7 Potential NCAA Tournament Teams Lacking Signature Wins
By Nathan Giese
Duke Blue Devils
RPI: 25
Record vs. Top 50 RPI: 2-5
Best Win: 79-71 vs. VCU (neutral)
Worst Loss: 68-63 at Clemson
Best Remaining Game: Many
We have reached February, the time of year where we’re usually talking about Duke’s national championship aspiration. Instead, believe it or not, we have to talk about whether or not the Blue Devils should be in the NCAA tournament at all.
In a normal year without the parity, it may be no, but because so few teams stand out from one another, Duke’s in.
For now.
Things haven’t gone according to plan for Duke after winning a national title with mostly freshmen. The new freshmen, while talented, haven’t delivered the same type of skills and winning mentality last year’s team possessed.
Amile Jefferson‘s injury hurts, obviously, and that will be taken into consideration for seeding purposes. Right now, both Lunardi and Palm have the Blue Devils as a seventh seed–almost the same boat as fellow ACC member Pittsburgh.
What’s working in Duke’s favor is that while they are only 2-5 against teams in the top 50 in RPI, only two losses came by double digits (11-point losses on a neutral court to Kentucky and at Miami). The other three were by one or two possession. The other loss, at Clemson, was also just a two-possession loss, so the losses aren’t exactly bad. They’re right there in most of them.
Much like Pittsburgh, too, Duke has plenty of chances left to get a signature win to boost their profile. Two matchups each with Louisville and North Carolina, another one against Virginia and a road test at Pitt awaits the Blue Devils.
Also working in Duke’s favor is the fact that six of their final nine regular season games are at home.
Next: Lost Fight Of The Bulldog