Jon Scheyer might be trying to put forward a stoical demeanor after a hard-fought loss against Texas Tech, but deep down, he must be ruing the way the Blue Devils blew in the second-half. With 16 minutes on the clock in the second half, Maliq Brown found the hoop after a Nikolas Khamenia pass, which took the score to (58-41) for the Devils. Envisioning a loss at that point was out of the question, but basketball has a habit of surprising and, at times, in a bitter way.

“They didn’t say a whole lot, they’re competitors, so they’re disappointed, pissed, they’re thinking about sure, just like I am, things you can do better,” the coach said.

“The one thing this team has done, they’ve responded every time like in practice, in games, so I know I have a team that comes back ready to work, ready to build, and team that takes responsibility too,” said Scheyer on how his boys feel dejected after the loss but also the resolve that this team has inculcated where such roadblocks can be taken in as a learning curve.

But what can you learn when the difference between the two teams is so minute? Even if you choose to dissect the game, you’ll find that there’s not much that separates the two. The offensive rebounds stand at 7 and 6, the steals stand at 7 and 8 for Texas and Duke, respectively. The FG% for Texas Tech (55%) and Duke (52%), etc., all attest to that, yet Duke found itself in a “so near and yet so far” situation.

Cam Boozer, yet again, was the star for Duke, scoring 23 points, the highest of any player in both teams, which made him the 6th consecutive highest scorer for his team, his five priors being – Howard (26), Arkansas (35), Florida (29), Michigan (18), Lipscomb (26). Cam’s twin, Cayden, had a great showing too, coming off the bench and scoring 13 points along with Dame Sarr, who was sinking in 3’s from outside the perimeter with ease.

Jon Scheyer knows the quality of players at his disposal and is determined to make things right. “We’ll be back with a vengeance, working like crazy to make this a really special season the rest of the way,” signed off the coach, which is enough to send chills down the spine of his upcoming opponents. Georgia Tech, are you listening?

Will Cayden Boozer start the next game against Georgia Tech after his impressive performance?

Another Boozer, who made the most of his 19 minutes on court, was Cam’s twin brother, Cayden. He came off the bench and scored 13 crucial points that might that proved to be invaluable. His game was so good that it even drew praise from the coach.

Jon Scheyer had nothing but praise afterward, offering a glowing assessment of the freshman’s impact. “I think Cayden is a gamer. He has shown that tonight, the clutch plays he made with his shooting and scoring was great, I love the defensive stop he got in the end. He played great defense.”

“He’s got great attitude, he’s really smart, and you just trust his winning ability and the fact that he is not afraid at all in those moments as a freshman,” Scheyer said, adding that he is proud of his growth and sees him as “a launching pad” moving forward.

But that also makes you wonder why Cayden doesn’t start more games. He has played 12 games this season, and in every single one, he has come from the bench, even though he has decent statistics. Cayden averages 6.5 points, 2 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and a FG%of  48.1%, which has every possible chance of improving if he gets more game time.

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Sometimes you just need to reshuffle things in your system, and that might just do the trick for Jon Scheyer. So, will we witness that happening in the next few games for Duke? Caydenis obviously a team player and wouldn’t argue with the coach’s choice, but today he has made a valid case for himself.