# 2010–11 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team

The 2010–11 Duke Blue Devils men's basketball team represented Duke University in the 2010–11 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. Returning as head coach was Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski. The team played its home games at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina and are members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The team finished the regular season with a record of 30–4, ranked #1 in the media polls a total of eleven weeks during the season. They also won the ACC tournament, winning for the third consecutive year. As the #1 seed in the west region of the 2011 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament, they defeated Hampton in the second round and Michigan in the third round to advance to the Sweet Sixteen where they were defeated by Arizona to finish the season 32–5.

## Previous season

The team finished 2010 with a 35–5 record, becoming the ACC Regular Season Co-Champion, ACC tournament champion, and earning a #1 seed in the 2010 NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament. The Blue Devils beat Butler in the championship game 61–59 to win the fourth national championship in school history.

## Pre-season
### Recruiting

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Josh Hairston PF | Fredericksburg, VA | Montrose Christian School (MD) | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Sep 13, 2008 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 96 ||||||
| Kyrie Irving PG | West Orange, NJ | St. Patrick High School (NJ) | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 173 lb (78 kg) | Oct 22, 2009 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 97 ||||||
| Tyler Thornton PG | Washington, DC | Gonzaga College High School | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | 180 lb (82 kg) | Sep 13, 2008 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: N/A ESPN grade: 92 ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: 8 Rivals: 10 ESPN: 6 ||||||
| 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: "Duke Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. "2010 Duke Basketball Commits". Scout.com. "ESPN". ESPN.com. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. "2010 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Schedule

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Fri, Oct 15 7:30 pm | | Blue-White Scrimmage | | | | | | Cameron Indoor Stadium (N/A) Durham, NC |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| Sat, Oct 23* 7:00 pm | | St. Augustine's | W 141–68 | | – | – | – | Cameron Indoor Stadium (N/A) Durham, NC |
| Thu, Nov 4* 7:00 pm | No. 1 | Cal Poly Pomona | W 81–60 | | – | – | – | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Regular Season |||||||||
| Sun, Nov 14* 5:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 1 | Princeton CBE Classic | W 97–60 | 1–0 | 26 – Smith | 4 – Tied | 9 – Irving | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Tue, Nov 16* 7:30 pm, ESPNU | No. 1 | Miami (OH) CBE Classic | W 79–45 | 2–0 | 17 – Curry | 14 – Ma. Plumlee | 7 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Fri, Nov 19* 8:30 pm, ESPN3.com | No. 1 | Colgate | W 110–58 | 3–0 | 18 – Singler | 9 – Singler | 9 – Tied | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Mon, Nov 22* 7:30 pm, ESPN2 | No. 1 | vs. Marquette CBE Classic – Semifinals | W 82–77 | 4–0 | 25 – Ma. Plumlee | 12 – Ma. Plumlee | 7 – Irving | Sprint Center (N/A) Kansas City, MO |
| Tue, Nov 23* 10:15 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | vs. No. 4 Kansas State CBE Classic – Championship | W 82–68 | 5–0 | 17 – Tied | 5 – Tied | 6 – Irving | Sprint Center (18,696) Kansas City, MO |
| Sat, Nov 27* 4:00 pm, FSN | No. 1 | vs. Oregon | W 98–71 | 6–0 | 30 – Singler | 12 – Ma. Plumlee | 5 – Smith | Rose Garden (12,914) Portland, OR |
| Wed, Dec 1* 9:30 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | No. 6 Michigan State ACC – Big Ten Challenge | W 84–79 | 7–0 | 31 – Irving | 10 – Ma. Plumlee | 5 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Sat, Dec 4* 3:15 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | vs. Butler CARQUEST Auto Parts Classic | W 82–70 | 8–0 | 24 – Smith | 8 – Dawkins | 3 – Curry | Izod Center (14,215) East Rutherford, NJ |
| Wed, Dec 8* 9:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 1 | Bradley | W 83–48 | 9–0 | 28 – Dawkins | 7 – Ma. Plumlee | 10 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Sat, Dec 11* 12:00 pm, CBS | No. 1 | Saint Louis | W 84–47 | 10–0 | 22 – Smith | 9 – Mi. Plumlee | 6 – Curry | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Mon, Dec 20* 7:00 pm, FSS | No. 1 | Elon | W 98–72 | 11–0 | 24 – Singler | 5 – Tied | 8 – Mi. Plumlee | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Wed, Dec 29* 7:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 1 | at UNC Greensboro | W 108–62 | 12–0 | 27 – Singler | 6 – Singler | 9 – Smith | Greensboro Coliseum (22,178) Greensboro, NC |
| Sun, Jan 2 7:45 pm, FSN | No. 1 | Miami (FL) | W 74–63 | 13–0 (1–0) | 28 – Smith | 10 – Ma. Plumlee | 5 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Wed, Jan 5* 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 1 | UAB | W 85–64 | 14–0 | 33 – Smith | 8 – Tied | 5 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Sun, Jan 9 8:00 pm, FSN | No. 1 | Maryland Duke–Maryland rivalry | W 71–64 | 15–0 (2–0) | 25 – Singler | 10 – Singler | 8 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Wed, Jan 12 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | at Florida State | L 61–66 | 15–1 (2–1) | 20 – Singler | 14 – Ma. Plumlee | 5 – Smith | Donald L. Tucker Center (12,100) Tallahassee, FL |
| Sat, Jan 15 2:00 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | Virginia | W 76–60 | 16–1 (3–1) | 29 – Smith | 16 – Ma. Plumlee | 6 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Wed, Jan 19 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 4 | at NC State | W 92–78 | 17–1 (4–1) | 22 – Smith | 10 – Ma. Plumlee | 6 – Smith | RBC Center (19,387) Raleigh, NC |
| Sat, Jan 22 4:00 pm, ESPN | No. 4 | at Wake Forest | W 83–59 | 18–1 (5–1) | 24 – Singler | 10 – Ma. Plumlee | 4 – Singler | LJVM Coliseum (14,107) Winston-Salem, NC |
| Thu, Jan 27 8:00 pm, Raycom | No. 3 | Boston College | W 84–68 | 19–1 (6–1) | 28 – Smith | 12 – Ma. Plumlee | 8 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Sun, Jan 30* 1:00 pm, CBS | No. 3 | at St. John's | L 78–93 | 19–2 | 32 – Smith | 9 – Kelly | 4 – Smith | Madison Square Garden (19,353) New York, NY |
| Wed, Feb 2 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | at Maryland Duke–Maryland rivalry | W 80–62 | 20–2 (7–1) | 22 – Singler | 11 – Ma. Plumlee | 5 – Curry | Comcast Center (17,950) College Park, MD |
| Sat, Feb 5 6:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | NC State | W 76–52 | 21–2 (8–1) | 20 – Smith | 12 – Ma. Plumlee | 7 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Wed, Feb 9 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | No. 20 North Carolina Carolina–Duke rivalry | W 79–73 | 22–2 (9–1) | 34 – Smith | 9 – Mi. Plumlee | 5 – Curry | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Sun, Feb 13 6:45 pm, FSN | No. 5 | at Miami (FL) | W 81–71 | 23–2 (10–1) | 18 – Smith | 7 – Singler | 5 – Smith | BankUnited Center (7,972) Coral Gables, FL |
| Wed, Feb 16 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 5 | at Virginia | W 56–41 | 24–2 (11–1) | 22 – Smith | 9 – Ma. Plumlee | 4 – Smith | John Paul Jones Arena (14,149) Charlottesville, VA |
| Sun, Feb 20 7:45 pm, FSN | No. 5 | Georgia Tech | W 79–57 | 25–2 (12–1) | 28 – Smith | 9 – Tied | 6 – Curry | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Wed, Feb 23* 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 1 | No. 24 Temple | W 78–61 | 26–2 | 28 – Singler | 13 – Ma. Plumlee | 4 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Sat, Feb 26 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 1 | at Virginia Tech College GameDay | L 60–64 | 26–3 (12–2) | 22 – Singler | 12 – Singler | 2 – Smith | Cassell Coliseum (9,847) Blacksburg, VA |
| Wed, Mar 2 9:00 pm, ESPN | No. 4 | Clemson | W 70–59 | 27–3 (13–2) | 21 – Smith | 11 – Singler | 7 – Smith | Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314) Durham, NC |
| Sat, Mar 5 8:00 pm, CBS | No. 4 | at No. 13 North Carolina Carolina–Duke rivalry | L 67–81 | 27–4 (13–3) | 30 – Smith | 11 – Mi. Plumlee | 3 – Smith | Dean Smith Center (21,750) Chapel Hill, NC |
| ACC Tournament |||||||||
| Fri, Mar 11 7:00 pm, ESPN2/ Raycom | (2) No. 5 | vs. (7) Maryland Quarterfinals | W 87–71 | 28–4 | 29 – Singler | 11 – Ma. Plumlee | 5 – Ma. Plumlee | Greensboro Coliseum (23,381) Greensboro, NC |
| Sat, Mar 12 3:00 pm, ESPN/ Raycom | (2) No. 5 | vs. (6) Virginia Tech Semifinals | W 77–63 | 29–4 | 27 – Smith | 11 – Singler | 6 – Smith | Greensboro Coliseum (23,381) Greensboro, NC |
| Sun, Mar 13 1:00 pm, ESPN/ Raycom | (2) No. 5 | vs. (1) No. 6 North Carolina Championship Game | W 75–58 | 30–4 | 20 – Smith | 8 – Singler | 10 – Smith | Greensboro Coliseum (23,381) Greensboro, NC |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| Fri, March 18* 3:10 pm, truTV | (1 W) No. 3 | vs. (16 W) Hampton Second round | W 87–45 | 31–4 | 14 – Irving | 13 – Mi. Plumlee | 7 – Smith | Time Warner Cable Arena (16,829) Charlotte, NC |
| Sun, March 20* 2:45 pm, CBS | (1 W) No. 3 | vs. (8 W) Michigan Third round | W 73–71 | 32–4 | 24 – Smith | 8 – Singler | 4 – Singler | Time Warner Cable Arena (18,329) Charlotte, NC |
| Thu, March 24* 9:45 pm, CBS | (1 W) No. 3 | vs. (5 W) No. 17 Arizona Sweet Sixteen | L 77–93 | 32–5 | 28 – Irving | 8 – Singler | 3 – Tied | Honda Center (17,890) Anaheim, CA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. W=NCAA West Region. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Game Notes – NCAA tournament
### Second round: Hampton

| Teams | 1st | 2nd | Final |
| (16) HAMP | 22 | 23 | 45 |
| (1) DUKE | 39 | 48 | 87 |
Duke opened the 2011 NCAA Tournament with a match up against #16 seed Hampton. Duke came out and took care of business with a commanding 39–22 lead going into halftime. As the game continued, Duke built a larger margin and easily took the first game of the tournament, beating Hampton 87–45. After Kyrie Irving suffered a toe injury in December and missed 26 games, he made his return against Hampton. After a slow start, Irving led the team in scoring with 14 points while playing 20 minutes.

### Third round: Michigan

| Teams | 1st | 2nd | Final |
| (8) MICH | 33 | 38 | 71 |
| (1) DUKE | 37 | 36 | 73 |
Duke continued their 2011 NCAA Tournament bid with a third-round match up with the Michigan Wolverines. Duke opened the game going back and forth with Michigan, going into halftime with a 38–33 lead. However, even after leading by 15 points midway through the second half, the Wolverines would not go away. Bringing the game down to the final seconds, it was Duke who prevailed behind Nolan Smith's 24 and beat Michigan 73–71 moving them on to the Sweet Sixteen in Anaheim. This victory also gave coach Mike Krzyzewski his 900th career victory, becoming only the fourth coach to accomplish this feat.

### Regional semifinal: Arizona

| Teams | 1st | 2nd | Final |
| (5) ARIZ | 38 | 55 | 93 |
| (1) DUKE | 44 | 33 | 77 |
Duke played well in the first half and was up by 6 points at halftime. Arizona was only kept within range by a stellar performance by Wildcats forward Derrick Williams, who scored 25 of his 32 points in the first half. In the second half, Williams' teammates came alive as Arizona went on a 19–2 run from which Duke was unable to recover.

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking т = Tied with team above or below :
| | 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 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 4T | 5 | 3 | |
| Coaches | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 3 | |