheering with a finish that will be remembered for a long time.

Oliver Purnell pumped in crowd noise during Clemson practices in preparation, but in the end, there was nothing like the real Crazies.

Let's go back to the huge McClure basket.  It wouldn't have been possible without the heady play by Jon Scheyer.

In the timeout, K said, okay guys next play wanting all eyes on him.  He then designed a play to allow Scheyer options.  He wanted the freshman guard to push the ball up and either dish off or take the shot.  With Jon being the teams top free throw shooter, this made sense.

When the ball was inbounded, McClure was the first Duke player down recognizing that he was matched with a smaller player.

Jon quickly took the ball up in a cool manner and saw that the Clemson defense was designed to surround him.  He made a move to free himself for the pass and scatter the Tiger defenders.  The rest is history, as McClure finished it off and the celebration began.

"It feels great  ... I have never made a game winning basket and to see my teammates and how happy they were ... it just feels great," were the words Doug McClure used to Bob Harris in their locker room chat.

Moments before that, ESPN reporters had stopped McClure just after the celebration and how appropriate.

Dave had done a question and answer with GoDuke.com this week.  He did a pre game interview during the Duke Radio Network broadcast and ended up doing the post game interview too.

Then one has to go back to my rant article earlier this week, where some thought Pocius should get more of Dave's minutes.  Wait a minute, I am grandstanding ... this doesn't belong here, so we return you to your regular programming.

If you didn't know before, then you know now why McClure was on the floor at crunch time.  He is a key ingredient on this team.  A player who defers to other first, but is willing to do whatever it take to win the game for his team.  He is the consummate role player. 

Doug finished the game with 8 points, 6 rebounds, 1 blocked shot and 1 steal.  What you couldn't see measured was his defense or his heart and Dave McClure has much heart.

This was a team effort though.  Make no mistake about that. 

When many review the game they choose to start with Josh McRobert's stray pass or an ample amount of mistakes.  I choose to talk of his 17 points and 12 rebounds against a talented and deep front court.

All I can say is that if you were not happy with this win, then you are really not getting it.

Mistakes will be made in any game and you can point to this one or that one.  This "is" a young team.  They have not played together long.

Another player who showed their toughness was captain DeMarcus Nelson.  This kid isn't afraid of anybody and battled his way to 8 rebounds and 13 points.

I led off his stat line with his 8 rebounds because a big difference in the game was that the Blue Devils out-rebounding the taller, athletic Tigers rather handily.

There was a lot of attention coming in on whether the Clemson front line would have their way and when Lance Thomas went out early in the game and Zoubek struggled it didn't look good.

Lance had been battling sickness all week long.  In fact Jon Scheyer and "G" Henderson all battled a bug too.

Despite those issues, the errant pass from McRobert's, some untimely shots, a slow start to the second half, Duke found a way to win.

It's pretty obvious how Duke won.  They won with the leadership of upper class-men, Nelson, McRobert's, Paulus 13 points, 5 assists, McClure (who I think may be a Captain before the season is out) with a pinch of Scheyer thrown in for good measure.

Upper class-men you say?  Well, a junior and some sophs are our veterans!

Yes, I am happy.  I am satisfied.  I am aware of the bad pass.  I am aware that three of the freshman had off games.  I am aware of a bit of shoddy shot selection and I am aware Clemson came back.

I choose to give the Tigers credit for their effort and I choose to see the many positives that I will discuss a bit later.

I will leave the worrying to others who want to write about how lucky we were, when in fact it was almost destined by effort because this is a night that the Dukies would not accept anything other than a victory and were resilient when it counted.

My cup runneth over, my glass is completely full.  I  pass the pitcher of happiness to those who are hard to satisfy in hopes that they join the many who realize how special this team is, despite knowing losses loom large in the demanding schedule which lies ahead.

Yes, this was a night when the crowd lingered long after the game wanting to immerse themselves in the atmosphere and remember the experience. 

It was a night when people lingered in the parking lot and talked to complete strangers.  It was a night that made the old feel young and the young feel feisty and full of energy.

I saved the best for last.  That being the sight of Assistant Coach Chris Collins hopping around Cameron like the energizer bunny on steroids.  It was another testament to the staff which has been together longer than any in college basketball allowed and showed the passion and togetherness of the whole team.

 As Coach K said, "It was a vintage Cameron win."