No. 9 Duke looking for balanced effort vs. Syracuse

Duke has been through enough of the season to realize that there are challenges around every corner.

The ninth-ranked Blue Devils are bracing for another one with Saturday night's game at Syracuse.

"You can't put that type of pressure on yourself, just knowing that every game is going to be a tough one," Duke guard Tre Jones told reporters recently. "You're going to get the other team's best game every single night. Knowing that and a couple of weeks ago what happened (in losses to Clemson and Louisville) and learning from that, knowing that we can't come out slow like that."

Duke (17-3, 7-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) has relied on contributions from a variety of players, including freshman center Vernon Carey Jr.'s nine double-doubles. Plus, the Blue Devils are 28-4 across a two-season period when Jones scores in double figures.

Since losing to Louisville two weeks ago, the Blue Devils have played just twice, defeating Miami and Pittsburgh in home games. Now they have three straight road games on the docket.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has experimented with various lineup combinations. On Tuesday night against Pittsburgh, he used Carey, Jack White and Matthew Hurt on the court at the same time.

"That lineup helped us in the first half," Krzyzewski said. "So just trying to keep going to different things."

With more than 31,000 fans expected at the Carrier Dome, it will be the highest-attended game to date this season in college basketball.

Syracuse (13-8, 6-4) had a five-game winning streak snapped in Tuesday night's 71-70 loss at Clemson. The Orange were unable to protect a 10-point second-half lead.

"I thought we played a good game," Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim said. "We had a dead spot in the second half when we had some empty trips down the floor."

Syracuse's winning streak had included an overtime victory and a pair of two-point wins.

"Just have to make more plays down the stretch like we did the past few games," Orange guard Joe Girard said.

Girard had been in a bit of a shooting slump, but came through in the final minutes at times against Clemson.

"Then he made the plays that got us the lead," Boeheim said.

"My teammates and coaches believe in me to make shots," Girard said.

Clemson's 71 points were the most scored against Syracuse other than games against Notre Dame since mid-December.

"Our defense got us beat," Boeheim said.

Duke leads the ACC in scoring at more than 82 points per game. A bigger factor for the matchup with Syracuse could come when the Orange has the ball.

The Blue Devils have allowed only 97 successful 3-point baskets this season, by far the fewest number among ACC teams. The Syracuse tandem of Buddy Boeheim and Elijah Hughes rates as among the country's most potent 3-point shooting duos.

This is the only scheduled meeting this season. Duke and Syracuse split two regular-season games last season, each side winning road games. Then Duke won in the ACC Tournament quarterfinals in Charlotte, N.C.

This is the first of three straight home games for Syracuse.

--Field Level Media