Duke’s college basketball program has a problem they need fixed

Picture this: your team is up 5 points with a minute left, and the other team gets a technical foul called on them. Or this: you go up 15 at the halftime break, a mark that 1-seeds were 134-0 from. After a second-half rally, you then get to a point where you’re up 2 points, with possession of the ball, in the double bonus, and there’s 10 seconds left. Or this: you’re playing an 11-seed with a chance to go to the Final Four, and you’re up 6 at halftime.

Would you believe me if I told you that Duke lost all 3 of these scenarios? In fact, those are the last 3 NCAA Tournament losses for the Blue Devils in the last 3 seasons (Houston in 2025, UConn in 2026, NC State in 2024). To make things even worse, Duke only lost 4 times in the 2025-2026 season, and they led by at least 13 points in all 4 of those games. Well-coached basketball teams know how to close out games when they are ahead, and that is something that Jon Scheyer’s teams have repeatedly failed to do in the last 3 seasons.

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Is it time for the Blue Devils to move on?

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The Weight of Following a Legend

Before you can answer that question, you have to consider the path that Jon Scheyer took to become the face of the program for Duke.

After playing at Duke from 2006-2010, Scheyer became an Assistant Coach in 2014, a post that he would hold until Coach K’s retirement in 2022. Scheyer was Coach K’s HAND-PICKED successor, even though there were many other viable candidates who had previously played and coached at Duke, and the university could have written a blank check to get anyone they wanted on the open market.

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Coach K was the cult of personality that embodied everything Duke basketball, and the university honored his succession plan, even though Scheyer had no head coaching experience.

Results vs Expectations

But to whom much is given, much is expected.

Scheyer’s first four seasons as the Blue…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/duke-college-basketball-program-problem-163802519.html

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Publish date : 2026-03-30 16:38:00

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