No. It was just weird . I don’t comment on officiating often, but Hurt’s last 3 fouls and definitely his 5th were awful calls. The game was largely called inconsistently and I think that contributed to the way it was played. Duke’s guard play has been the difference in these past 2 games. Such a frustrating team to watch.
As a Duke fan I‘ll say the 94-95 team that finished 13-18 lacked leadership in a big way. As good as Cherokee Parks was, he was no leader. I see a lot of similarites between this Duke team and that team. Unfortunately, Duke played much harder against a UNC that was actually good and should’ve won 1 of those games that season, much different than $hit show the other night.
I don’t think they’ve quit. Actually it times I think they’re trying too hard. I think they’re mentally weak. They’re not good enough to go through rough patches where if the offense isn’t working that they can turn it on defensively. If the offense gets going they play much more active and extend their defense. If they play teams who guard aggressively the way Louisville and UNC does on the perimeter Duke’s guard play is suspect because they’re not strong enough with the ball and they fall apart. I don’t think anyone that’s left on the team is playing selfishly. Duke just isn’t very good, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Duke play on Thursday either.
