The No. 2 Duke Blue Devils head to Coral Gables for a pivotal ACC matchup against the struggling Miami Hurricanes this Tuesday. Fresh off A.J. Staton-McCray’s 21-point performance in Miami’s loss to Virginia Tech, both teams face critical questions about their conference trajectories.
Duke (24-3, 15-1 ACC) brings its top-ranked ACC defense to a Miami squad that’s lost 14 of 16 conference games. The Blue Devils allow just 61 points per game – the conference’s stingiest mark – while holding opponents to 38.4% shooting. This poses significant challenges for a Hurricanes offense averaging 72.1 points over their last 10 contests.
‘Our defensive identity wins close games,’ Duke coach Jon Scheyer recently stated. ‘We force teams into uncomfortable decisions.’
Miami (6-21, 2-14 ACC) shows flashes of competitiveness at home, going 6-9 in Coral Gables this season. However, their -5.1 scoring differential and defensive struggles (79.7 points allowed/game) contrast sharply with Duke’s +18 average margin in conference play.
Key factors to watch:
- Three-point battle: Miami averages 7.3 made threes vs Duke’s 6.7 allowed
- Paint dominance: Blue Devils outrebound opponents by 6.3 boards/game
- Star power: Cooper Flagg’s 19.5 PPG vs Matthew Cleveland’s 20.7 PPG surge
Recent trends favor Duke’s championship-caliber form. The Blue Devils have won 9 of 10, averaging 84 points with 50.1% shooting. Meanwhile, Miami’s defense has collapsed during a 2-8 skid, surrendering 84.3 points nightly.
With ACC tournament seeding at stake, this matchup tests whether Miami’s home-court advantage can disrupt Duke’s relentless defensive pressure. The Hurricanes need Staton-McCray to build on his Virginia Tech performance while containing Flagg’s multi-dimensional attack.