Duke basketball vs. Ohio State: Scouting report, score prediction

On Nov 29, 2022

Coming off a 75-56 loss to then No. 24 Purdue in the Phil Knight Legacy tournament championship game in Oregon, Duke basketball returns to Cameron Indoor on Wednesday to face another Big Ten opponent.

The No. 17 Blue Devils (6-2) will host No. 25 Ohio State (5-1) in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge at 7:15 p.m. on ESPN.

The non-conference matchup is a rematch from last year when the Buckeyes knocked off No. 1 Duke 71-66 in Columbus. Duke is currently 0-2 against top 25 teams.

Here is what you need to know:

Injury concern

Duke guard Jeremy Roach, right, dribbles past Purdue guard Braden Smith during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in the Phil Knight Legacy Championship in Portland, Ore., Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer)

Junior guard Jeremy Roach, Duke’s lone captain and most experienced starter, suffered a right foot injury in the first half against Purdue and was forced to leave the game momentarily before returning in the second half.

After the loss, coach Jon Scheyer called it a toe injury and explained that the medical staff would have to further evaluate Roach once the team returned to Durham. Roach went on to play 37 minutes against the Boilermakers, but after scoring 10 points in the first half, was held to four in the second. He had 21 points in the semifinal-round win over Xavier.

With Roach temporarily sidelined, it was freshman Tyrese Proctor who stepped in for the Blue Devils. He scored the final four points of the half and added eight more in the second half to finish with a career-high 16 points on 7-of-13 shooting with five rebounds and three assists.

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Buckeyes in Maui

In the program’s first trip to the Maui Invitational in 19 years, the Buckeyes closed the event with a 2-1 record and fifth-place finish after an 80-73 win against No. 21 Texas Tech.

Freshman 6-foot-6 forward Brice Sensabaugh was the only Ohio State player to score in double figures in all three tournament games. He had 17 in a loss to San Diego State and a win over Cincinnati while adding 10 against the Red Raiders to finish second in scoring at 14.7 points per game. A reserve in each contest, Sensabaugh shot 56.0% (14 for 25) from the floor and tied for a team-best 58.3% (7 for 12) from 3.

It was senior forward Justice Sueing who went off against the Red Raiders, scoring 33 points in 31 minutes along with eight rebounds, five assists and two steals.

Lively, Whitehead needs to produce

Both Dereck Lively II and Dariq Whitehead – the No. 1 and No. 2 recruits respectively from the Class of 2022 – have had slow starts to their Duke careers after being hampered by off-season injuries.

Lively had four total points in three games in Oregon, and while his 7-1 frame causes defensive issues for opponents, he’ll need to be more involved in the offense.

The same goes for Whitehead. Scheyer has continued to limit his minutes since his Nov. 18 return against Delaware. He’s yet to play over 17 minutes but is only averaging 5.2 points a game and shooting under 30% from the field.

It’s been another freshman, 7-foot Kyle Filipowski, who has emerged as Duke’s best scoring threat. Filipowski has scored is averaging almost a double-double with 15.4 points and 9.4 points a game and has shown to be a threat in the interior as well as with his outside shot.