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Wednesday, March 21
Boozer's return gives Duke boost
Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA -- This has been a good month for Duke. The Blue Devils haven't lost in six games in March, including two
against archrival North Carolina and two in the NCAA tournament.
After the second victory over the Tar Heels that gave Duke its third straight Atlantic Coast Conference tournament championship,
the Blue Devils moved into the No. 1 spot in the national rankings.
It's hard to believe things could get better this month for the top-seeded Blue Devils (31-4) as they prepare for Thursday night's
East Regional semifinal against fourth-seeded UCLA (23-8).
|  | | Shane Battier goes through drills with his Duke teammates, including Carlos Boozer, during Wednesday's practice.
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How about getting back Carlos Boozer, their starting center who broke a bone in his foot against Maryland Feb. 27, the last game
the Blue Devils lost?
The 6-foot-9 sophomore is averaging 14.0 points and 6.5 rebounds and leads the team with a .602 field goal percentage. His nine
20-point games trail only All-Americans Shane Battier and Jason
Williams this season.
"It's good to have Carlos back," Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "We've had three good practices with him. I think he's
running well. His conditioning is not at the level of the other
guys but it's been good. It's been a real up for our team."
Boozer ran well during the Blue Devils' open workout Wednesday, and his teammates were excited about having him back after opening the tournament with wins over Monmouth and Missouri.
"He's going to be a presence and that's all we're asking him to
be," Battier said.
Without Boozer, the Blue Devils went to a smaller lineup, using
both Williams and freshman Chris Duhon in the backcourt, while
asking reserves Casey Sanders, Matt Christensen and Reggie Love to
help out up front.
"I think you have to look at what your team's strengths are,"
Krzyzewski said when asked about the adjustments he had to make
without Boozer. "In a moment of weakness, or adversity, you tend
to think of your weaknesses more than your strengths. I thought we
could be quicker and the insertion of Chris with Jason for that
group was a good one and it played to the strengths of Casey,
Reggie and Matt and they've responded.
"That's worked well for us and we'll still play that style and
Carlos is going to try to adjust to how we're playing with those
kids."
UCLA lost two of its last three regular-season games before
beating Hofstra and Utah State by an average of 19 points in the
NCAA tournament.
The Bruins have been an up-and-down team over the past few
seasons, but coach Steve Lavin feels his team having nine seniors
and juniors will be an advantage against a team like Duke.
"It's their stability and leadership that have made this team
enjoyable to watch and be around," he said.
Lavin also knows that Duke presents a problem coaches rarely
have to face, whether it's getting ready for the Blue Devils with
or without Boozer.
"Boozer will give them a big body inside who can finish in the
paint, but ultimately it's Duke's style of play that is a bigger
concern than any individual," he said. "It's having poise against
their pressure defense, being able to execute against their
pressure defense and not turn the ball over and finish with a high
percentage look at the basket.
"Teams that turn it over or teams that shoot quick allow them
to race the other way, 3-on-2, 2-on-1 breaks, and that's where
they're deadly."
Duke is second in the nation at 91.6 points per game, 11.6
better than the Bruins, and its 3-point shooting has been at 39.5
percent, an even more impressive number because the Blue Devils
take an average of 27 per game.
The winner gets the winner of the game between second-seeded
Kentucky and sixth-seeded Southern California. It's no secret a lot
of people are hoping for a regional final rematch between Duke and
Kentucky. Those teams played one of the NCAA tournament's greatest
games in that round in 1992 in this city.
"I think the East Coast media wants to see Duke and Kentucky,"
UCLA guard Earl Watson said. "I think the West Coast wants to see
the USC and UCLA rivalry. It'll be fun to see how it plays out."
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