Part of the SEC/ACC Challenge, No. 2 Auburn is set to travel to Cameron Indoor Stadium to take on the No. 9 Duke Blue Devils on Wednesday night – marking just the second non-conference opponent ranked among the top-2 in the nation to visit Cameron Indoor Stadium since 1965.
The Blue Devils, led by third year head coach Jon Scheyer, currently bolster a 5-2 overall record with a notable win at No. 17 Arizona. The two Duke losses came at the hands of No. 19 Kentucky in the State Farm Champions Classic and on the road at No. 1 Kansas.
“This is the number one defensive team in the country, I think, in part because they're so long. They're the tallest team in the country, and they got great length in every position,” Pearl said of his upcoming opponent. “They have active hands. And they get their arms and hands on a lot of balls. And when we get the ball to our bigs, they'll be poking away at it and reaching in and they're real handsy and active, and they do a really nice job.”
Wednesday night will be a clash between Duke’s No. 1 defense and Auburn’s No. 1 offense, according to KenPom’s national adjusted defensive/offensive efficiency ratings. The Blue Devils rank fourth in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.352) and ninth in the nation in scoring defense (58.6).
“I just like their practice situations. You know, when all summer long, in the fall, I imagine when they practiced,” Pearl said Monday in reference to the depth of Duke. “You know, that's why I'm impressed with how good they are this early, because as young as they are, and that's because of their depth, you know, they've beaten Arizona at Arizona, and they lost last possession games to Kentucky and Kansas.”
Duke returns two starters from last season’s Elite Eight squad, junior Tyrese Proctor and sophomore Caleb Foster, while also signing the nation’s top-ranked recruiting class and
also making four additions through the transfer portal.
The Blue Devils’ six-player freshman class includes five top-25 players in 247Sports’ rankings, and consists of five-star prospects; Cooper Flagg, Isaiah Evans, Kon Knueppel, Patrick Ngongba II and Khaman Maluach. The trio of freshmen in Flagg, Knueppel and Maluach have joined Proctor and Foster to make up Duke’s starting five.
“He's effective offensively, defensively, inside and out. He's got a high basketball IQ. Got a great love of the game,” Peal said of Flagg, the true-freshman sensation.
The 6-foot-9 guard/forward and Preseason ACC Rookie of the Year became the first Duke player in the last 40 years to amass 50+ points, 25+ rebounds and 10+ assists in his first three
career games – including a matchup No. 19 Kenutcky.
Against No. 19 Kentucky, at No. 17 Arizona and at No. 1 Kansas, Flagg played an average of 36.0 minutes – playing 38 minutes in each of the last two matchups. The freshman accumulated double-figures in all three contests with 20-plus point performances against both Wildcats.
“I study coaches, I study systems and what they run is hard to guard. It fits their personnel. They've got great counters. He's very creative. They run new actions at the beginning of games, stuff you've never seen, and it all fits, and they hang their hat on the defense,” Pearl said.
The top-10 matchup inside of Cameron Indoor Stadium between the Tigers and Blue Devils is slated to tipoff at 8:15 p.m. CST on ESPN.
“Lot of responsibility comes with all the notoriety. We get an opportunity to go play one of the best teams in the country, probably in one of the toughest environments,” Pearl said.
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Patrick is a junior from Auburn, Alabama, double majoring in journalism and marketing. He started with The Plainsman in the fall of 2022.
You can follow him on X (Twitter) at @patrickabingham
