Duke’s Defensive Intensity
From a team perspective, it was impossible to ignore the sheer intensity that Duke played with on Sunday night. They were highly engaged on the defensive end of the floor, often picking up their man at half-court, initiating physicality, and making multiple individual efforts on each possession. Their ability to switch, hard hedge, and rotate on the weak side gave the Sun Devils fits as there was no clear weakness to attack. They did an incredible job of dictating where the action went and playing the game on their terms. This emphasis on not only guarding teams but smothering them is a great sign as you combine it with their mix of talent, size, and depth, making them arguably the best team in the country.
Duke’s Worst Kept Secret: Kon Knueppel
Despite not being the headliner for Duke’s stellar freshman class, word has gotten around rather quickly that Knueppel will be one of the best players on the roster this year. He’s a microwave scorer with great shooting touch, positional size, and consistency. He finished with 19 points, five rebounds, and four assists, while putting up 6/11, 4/8, 3/3 shooting splits. While everyone talks about how remarkable he is as a scorer, what’s impressive to me is his ability to make passing reads against tilted defenses. He understands when to get the ball out of his hands and is unselfish in his understanding of shot selection. I believe that the better he can become at those second side reads, the more secure his future as an NBA player becomes.
The Lone Bright Spot for ASU: Jayden Quaintance
Despite the absolute thrashing that his team endured, Quaintance had a handful of promising flashes and finished with 11 points, six rebounds, and three assists on the night. He was the only Sun Devil who seemed comfortable enough to handle the Duke defensive pressure and create advantages for himself in a variety of ways. He wasn’t afraid of the physicality presented by Maluach and Flagg, consistently battling them for post and rebounding position. He mainly operated off the ball, finding his footing as a cutter and screener. He was able to impose his will physically against smaller defenders and hit jumpers when left alone. Given that he’s freshly 17 years old, there’s no telling how much more he can improve before he becomes draft eligible in 2026.
Ian Jackson Found His Footing
After a less than ideal exhibition against Memphis, Jackson bounced back in a big way, putting up 21 points in 26 minutes on 6/10, 1/3, 8/10 shooting splits. He was highly aggressive, especially when getting downhill, and was rewarded for it with 10 free throw attempts. His athleticism, more specifically his explosiveness, was on full display as he was really difficult to contain when attacking closeouts or creating for himself downhill. He made good reads when two defenders committed to him and punished opponents as a scorer when they decided not to help. While he’s known mainly as a scorer, I think there’s some passing chops that have yet to be unlocked for Jackson, it’s something that I believe we’ll see more and more of as the season moves along.
Jalen Washington Quietly Impresses
After what was a highly impressive performance against Memphis, Washington continued to quietly produce on Sunday night, finishing with 12 points and seven rebounds on 5/6 shooting from the field. He’s a highly capable defender and has improved his ability to switch on the perimeter and make weak side rotations. He understands his role offensively which is to screen well, finish through contact, create possessions on the glass, and make the simple read when needed. He did each of these things well against JCSU and should he continue to produce in this role, will bring a steady and reliable force to a UNC team who desperately needs production from the five spot.