4Basketba!l '90-91 The Daily Tar HeelFriday, November 16, 1990
One of these days, Bnuke may beDevil nation
By DOUG H00GERV0RST
Stan Writer
Chances are, with the odds, that one
of these years we'll win the damn thing.
senior co-captain Clay Buckley.
Despite three straight Final Four ap
pearances, and four in the last five
seasons, Buckley and Duke have yet to
claim an NCAA title. But the Blue Devils
think their time could come soon.
Unfortunately for frustrated Blue
Devil fans, this may be a down season in
Durham. Still, Duke has received na
tional recognition as one of the nation's
best teams. That's how strong head
coach Mike Krzyzewski's program has
become.
Many preseason rankings list theBlue
Devils in the bottom half of the top 10,
despite the losses this team has suffered
since 1989-90.
After enduring a humiliating 103-73
defeat at the hands of UNLV in last
season's NCAA Finals, Duke lost Phil
Henderson, Alaa Abdelnaby and Rob
ert Brickey. The trio played in three
Final Fours but finished their eligibility
before winning a national title.
This season, Coach K and his staff
will have to hide a size and rebounding
disadvantage by employing a faster pace
during games. The Blue Devils will rely
on junior sensation Christian Laettner
and sophomore point guard Bobby
Hurley to lead a young team that lists
five freshmen and three sophomores.
From his off-guard position,
Henderson was tops on the team in
scoring a year ago (18.5 points per
game). Henderson was also the team
leader, playing tremendous defense and
displaying a penchant for taking clutch
ulce
No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Ct.
3 M.Clark G 6-6 200 Fr.
4 K.BIakeney G 6-4 190 Fr.
5 B. McCaffrey G 6-3 175 So.
11 B. Hurley G 6-0 160 So.
12 T.Hill GF 6-4 195 So.
21 T.Lang F 6-8' 185 Fr.
22 G. Koubek F 6-6 205 Sr.
23 B.Davis GF 6-6 195 Jr.
32 C. Laettner F 6-11 235 Jr.
33 G.Hill GF 6-7 205 Fr.
34 C. Palmer C 6-9 235 Jr.
45 C. Buckley FC 6-10 235 Sr.
54 C.Ast F 6-8 205 Fr.
Head Coach: Mike Krzyzewski (Army.
1969). Overall Coaching Record: 304
160 in 15 years. Record at Duke: 231
101 in 10 years , - .
shots.
"Big shots," Krzyzewski said. "Not
just at the end of a ballgame, but if a
team's making a run at us, we'd set
some things up for Phil (Henderson),
and most of the time he'd hit the shot."
Henderson will be tough to replace,
but freshman Grant Hill, along with
sophomores Thomas Hill and Bill
McCaffrey, should be adequate per
formers at shooting guard.
As for replacing Henderson's ability
in the clutch. Coach K said his big man,
Laettner, would do the job. Remember,
Laettnerhitadouble-clutch, last-second
overtime winner against Connecticut in
the NCAA East Regional Finals last
year.
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Last year, the 6-foot-1 1 Angola, N.Y.,
native developed into one of the finest
frontline players in the ACC, but that
was with Abdelnaby helping to take the
pressure off on the inside.
"Christian has got to be a 32- to 35-minute-per-game
player for us this year,"
Krzyzewski said. "Last year, he showed
he can play with fouls, and he'll have to
do that again. Scoring-wise, he has to be
the hub of what we do."
Laettner's talent and versatility
earned him a spot on the U.S. National
team this summer, where he had lots of
help inside with teammates such as
Georgetown's Alonzo Mourning and
Missouri's Doug Smith. But for Duke,
he's the only proven post player.
As a senior, Abdelnaby finally ful
filled his high school hype. He gave
Duke a steady interior scoring threat,
and his four years of experience paid off
during the Devils run to the Final Four.
More importantly, Abdelnaby 's size and
strength inside will be nearly impossible
for Duke to replace.
Besides Laettner, the other players
Duke will count on inside will be the 6
1 0 B uckley, 6-9 junior Crawford Palmer,
6-8 freshman Tony Lang and 6-7 Grant
Hill none of whom appear able to
give the Devils another rebounder.
Buckley and Palmer have been
projects under Krzyzewski for some
time, and Duke will need to see some
dividends or be decidedly undersized
and outrebounded.
Lang and Hill are expected to con
tribute immediately. But Lang does not
have a true rebounding physique, and
Hill is foreseen as more of a wing and
perimeter player with oh-by-the-way
good inside moves.
Duke will force the tempo, and Hurley
does that better than anyone in the
country except Georgia Tech's Kenny
Anderson.
"We'd like to run a little bit more this
year press more and get Hurley the
bal 1 more in the open court," Krzyzewski
said. "He's just very special. I think he's
real good all the time, but I think he's
very special in the open court."
Hurley stacked up 288 assists and
more than eight points per game in his
rookie season. But the 6-0 point guard
also set an ACC record with 166 turn
overs and shot a dismal .35 1 from the
field.
Senior co-captain Greg Koubek said
that Duke's floor general has improved
and means even more to this team than
last year.
"I think if we're going to win, we
need Bobby Hurley out ther," Koubek
Duke guard Bobby Hurley set an ACC record last year with 166 turnovers
said." He's the man we really need."
Hurley will need people to run with,
which should not be a problem for a
Blue Devil team that boasts eight zillion
wing players. Hill is the best of the
bunch and will certainly start along with
Hurley and Laettner.
Hill can do it all, literally, as he can
play all five positions. He probably will
play forward to start, but when Hurley
needs a breather, Hill will move to the
point.
"He may be our second-best inside,
and he's also our backup point guard,"
Krzyzewski said. "He may look a little
bit different at 6-7 (playing point), but
he can handle it. That's what he did in
high school."
The other Hill, Thomas, has worked
on his perimeter skills, rounding out the
rawest part of his game. He showed he
was a tremendous athlete with good
moves to the basket as a freshman, but
he could be unstoppable if he has added
3-point range.
. If Thomas Hill can't earn the spot,
Duke could also use the sharp-shooting
McCaffrey, the veteran Koubek, the
versatile Brian Davis or the talented
Lang. All will participate in a strong
nine-man rotation.
The Blue Devils schedule could keep
them further down in the rankings, too,
as Duke looks as though it took a course
in scheduling taught by Notre Dame
football coach Lou Holtz. Non-conference
road dates with Georgetown,
Oklahoma, Notre Dame and Arizona,
plus the always-tough ACC grind, could
result in 12 or 13 losses by the end of the
season.
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