# 2017–18 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team

The 2017–18 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team represented Duke University during the 2017–18 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. They were coached by 38th-year head coach, Mike Krzyzewski. The Blue Devils played their home games at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina as members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. They finished the season 29–8, 13–5 in ACC play to finish in second place. They defeated Notre Dame in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament before losing to North Carolina in the semifinals. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 seed in the Midwest region. There they defeated Iona, Rhode Island, and Syracuse to advance to the Elite Eight. In the Elite Eight, they lost to No. 1 seed Kansas in overtime. The 2017-18 Blue Devils team was one of the few teams in NCAA history to send their whole starting five pro in the off-season following their season. Four of them got drafted (two in lottery, one late first round, one second round) and another got signed as undrafted free agent. Throughout the season the whole starting five was in first round NBA draft projections.

## Previous season

The Blue Devils finished the 2016–17 season 28–9, 11–7 in ACC play to finish in fifth place. They became the first ACC team to win four games in four days on their way to winning the ACC tournament. They received the ACC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament as the East Region's #2 seed, where they defeated #15 Troy in the First Round before being upset by #7 South Carolina in the Second Round.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Amile Jefferson | PF | 6'9" | 224 | RS Senior | Philadelphia, PA | Graduated |
| Matt Jones | SG | 6'5" | 204 | Senior | DeSoto, TX | Graduated |
| Nick Pagliuca | G | 6'3" | 195 | Senior | Weston, MA | Walk-on; Graduated |
| Sean Obi | PF | 6'9" | 255 | RS Junior | Kaduna, NG | Graduated and transferred to Maryland. |
| Chase Jeter | F/C | 6'10" | 230 | Sophomore | Las Vegas, NV | Transfer to Arizona. |
| Luke Kennard | SG | 6'6" | 202 | Sophomore | Franklin, OH | Declared for 2017 NBA draft; selected 12th overall by the Detroit Pistons |
| Harry Giles | PF | 6'10" | 240 | Freshman | Winston-Salem, NC | Declared for 2017 NBA draft; selected 20th overall by the Portland Trail Blazers and traded to the Sacramento Kings |
| Frank Jackson | PG | 6'3" | 205 | Freshman | Highland, UT | Declared for 2017 NBA draft; selected 31st overall by the Charlotte Hornets and traded to the New Orleans Pelicans |
| Jayson Tatum | SF | 6'8" | 205 | Freshman | St. Louis, MO | Declared for 2017 NBA draft; selected 3rd overall by the Boston Celtics |

### 2017 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Alex O'Connell SG | Milton, GA | Milton High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Aug 26, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 83 ||||||
| Gary Trent Jr. SG | Apple Valley, MN | Prolific Prep (CA) | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Nov 10, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 95 ||||||
| Wendell Carter Jr. PF | Atlanta, GA | Pace Academy | 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) | 250 lb (110 kg) | Nov 23, 2016 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 96 ||||||
| Jordan Goldwire PG | Norcross, GA | Norcross High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 165 lb (75 kg) | May 1, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 78 ||||||
| Jordan Tucker SF | White Plains, NY | Joseph Wheeler High School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | May 13, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 88 ||||||
| Trevon Duval PG | Wilmington, DE | IMG Academy (FL) | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | May 15, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 96 ||||||
| Marvin Bagley III PF | Tempe, AZ | Sierra Canyon School (CA) | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) | 220 lb (100 kg) | Aug 14, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 98 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: #1 Rivals: #1 247Sports: #1 ESPN: #1 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 14, 2017. ||||||

### 2018 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2018 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Tre Jones PG | Saint Paul, MN | Apple Valley HS | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Aug 13, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 92 |||||||
| Cam Reddish SF | Norristown, PA | Westtown School | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 203 lb (92 kg) | Sep 1, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 96 |||||||
| RJ Barrett SF | Mississauga, ON | Montverde Academy | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Nov 10, 2017 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 96 |||||||
| Zion Williamson PF | Spartanburg, SC | Spartanburg Day School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 272 lb (123 kg) | Jan 20, 2018 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 96 |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 13, 2017. |||||||

## Roster
### Depth chart

| Pos. | Starting 5 | Bench 1 | Bench 2 |
| C | Marvin Bagley III | Marques Bolden | Antonio Vrankovic |
| PF | Wendell Carter Jr. | Javin DeLaurier | Justin Robinson |
| SF | Gary Trent Jr. | Jack White | Jordan Tucker |
| SG | Grayson Allen | Alex O'Connell | Brennan Besser |
| PG | Trevon Duval | Jordan Goldwire | Mike Buckmire |

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 27, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | | Northwest Missouri State | W 93–60 | | 23 – Allen | 9 – Carter, Jr. | 5 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium Durham, NC |
| November 4, 2017* 1:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 1 | Bowie State | W 116–53 | – | 25 – Bagley III | 14 – Carter, Jr. | 11 – Allen | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 10, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 1 | Elon | W 97–68 | 1–0 | 25 – Bagley III | 11 – DeLaurier | 8 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| November 11, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 1 | Utah Valley | W 99–69 | 2–0 | 24 – Bagley III | 10 – Bagley III | 12 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| November 14, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | vs. No. 2 Michigan State Champions Classic | W 88–81 | 3–0 | 37 – Allen | 12 – Carter, Jr. | 10 – Duval | United Center (21,684) Chicago, IL |
| November 17, 2017* 7:00 pm, RSN | No. 1 | Southern | W 78–61 | 4–0 | 20 – Carter, Jr. | 11 – Tied | 4 – Tied | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| November 20, 2017* 7:00 pm, ACCN Extra | No. 1 | Furman Phil Knight Invitational Opening Round | W 92–63 | 5–0 | 24 – Bagley III | 9 – Carter, Jr. | 6 – Allen | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| November 23, 2017* 4:30 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | vs. Portland State Phil Knight Invitational Motion quarterfinals | W 99–81 | 6–0 | 22 – Duval | 15 – Bagley III | 9 – Allen | Veterans Memorial Coliseum (6,955) Portland, OR |
| November 24, 2017* 5:30 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | vs. Texas Phil Knight Invitational Motion semifinals | W 85–78 $^{OT}$ | 7–0 | 34 – Bagley III | 15 – Bagley III | 6 – Duval | Moda Center (13,746) Portland, OR |
| November 26, 2017* 10:30 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | vs. No. 7 Florida Phil Knight Invitational Motion Bracket championship | W 87–84 | 8–0 | 30 – Bagley III | 15 – Bagley III | 7 – Allen | Moda Center (15,365) Portland, OR |
| November 29, 2017* 9:30 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | at Indiana ACC–Big Ten Challenge | W 91–81 | 9–0 | 23 – Bagley III | 12 – Carter, Jr. | 6 – Duval | Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall (17,222) Bloomington, IN |
| December 2, 2017* 3:30 pm, ESPN2 | No. 1 | South Dakota | W 96–80 | 10–0 | 25 – Allen | 12 – Bagley III | 8 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| December 5, 2017* 9:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 1 | Saint Francis (PA) | W 124–67 | 11–0 | 21 – Bagley III | 11 – Bagley III | 11 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| December 9, 2017 12:00 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | at Boston College | L 84–89 | 11–1 (0–1) | 25 – Trent Jr. | 12 – Bagley III | 6 – Allen | Conte Forum (8,606) Chestnut Hill, MA |
| December 20, 2017* 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 4 | Evansville | W 104–40 | 12–1 | 27 – Carter, Jr. | 7 – Bagley III | 8 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| December 30, 2017 2:00 pm, CBS | No. 4 | No. 24 Florida State | W 100–93 | 13–1 (1–1) | 32 – Bagley III | 21 – Bagley III | 6 – Allen | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| January 6, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 2 | at NC State | L 85–96 | 13–2 (1–2) | 31 – Bagley III | 10 – Bagley III | 5 – Duval | PNC Arena (19,500) Raleigh, NC |
| January 10, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 7 | at Pittsburgh | W 87–52 | 14–2 (2–2) | 16 – Bagley III | 15 – Bagley III | 5 – Trent Jr. | Peterson Events Center (9,180) Pittsburgh, PA |
| January 13, 2018 12:00 pm, ACCN | No. 7 | Wake Forest | W 89–71 | 15–2 (3–2) | 30 – Bagley III | 12 – Allen | 8 – Allen | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| January 15, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | at No. 25 Miami (FL) | W 83–75 | 16–2 (4–2) | 30 – Trent Jr. | 14 – Carter | 8 – Duval | Watsco Center (7,972) Coral Gables, FL |
| January 20, 2018 4:00 pm, ACCN | No. 5 | Pittsburgh | W 81–54 | 17–2 (5–2) | 21 – Carter Jr. | 8 – Carter Jr. | 4 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| January 23, 2018 9:00 pm, ACCN | No. 4 | at Wake Forest | W 84–70 | 18–2 (6–2) | 23 – Carter Jr. | 12 – Carter Jr. | 6 – Allen | LJVM Coliseum (13,209) Winston-Salem, NC |
| January 27, 2018 2:00 pm, CBS | No. 4 | No. 2 Virginia | L 63–65 | 18–3 (6–3) | 30 – Bagley III | 15 – Carter Jr. | 8 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| January 29, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 4 | Notre Dame | W 88–66 | 19–3 (7–3) | 22 – Trent Jr. | 10 – Trent Jr. | 8 – Allen | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| February 3, 2018* 12:00 pm, FOX | No. 4 | at St. John's The Garf | L 77–81 | 19–4 | 22 – Trent Jr. | 15 – Carter Jr. | 5 – Duval | Madison Square Garden (19,812) New York, NY |
| February 8, 2018 8:00 pm, ESPN/ACCN | No. 9 | at No. 21 North Carolina Rivalry/ESPN College GameDay | L 78–82 | 19–5 (7–4) | 16 – Trent Jr. | 16 – Bagley III | 7 – Allen | Dean Smith Center (21,750) Chapel Hill, NC |
| February 11, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPN | No. 9 | at Georgia Tech | W 80–69 | 20–5 (8–4) | 23 – Allen | 10 – Carter Jr. | 6 – Allen | McCamish Pavilion (8,600) Atlanta, GA |
| February 14, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 12 | Virginia Tech | W 74–52 | 21–5 (9–4) | 25 – Allen | 13 – Carter Jr. | 6 – Allen | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| February 18, 2018 1:00 pm, ACCN | No. 12 | at No. 11 Clemson | W 66–57 | 22–5 (10–4) | 19 – Allen | 10 – Tied | 4 – Allen | Littlejohn Coliseum (9,000) Clemson, SC |
| February 21, 2018 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | Louisville | W 82–56 | 23–5 (11–4) | 28 – Allen | 9 – Carter Jr. | 6 – Carter Jr. | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| February 24, 2018 6:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | Syracuse | W 60–44 | 24–5 (12–4) | 19 – Bagley III | 10 – Carter Jr. | 6 – Allen | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| February 26, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | at Virginia Tech | L 63–64 | 24–6 (12–5) | 22 – Allen | 8 – Carter Jr. | 4 – Bolden | Cassell Coliseum (9,275) Blacksburg, VA |
| March 3, 2018 8:15 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | No. 9 North Carolina Rivalry/College GameDay | W 74–64 | 25–6 (13–5) | 21 – Bagley III | 15 – Bagley III | 6 – Duval | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| ACC Tournament |||||||||
| March 8, 2018 7:00 pm, ESPN | (2) No. 5 | vs. (10) Notre Dame Quarterfinals | W 88–70 | 26–6 | 33 – Bagley III | 17 – Bagley III | 11 – Duval | Barclays Center (17,732) Brooklyn, NY |
| March 9, 2018 9:00 pm, ESPN | (2) No. 5 | vs. (6) No. 12 North Carolina Semifinals/Rivalry | L 69–74 | 26–7 | 20 – Trent Jr. | 13 – Bagley III | 7 – Duval | Barclays Center (18,157) Brooklyn, NY |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 15, 2018* 2:45 pm, CBS | (2 MW) No. 9 | vs. (15 MW) Iona First Round | W 89–67 | 27–7 | 22 – Bagley III | 8 – Carter Jr. | 9 – Allen | PPG Paints Arena (18,757) Pittsburgh, PA |
| March 17, 2018* 2:40 pm, CBS | (2 MW) No. 9 | vs. (7 MW) Rhode Island Second Round | W 87–62 | 28–7 | 22 – Bagley III | 9 – Bagley III | 7 – Duval | PPG Paints Arena (19,015) Pittsburgh, PA |
| March 23, 2018 9:37 pm, CBS | (2 MW) No. 9 | vs. (11 MW) Syracuse Sweet Sixteen | W 69–65 | 29–7 | 22 – Bagley III | 12 – Carter Jr. | 8 – Allen | CenturyLink Center (17,399) Omaha, NE |
| March 25, 2018* 5:05 pm, CBS | (2 MW) No. 9 | vs. (1 MW) No. 4 Kansas Elite Eight | L 81–85 $^{OT}$ | 29–8 | 20 – Duval | 10 – Bagley III | 6 – Duval | CenturyLink Center (17,579) Omaha, NE |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Ranking movement

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| AP | 1 (33) | 1 (34) | 1 (54) | 1 (65) | 1 (65) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 (21) | 7 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 9 | Not released |
| Coaches | 1 (20) | 1^ (20) | 1 (29) | 1 (30) | 1 (30) | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 (4) | 6 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 4 |
^Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll. *AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings