Duke Stays Put; Another Top-5 Matchup Awaits

Another Top-Five Matchup Awaits
For the third straight game, Duke will be playing in a top-five matchup as it travels to take on No. 5 Notre Dame, Saturday, April 10. The Blue Devils stayed put at No. 1 this week following their 12-11 overtime victory over No. 2 North Carolina, while the Fighting Irish jumped to No. 5 after a convincing road win at Syracuse.

It will be just the second time the two rivals will play with both ranked in the top five and for the first time in regular season action. The last time Duke and Notre Dame played as top-five foes was in the 2014 NCAA Championship with the Blue Devils No. 3 and the Irish No. 5. Duke won 11-9.

Duke's Record as No. 1
Duke enters this week at the top of the USILA poll for the second straight week and for the sixth week this season. The Blue Devils had been swapping the No. 1 spot with North Carolina all season. The six weeks at No. 1 are the most in program history. The previous high was four weeks in 2008. Duke faced Notre Dame as the nation's top-ranked squad in the 2018 ACC Tournament, losing 14-11.

Duke's Record as No. 1
3/6/2007	Saint Joseph's	W, 18-4
3/10/2007	Loyola	L, 7-8
3/11/2008	Presbyterian	W, 18-4
3/15/2008	#13 North Carolina	W, 19-9
3/18/2008	Colgate	W, 15-7
3/22/2008	#7 Georgetown	L, 7-11
5/4/2008	St. John's	W, 16-9
5/10/2008	#12 Loyola	W, 12-7
5/18/2008	Ohio State	W, 21-10
5/24/2008	#5 John Hopkins	L, 9-10
3/1/2014	#3 Maryland	L, 6-10
2/16/2018	#4 Denver	W, 15-12
2/24/2018	#17 Penn	L, 9-10
4/27/2018	#16 Notre Dame	L, 11-14
4/1/2021	#2 North Carolina	W, 12-11 (OT)

Intriguing Individual Matchups on Tap
Saturday's game at Alumni Stadium in South Bend, Ind., will feature some of the most intriguing individual matchups on both ends of the field so far this season. Top scorers Pat Kavanagh of Notre Dame and Blue Devil Michael Sowers lead their respective offenses, while Duke's JT Giles-Harris and Irish defenseman Jack Kielty anchor the stalwart defenses. Overall, Notre Dame's attack trio averages 11.5 points per game, while Duke's sport a 12.2 per game average.

The game also features two of the country's best goaltenders as Irish sophomore Liam Entenmann sports a 7.35 goals against average, while Duke graduate student Mike Adler stands at 8.39. The battle extends to the faceoff X where Duke rookie Jake Naso (.667 win percentage) and Notre Dame's Kyle Gallagher (.722).

What Gives?
Notre Dame's Kavanagh currently leads the nation in assists per game (4.33) and is fourth in points (6.17). He'll be going up against a Duke defense that is allowing just 8.90 goals per game, ranking ninth nationally. Kavanagh is coming off a nine-point outing versus the Orange and 37 points through six games. He has at least five points in five of the six outings and has scored nine twice.

In comparison, Duke's defense has allowed an individual player to score six points once and five points twice. The most goals scored by a Blue Devil opponent this season has been four – Chase Scanlan of Syracuse and Corson Kealey from Robert Morris.

On the offensive side of the field, Duke is scoring 25.90 per game overall. Overall, Duke has four players in the top 17 in the ACC in points and goals and three of the top eight in assists. The Blue Devils will look to keep this pace against a Notre Dame defense that is allowing only 7.33 goals per game.

The Fighting Irish have held four of six opponents to single digit goals and recently held Syracuse to just 11. Notre Dame keeps opponents to only 30 shots per game and to .240 shooting, while Duke averages just over 43 shots per game and is shooting .382 for the year.

Duke Duo Joins a Short List
The goal scoring duo of Robertson and sophomore Dyson Williams joined a short list of players who have scored a goal in at least 15 consecutive games. They are two of 13 players nationally and the only two ACC representatives on the list. Williams has a goal in all 16 games of his young career, totaling 40 overall, while Robertson is riding a 15-game streak dating back to April 6, 2019. He has 42 goals in that span.

The Gauntlet Continues
It will be a quick turnaround for the Blue Devils after Saturday's game at Notre Dame. Duke will travel to Charlottesville five days later for a Thursday night showdown with the Cavaliers at Klöckner Stadium. All four of Duke's remaining regular season games will be top-five matchups.

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