I guess it could have been worse.  Could have just given him a bag of happy ice and the stanky leg for his parting gift.  Man, I feel for Greg because when the Duke Football coach tells you “No” to even competing for the QB slot, you’ve got some real disbelievers out there.

I’m telling you, Greg needs to try to be QB over at Syracuse, which is literally the worst big name program in the country this side of Notre Dame.

Sheeeit, Greg could probably be QB, offensive coordinator and Athletic Director as terrible as SU is right  now.  Greg, go home young man..Go home.

- Lake

No, I’m serious.  Greg Paulus, formerly of Duke Basketball fame, could be your starting Quarterback next year.

Exactly.  And I don’t know what’s worse about this story, the fact that Pauly is trying to go fantasy land on his college experience or the fact that he truly might be the best option you guys got!

It’s kind of interesting actually, Pauly seems to show up precisely when dynasty programs are on their way down.  But this time, you can’t blame Greg (unlike in the Duke situation)… Nah, Greg is far from your biggest problem in Ann Arbor.  This is your problem:

haaaa, not to mention this dude.

Anyway, I don’t really get this move for Greg, but you can’t say dude doesn’t have balls.  I mean, why go to a declining program like Michigan that’s probably going to lose a lot next year anyway, just so you can be the face of not one but two monumental collapses.  Suddenly, 15 years from now, cats will be talking about Greg P the Program killer.

And don’t get me wrong, I’m sure Greg P had some game, but football isn’t a plug and play activity.

You need to work on your craft, learn the system and then, come on in and perform.  Greg is out here like it’s pick up in the sand lot.  Only, he’s going to facing some of the most demanding fans in America…AGAIN…so his margin for error will be like zero.

Why Michigan?  Since dude only has one more year of eligibility, why not go to a spot where you can just work on your craft en route to an NFL career?  I mean, Elon College comes to mind or maybe you could kick it with Zeke and the fellas down at FIU..oh, I know, you can go to the worst big program in America, Syracuse, and play the role of the native son coming home.

But Michigan dont’ make no sense.  Anyway, one thing I will say about Greg P, dude has heart.  He aint no beeyatch and he does have the nuts to step in and try to be the best.  Sadly, Rudy was just a movie.  I mean, let’s face it, even Coach K, a cat who has put up with far worse cats than Greg P, was looking like this by Greg’s senior year.

At any rate, I don’t know who needs who more, Michigan or Paulus.  I hate to say it, but I do see that looming disaster on the horizon.

But better that than the slow cooking, left to rust on the bench, extreme makeover ice out Greg got last year from Coach K.  I mean, if you’re going to go down, at least do it in flames, right Mike?

Yeah, I own know neither.

- Lake

As we say up in NY, “it’s lovey and I love it”..  That G. Hendo was on FIRE and over all, the cats really did a nilla proud.  How about the reemergence of Greg Paulus?  Haa  Pauly gettin his man.

No question.  And not too surprisngly, Mr. Gregory Monroe, a cat who should be at Duke right now, lost his cool and really cost his team the game.

Anyway, I can’t lie, I was a bit concerned early on, but the boys pulled it all togehter.  I do like K going deeper into that bench.  Great win for the Good Guys and…

Go Duke.

- Lake

I know, I know, after that win against Michigan State all you thugs with books actually thought you’d have a good year.

Sure, let’s take a look at starting five, shall we?

1.  Greivis Vasquez

The only cat on the entire squad with confirmed ACC level talent.  Too bad he’s a wild man with the rock making him as detrimental to your squad as he is beneficial.  I give Mr. Vasquez a solid B+ grade because he is a good athlete, big and definitely has a pair of nizzuts.

2.  Eric Hayes

Ha, are you serious?  According to Terp fans, this cat was going to be “the next Steve Blake” when he came in, right?  Look, this fool sucks, ok?  He makes “Thunder” Nic Canter-Medley look like Larry Freaking Bird.  Eric Hayes is a joke.  He’s like a poor man’s Greg Paulus.

I mean, come on Terps, even yall can agree that Greg P has a better jumper, handles, superior intelligence, a better haircut, more heart and definitely more hoes.  Eric Hayes SUCKS, ok?  He’s not a Division 1 level athlete.  You guys know it and so does Gary Williams.

D- for that clown.

3.  Sean Mosley

Is it just me or does this cat literally look like Michael from Good Times?

And from what I hear, he’s got a jumper like Michael too.  ha  Good to see Murrland maintain that “can’t find my clippers” tradition passed down by that clown Bambale “Boom” Osby.

I haven’t seen enough to pass judgment on his skill, but at least he’s an athlete.  That I can see from this Gtown game.  Don’t get me wrong, he’s getting murdered out here, but there is some hope for the young lad.  With a haircut, I’d give him a C+, but right now he’s got a solid C on appearance alone.  Plus, he’s playing the 3 in the ACC at 6, 2.  Murlan fans will tell you that Gary has decided to run that three guard offense, but the truth is, Gary couldn’t recruit a legitimate Small Forward over the past 4 years.

4.  Landon Milbourne

What can be said about Milbourne that hasn’t already been said about Iceland.  Nobody knew who he was or why he existed until disaster struck in the form of no recruits from Gary.  Mibourne is a literal non factor and in the ACC that’s just not good enough.  Sorry, but this cat is a D at best.  And yes, D stands for Deez Nuts, ok?

5.  Braxton Dupree

Ahhhhh, Mr. Dupree.  My favorite guy on the entire UMd roster.  Two years ago Terps would have told you “wait until you see Braxton Dupre, then we’ll show ya”.. now they aren’t saying a damn thing about this stiff.  This cat is like many of these so called “high level” Murland recruits, soft and not very good.  Mr. Dupre is trash AND injury prone, so why are we even talking about him?  He’s a non factor and everyone in College Park knows it.

Ha.  I love that pic.  If Braxton was an ice cream flavor he’d be Pralines and Sh*t.  Look for that Jin Soo Wu or whatever his name is to replace Mr. Dupree in about a week or two.

In closing, I know all you Terps fans got all hyped up when you beat Michigan State and I must admit, I was shocked myself.  Sadly, that win against the Spartans said far more about them than it did about your team.  You guys don’t have any good players, save for young Greivis and maybe Mosley.  Even you geniuses understand that you can’t compete in the ACC or get into the NCAA Tourney without recruits.  Sorry.  Maybe if Gary was doing less of this:

You’d be ok.  I know, I know, Lefty Driesell’s son and Keith Booth are going to bring in the recruits like gang busters.  Meanwhile, you cats haven’t landed a hot DC Metro recruit in years and you’re getting you asses whiiped by the Hoyas not now, but RIGHT NOW.  Just know that Duke is going to whoop your candy asses AGAIN this year and I’ll be sitting back, just laughing with glee.  But look at it this way, no expectations means no more rioting, right?  I know, I know, it’s the townies in PG County.

Yep, sure it is.

Enjoy the year.  lol

Go Duke

- Lake

Before the game UVa’s players looked like this.

Then the fellas stepped forward with some of this:

A little bit of that:

Which ultimately lead to this:

Did Duke have to do it to those Wahoos like that? I mean, get off the canvas UVa.. Get up! Jeez. Player of the game for Duke had to be my main man (finger snap) Greg Paulus, but it was really a complete team win.

Still, Greg was just throwing it in the ocean from three. I really think that broke their spirit early and then Duke never looked back thanks to Greg’s play. And there’s nothing worse for an opponent than a confident, shat talking Paulie.

Anyway, bottom line, I like the level of play and overall determination going into this UNC game on Saturday and post season play in general. I also liked how K got minutes in for Big Zoub. It’s an understatement, but the boys in Blue need to sack up and run those hicks from UNC back to Chapel Hill on Saturday.

No mercy.

Go Duke.

- Lake

Immediately I saw more of the same foolishness that I saw against Wake Forest. First, they were hitting everything. They were banking it, slamming it, J’ing us from three, pulling it up, this cat McClinton was lacing the runner, I mean, you name it, they were doing it.

That was bad enough and we looked slugglish in the first half, but what about that patented Duke effort to start the second half? You know, that same courage and character that won the Carolina game and both Maryland games?

It just never came. Instead, we had the scarecrow, tin man and cowardly lion special going on as Miami just thrashed us. I mean, they pushed the lead out to 15 and I was pissed. Then they pushed it out to 20 and I was literally ordering IPA drafts, and I don’t drink beer!!!

It was ridiculous. Sure, if you look at the score, you’ll see that Duke came back and made a game of it and yes, I was encouraged by the heart they showed to do that, but believe me, this was NOT a close game. Miami whupped up on Duke from pillar to post. I mean, literally, in all phases of the game. I just don’t get it.

Even JJ couldn’t believe it. Sure, Miami came out and gave us trouble with their match up zone. But Duke looked like they had never seen a zone before. I mean, we were throwing up off balanced threes like there were 50 seconds left in the game and this was at the 15:00 minute mark in the second half!! Our team defense was deplorable.

Gerald Henderson was INVISIBLE. Yes, he sacked up and hit a big three down the stretch, but this guy just can’t be right physically. I don’t get it, he looks like an NBA first rounded for 2/3 of the season and next thing you know, he’s channeling Mike Chappelle out there.

Hey, G.. If you’re not good to play, then just don’t. I mean, heal up and come back when you’re ready. But I feel like Andre 3000 when he was writing Elevators, “this shit here must stop, like freeze.” My word. I mean, I’m just at a loss. The freshmen suddenly looked like Freshmen. Yes, Scheyer ended up playing well in the second half, but homey’s play for the first 35 minutes was relatively incongruous, off-key and out of sync.

Duke loses, 95-96 and suddenly that supposed locked up No. 1 seed and ACC regular season title looks about as guran-damn-teed as that Central Campus bus picking you up on-time. Lordy… IPA fueled rant over.

- Lake

But seriously, this game was a relative snoozer from the middle of the first half. You knew Duke was going to win, it was just a matter of waiting for UNC to die that slow, uninspired death. With the exception of Tyler Hansbrough (and possibly Ty Lawson) does anybody on that squad have any heart?

I mean, where was the pride? Where was the commitment to protect that home court? After these cats lost their Point Guard it just looked like someone came in and stole their lunch money but their big brother happened to be out of town and couldn’t protect them anymore. What a joke.

Believe me, this was NOT a close game. Duke was the superior team, really from start to finish, but most striking was how much tougher Duke was that the Tar Heels. There’s no doubt that things would have been different had Lawson played and it’s unfortunate that UNC lost him to that ankle sprain.

Is that an ankle brace or a gobment electronic monitoring device? My bad. But on the real, if the Refs weren’t under the delusion that Tyler Hansbrough can play a tough, physical brand of basketball and virtually NEVER foul, this would have been a legitimate blow out.

What is this cat doing? Seriously, how many times does Hansbrough just run into his defender where it’s automatically a foul on the defense? How often does he wrestle for a rebound and then suddenly it’s against the other guy? I’ve watched him in other games and it’s the same story, hell, in my broadcast, Packer called him “A Great White Shark.” Well, that’s close to what he is, but I’ll just leave that be (for now).

Anyway, it was a solid Duke win with more than a few gut checks from the fellas and plenty of balanced scoring across the team.

GREG PAULUS WAS NAILS from three and just played an overall great game. He feasted on Thomas, who apparently didn’t get the memo that Greg is water from deep. Not only did he shoot 6-8 behind the arch, but they were clutch shots to boot. The UvT game ball definitely goes to the Syracuse brawler, Gregory P.

He really sacked up. It’s kind of hilarious to say it, but UNC really had no answer for him. The rest of the fellas just played smart and within themselves with six guys scoring in double figures. I can’t lie, it was good to see Scheyer get going too.

He was all over the court tonight, making plays and just letting the play come to him.

That crowd full of hicks, most of whom were more consumed with their placement on Gerald Henderson’s nut sack than on the actual play in the game, got just what they deserved.

No seriously, tell me exactly what these two chicks “wanted” from Gerald?

Exactly. I guess those UNC guys just aint hittin it right.

Definitely not. Those inbreds “wanted” Gerald and that’s exactly what they got.

Happy? Now go vote for Mike Huckabee, strum that ukulele with your underfed hound howling in the background and just remember not to take 2 girls and a dude home with you after you drawn your sorrows in your best batch of Carolina Blue moonshine you undoubtedly prepared for tonight’s game..yall hear? Next... (literally).

Stay down!

Go Duke.

- Lake

Shoot, I’ll take it. All of it. Not only was he red hot in the first half, but when Duke’s perimeter playmakers were spazzing out in the second half, Jon S. was relatively calm and cool (Quietly, Singler was too). You forget that he’s a solid ball handler until G. Hendo, Pauly and Markie suddenly get collective stone hands on consecutive possessions and start turning the thing over. Anyway, I’ve never seen Jon play that well, especially on the road in a tight game. Jon definitely gets our game ball for his efforts.

Anyway, overall, it was a tough and gritty win for the good guys. Let’s face it, Greg P. had an awful game. But once again, he showed that he’s more heart and toughness than he is player. He had that gutsy 3, tough lay, scrappy rebound and best of all, that timely steal that Duke needed to seal the win. It was a poor 3/4 of a game, but you got to respect how he fought back and got Duke the tough win.

And this win was crucial too because now we’ve got a solid Clemson squad coming into Cameron on Saturday, followed by games at Virginia Tech and at Thug U aka Maryland. Overall, it was a gritty team win with input from about 8 guys. I like it.

Kick the stats intern:

VISITORS: Duke 14-1, 2-0 ACC

                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS

## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN

12 Kyle Singler........ f  3-8    2-6    2-2    2  4  6   3  10  1  2  0  1  26

14 David McClure....... f  0-0    0-0    0-0    0  1  1   0   0  0  2  1  1  12

03 Greg Paulus......... g  3-8    1-6    2-2    0  2  2   4   9  1  2  1  2  20

15 Gerald Henderson.... g  4-9    0-1    3-4    1  7  8   2  11  0  2  1  0  31

21 DeMarcus Nelson..... g  2-6    0-2    3-5    1  5  6   2   7  1  4  0  0  36

02 Nolan Smith.........    1-6    0-3    2-2    1  6  7   2   4  4  2  0  0  20

20 Taylor King.........    3-6    2-4    0-0    1  3  4   2   8  1  1  2  1  15

30 Jon Scheyer.........    9-13   2-5    1-3    2  1  3   1  21  2  2  0  2  32

42 Lance Thomas........    0-1    0-0    0-0    2  1  3   3   0  0  3  0  1   8

   TEAM................                         3  1  4

   Totals..............   25-57   7-27  13-18  13 31 44  19  70 10 20  5  8 200

- Lake

Man, that was a tough loss in the garden. It’s hard to knock the effort of the good guys in blue, after all, a bounce here or there and I’d be talking about a gritty win in OT. With that said, make no mistake, Duke gave Pitt an opportunity to come from behind with that 3 ball to win it and win it they did.

Big credit to Pitt, Jaime Dixon and most of all, Levance Fields who showed ridiculous stones to step up and hit that shot right after a tough offensive foul on the previous possession. Duke didn’t help themselves with a number of missed free throws, a few late bone headed turnovers and that switching defense that Pitt seemed to figure out at the end of the game as they dribbled around the key, waiting for the mismatch they wanted (Fields on McClure anyone?). With that said, I have to again give credit to Coach K for his innovative gameplay and personnel decisions.

Let’s face it, years ago K would NEVER do wholesale offense for defense switches possession to possession. No, he’d rather live and die with “his guys” (Wayne Turner on Wojo anyone?). I can’t fault him, he put the players in a position to win, the guys showed heart, but just came one play short. Again, much respek to Pitt for a nice win and my boys in blue will have no complaints from me. They showed heart, made some really nice plays when we needed them and for the most part, showed a lot of poise for a December game.

They also had two point blank shots to win it in regulation. Hopefully this small setback will make them better. Good game.

Oh and fellas, in case you’re still shopping for me, I want free throw practice for Christmas.

Go Duke

- Lake

Wow, it’s just great to see Duke really dig into Wisconsin’s collective cheese loving arses. The first half was a ho-asis of scoring and did I or did I not tell you people about my boy from Cali Taylor “I’m the” Kang?

King was unconscious from three. I mean homey went out onto the floor with a set of brass balls, shooting when he pleased and literally making it rain on them hoes. It was JJ Redick-esque son and I loved it.

He J’d the Badgers with the set shot 3. He J’d them with the fall away. He picked two balls up off the ground and immediately deposited them in the mouth of the damn thing. I mean, have you ever seen a ball leave a player’s hand and reach the basket so quickly? His joint takes like .5 seconds to get up there. You just can’t keep that kind of scoring production on the bench. Coach K obviously read this blog and now King is getting more minutes. That’s cool, let’s just keep it up, but hey, don’t take away Henderson’s minutes either.

We need that cat for his assortment of blocks, dunks, timely 3 balls, mean mugs and rebounds.. Ha.. Now I see why he made Hansbrough red all over. By the way, is Balco T off the canvas yet? Carolina fans acted like Hendo shot the man or something. Stop being a bunch of crying bitches, it’s college basketball, it’s the ACC, it aint intramurals. If yall don’t like it, go play intramurals brother….go play intramurals. Stop all your crying, pull you skirt up and just play ball. Bunch of hicks.. LOL. At any rate, at times during the game G had me on the edge of my seat silently yelling “FINISH HIM” like the Cobra Kai sensai.

End of the day, Duke whooped up on the Badgers.  Per usual, the Big 10 sucks and this ACC – Big 10 Challenge, at 10-0, is getting comical.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

VISITORS: Wisconsin 5-1

                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS

## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN

01 Marcus Landry        f  3-9    1-1    0-1    3  3  6   0   7  2  3  0  1  25

32 Brian Butch          f  5-12   0-4    1-2    1  4  5   4  11  0  2  0  0  20

34 Greg Stiemsma        c  0-1    0-0    0-0    0  2  2   2   0  0  1  0  0   8

03 Trevon Hughes        g  4-13   1-4    3-6    1  3  4   2  12  3  3  0  2  26

45 Joe Krabbenhoft      g  2-7    0-2    0-0    1  4  5   2   4  0  1  1  2  36

12 Jason Bohannon          2-2    0-0    0-0    0  1  1   1   4  1  1  0  0  19

14 Tanner Bronson          0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  1  0  0   1

15 Brett Valentyn          0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   1

22 Michael Flowers         3-9    0-2    2-2    3  2  5   4   8  3  2  0  0  32

24 Tim Jarmusz             0-1    0-0    0-0    1  0  1   0   0  0  0  0  0   1

30 Jon Leuer               5-11   1-1    1-2    2  4  6   0  12  1  1  0  1  19

43 Kevin Gullikson         0-0    0-0    0-0    1  1  2   2   0  1  2  0  0  11

52 Keaton Nankivil         0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  1  0  0   1

   TEAM                                         4  1  5

   Totals                 24-65   3-14   7-13  17 25 42  17  58 11 18  1  6 200

TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-33 30.3%   2nd Half: 14-32 43.8%   Game: 36.9%  DEADB

3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  2-9  22.2%   2nd Half:  1-5  20.0%   Game: 21.4%   REBS

F Throw % 1st Half:  3-6  50.0%   2nd Half:  4-7  57.1%   Game: 53.8%    1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

HOME TEAM: Duke 7-0

                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS

## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN

12 Kyle Singler         f  4-7    2-4    3-4    3  3  6   4  13  1  3  0  1  31

42 Lance Thomas         f  0-1    0-0    0-0    1  0  1   4   0  0  2  0  1  13

03 Greg Paulus          g  6-13   4-7    2-2    1  1  2   3  18  1  1  0  2  28

15 Gerald Henderson     g  3-8    0-0    5-6    2  4  6   0  11  1  1  1  0  22

21 DeMarcus Nelson      g  3-11   0-2    3-4    1  6  7   1   9  7  2  2  3  34

02 Nolan Smith             3-4    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   3   6  1  3  0  1  15

14 David McClure           0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   1

20 Taylor King             5-10   5-9    0-1    0  5  5   2  15  0  0  1  2  20

30 Jon Scheyer             2-7    0-2    6-6    3  6  9   0  10  2  1  0  0  28

41 Jordan Davidson         0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   0   0  0  0  0  0   1

55 Brian Zoubek            0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   1   0  1  1  1  0   7

   TEAM                                         1  3  4

   Totals                 26-61  11-24  19-23  12 28 40  18  82 14 14  5 10 200

TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 14-33 42.4%   2nd Half: 12-28 42.9%   Game: 42.6%  DEADB

3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  9-16 56.3%   2nd Half:  2-8  25.0%   Game: 45.8%   REBS

F Throw % 1st Half: 11-13 84.6%   2nd Half:  8-10 80.0%   Game: 82.6%   2,1

Anyway, Duke and Wisconsin had never met before and now the cheese heads know what Duke Basketball is all about. And don’t think I didn’t take note the presence of former Duke recruit Brian Butch. You diss Duke for Wisconsin? I don’t get it player.. Oh well.

Go Duke.

- Lake