Vernon Carey: That UNC Game Was Crazy

Freshman surprised by level of intensity

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski wants Vernon Carey Jr. to run the floor more to help get set up on offense before double and triple-teams arrive.

The freshman has been working on that in recent games.

“Coach wants us to run, because Tre (Jones) will find you if you run the floor,” Carey said. “Just running the floor opens up those scoring opportunities for everyone.”

Attracting a crowd of defenders was a bit of an adjustment for Carey, who is relatively new to playing in the post after playing on the wing in high school. It caused him to hit the “freshman wall” early in the season.

“Probably when I first started seeing those double teams, December or November, early December,” Carey said. “(Coaches and teammates) just told me to keep on, just prepare for it. At first, I wasn’t prepared for it. That’s probably why I struggled a little bit, but I’ve been working on it.”

Carey will be facing North Carolina for the second time—and perhaps the final time for the likely one-and-done player—on Saturday night. He was surprised by his first exposure to the rivalry last month.

“That UNC game was crazy,” he said. “With us coming back us being down by 10 or 12 with I don’t even know how many minutes left. Just that atmosphere, that level of intensity – it will probably match or even be greater tomorrow, I feel like. That win was big for us because I think we had a game two days after – FSU. Those were two key wins for us. I feel like it just led us in the right direction.”


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Shawn Krest
SHAWN KREST

Shawn Krest has covered Duke for the last decade. His work has appeared in The Sporting News, USA Today, CBSSports.com, ESPN.com and dozens of other national and regional outlets. Shawn's work has won awards from the USBWA, PFWA, BWAA and NC Press Association.