What Jai Lucas to Miami means for Duke basketball entering ACC Tournament, March Madness

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DURHAM — Jai Lucas joined Jon Scheyer and Duke basketball before Scheyer coached his first game with the Blue Devils in 2022.

A hire from beyond Duke’s “Brotherhood,” Lucas quickly became a key part of that “Brotherhood.”

Lucas, who was announced on Thursday as Miami’s next coach, will be leaving Durham this weekend after No. 2 Duke (27-3, 19-1 ACC) plays its regular-season finale at UNC (20-11, 13-6) on Saturday (6:30 p.m., ESPN).

“Timing is not ideal, but there’s no other option. This is the only thing that could’ve happened. Jai will coach our last regular-season game and then he’ll have to move to focus on his new job,” Scheyer said Thursday during a press conference at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

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“For us, we’re gonna focus on the job that we have here, which is making a special run. Jai wanted to stay. This wasn’t a decision that Jai made. This is me and him working together and then, ultimately, I think there’s a few unique factors.”

Why Jai Lucas won’t be with Duke basketball during ACC Tournament, March Madness

Lucas is positioned to take over a Miami program that has a 6-24 record, including a 2-17 mark in the ACC. Because they’re among the bottom three teams in the league standings, the Hurricanes won’t be competing at the ACC Tournament in Charlotte.

That means Miami will get a head start on its offseason after it plays N.C. State on Saturday (Noon, CW Network). The transfer portal opens March 24 and Lucas has to put together a coaching/support staff.

With Duke positioned to be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the Blue Devils are among the teams expected to be playing well into March and early April.

“To be starting his job – hopefully, we can make a run at this thing the way I feel we can – he’d be…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/article/jai-lucas-miami-means-duke-090535240.html

Author : The Fayetteville Observer

Publish date : 2025-03-07 09:05:00

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