Although they may have lost to them earlier in the season, Michigan is begging for a rematch with Duke now... After seeing what transpired in the early stages of the ACC Tournament on Thursday, the top-ranked Blue Devils do not appear to be the same team any more. Two key injuries suffered by Caleb Foster in the backcourt and Patrick Ngongba II down low nearly sank them vs. Florida State...
Duke did beat the Seminoles in their quarterfinals matchup of the ACC Tournament, but only by the slimmest of margins. After taking a glance at the box score from the 80-79 neutral-site victory over Florida State by Duke, you can clearly see why the Wolverines are the odds-on favorite to win March Madness in the betting market. Duke looked so disjointed in its first game of the ACC Tournament...
By not having Foster or Ngongba available, head coach Jon Scheyer opted to play a tight seven-man rotation. Cayden Boozer got thrust into a bigger role as their starting point guard. He did not live up to the billing of Foster or his star twin brother, Cameron Boozer. Cayden Boozer only had nine points on 3-of-10 shooting, three rebounds, an assist, and a steal in his 22 minutes of action vs. the Seminoles.
Simply, Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Evans cannot be the entirety of the Duke offense moving forward.
Michigan fans should be ecstatic over how pedestrian Duke looks now
From a Michigan perspective, their inherent muscle and coach-ability makes the Wolverines one of the toughest outs on the hardwood this season. They win at home, they win on the road, they win on a neutral site, it does not matter. What is important to understand is that only a handful of teams can realistically win the NCAA Tournament this year. Michigan is one of them, but is Duke still of that ilk?
While all signs point to the Blue Devils getting Ngongba back at some point in the NCAA Tournament, not having the team's second-best player available for the duration of it in Foster could prove quite problematic. Truth be told, Michigan may not be getting the rematch it wants with Duke in the NCAA Tournament. Anything short of a Final Four or national championship would be a disappointment now.
As for Duke, it is hard to see them going deep into the second week of the NCAA Tournament now, based on what we know about their state of attrition. Obviously, you want to see the best teams be at their best when the moment requires it. Unfortunately for them, Duke does not seem like it will be firing on all cylinders the rest of the way. Not having Foster available limits their ceiling exponentially.
For now, Michigan needs to lock in and make sure it handles business vs. Ohio State this afternoon.