Duke fell to in overtime at the hands of Syracuse Monday night at home, but despite the loss, the biggest pain for the Blue Devils could be the injury to freshman guard Tre Jones. The extent of Jones’ injury isn’t yet known, but the impact of his loss was evident.
No. 1 Duke made just nine of their 43 attempts from behind the arc in the Syracuse Orange’s shocking victory, but what could be the biggest worry for the Blue Devils is the injury of freshman guard Tre Jones.
Duke took their first on Monday night in what had otherwise been an incredibly dominant season for the Blue Devils. Coach Krzyzewski and the Devils fell by a score of 95-91 to 15-point underdog Syracuse, in a game where Duke struggled massively from behind the arc.
Tre Jones visibly shaken up after getting tangled up on a rebound and hitting the floor hard. Was holding his wrist. pic.twitter.com/wIK5FmPNWw
— 💫🅰️♈️🆔 (@ADavidHaleJoint) January 15, 2019
Jones is a staple for the Blue Devils team at the guard spot, and plays over thirty minutes for the Blue Devils, second only to fellow freshman R.J. Barrett. Jones is the motor that keeps this free-flowing offense highlighted by the stellar freshman trio of Barrett, Zion Williamson and Cam Reddish moving.
Averaging almost six assists and just one turnover per game and consistently putting out solid defensive performances (averaging 1.9 steals per game), Jones is a key piece of the Duke playbook.
Jones went down early in the first quarter after getting tangled up scrambling for a rebound with Syracuse’s Frank Howard. Jones took a big hit to his right shoulder, and left the game in visible pain, favoring his right shoulder and wrist.
Jones is a key piece to the dominant Duke team, and typically handles the ball for the Blue Devils, and the loss of his presence on the court showed the immediate effect in their first loss of the season. Duke lacked offensive production without Jones on the court and looked slightly lost in their offensive sets.
As dynamic as this Duke offense is, they struggled after Jones’ departure. The Blue Devils ended up shooting just 38.7 percent from the field, and just over 20 percent from three. As electric as the Duke team is, still spearheaded by the terrific group of freshman listed above, a prolonged injury to Tre Jones would require backup point guard Jordan Goldwire and RJ Barrett to continue to pick up the slack.
If there’s one thing we know, Coach Krzyzewski can handle some adversity, but a young Duke team could suffer if Jones injury should prove to be more than a slight tweak.
Duke continues their schedule on Saturday against No. 4 Virginia.