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Scheyer Meets with Media Ahead of North Carolina Game
3/6/2025 5:02:00 PM | Men's Basketball
DURHAM, N.C. – Duke men's basketball head coach Jon Scheyer met with members of the media on Thursday, March 6 ahead of Duke's rivalry clash at North Carolina on Saturday, March 8. The Blue Devils (27-3, 19-1 ACC) and Tar Heels (20-11, 13-6 ACC) meet for the 264th time, with tip off scheduled for 6:30 p.m., broadcast live on ESPN.
HEAD COACH JON SCHEYER
On what he views as different for the second matchup of the season against North Carolina compared to the first meeting:
"It's been obvious to me, I think Hubert [Davis] and their staff have done a great job of adapting and continuing to evolve as a team. Obviously, they're playing bigger, lineup changes, but they're ultimately playing the same guys. I think the biggest thing that's different is just the confidence level that they're playing with, the aggressiveness, the cohesiveness. They're on the biggest winning streak for the season. They're scoring over 80 points a game. The defensive challenge for us is going to be a big challenge. And then, playing at home, they play a fast pace, and even faster the last couple of weeks. Great respect for them and everything they've done. I really feel they're playing the best basketball that they've been playing all year."
HEAD COACH JON SCHEYER
On what he views as different for the second matchup of the season against North Carolina compared to the first meeting:
"It's been obvious to me, I think Hubert [Davis] and their staff have done a great job of adapting and continuing to evolve as a team. Obviously, they're playing bigger, lineup changes, but they're ultimately playing the same guys. I think the biggest thing that's different is just the confidence level that they're playing with, the aggressiveness, the cohesiveness. They're on the biggest winning streak for the season. They're scoring over 80 points a game. The defensive challenge for us is going to be a big challenge. And then, playing at home, they play a fast pace, and even faster the last couple of weeks. Great respect for them and everything they've done. I really feel they're playing the best basketball that they've been playing all year."
On the team playing at a faster pace while still keeping turnovers down:
"It's building coordinated moves while still having randomness. That's a hard thing for a young team to have and it's easy to control every aspect of what they do as a coach. I ultimately felt, for our team to get to where we needed to go on offense, to reach our ceiling, there had to be some following of instincts. There had to be some randomness, where a team can't scout a play. We've worked really hard this year on continuing to play after our initial action, we call it a neutral offense, so when you're in neutral what you do, and then same thing in transition, we drill that every day. We drill what we're looking for every day, and then, 'all right, here's the first thing we're looking for'. I think it's allowed our young players to play very confidently, play aggressively, but then still value great shots and valuing the ball at the same time. They've earned my trust, but we've built it together. I think it's gone both ways, and it's led to some of the most beautiful basketball I think we've had, and that I've coached, because of that."
On the improvement of Isaiah Evans and how that impacts the upcoming North Carolina game:
"Looking back at [the first] game, it's easy to say [North Carolina] is different. I feel we're different too. I think Isaiah is a great example. The fact that that he didn't play as much in that game. Isaiah, for us, what he's done as the year has gone on, he's become a key piece and a key part of our rotation. Just the threat that he is on the floor, the way he spaces and shoots. To me, the biggest thing is his feel and IQ on defense. He knows where to be. He's a good individual defender. He's in the mix. I think that's the biggest thing he's done. He's learned the college game and what it takes to win. For us, we've got to continue to help him with that. We have to get him looks when he's on the floor, because he is such a weapon, where he gets quality looks off, that's something I have to help him with. And he competes, so he fits right in with those other guys when he's on the floor."
On Maliq Brown's progress recovering from injury:
"Maliq has been working so hard. Maliq's been telling me for two weeks 'I'm ready', when he hasn't been. But that's his mindset, to be ready. He has not practiced yet. He's going to try today to do some but we're not going to risk anything unless he's completely ready to go. We'll have to see today and tomorrow, if there's a chance, but he literally hasn't practiced one time with us yet."
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