Vernon Carey in Hulk mode is Duke’s newest superhero

Duke has found a new superhero to replace Zion Williamson in the form of freshman phenom Vernon Carey who dominated Michigan State.

Zion Williamson left quite a legacy at Duke, and it sure feels like the Blue Devils have been struggling to find their way without the top pick in June’s NBA Draft for the early part of the season. The Blue Devils took a big step closer towards defining their new identity in East Lansing on Tuesday night when Vernon Carey Jr. went Hulk mode against the Spartans.

Carey was the dominant force for Duke in their 87-75 win over Michigan State, pouring in 26 points on a very efficient 8-of-16 shooting performance. The Spartans simply had no answer for Carey, who also grabbed 11 rebounds and got to the line a dozen times, knocking down nine of his free throws.

This breakthrough performance was massive for Duke, which has put together a string of uneven performances throughout the first month of the year, headlined by a disastrous home loss against Stephen F. Austin last week. There is no question for anyone watching the game tonight that Carey was the best player on the floor, and this should allow Duke to diversify its offensive attack moving forward.

If Carey is drawing the attention of defenders in the paint, like he was doing all night against Michigan State, it will create more spacing for Duke’s outside shooters. The Blue Devils took full advantage of all that open space in this game, knocking down 7-of-15 3-point attempts, helping start the rout early against the Spartans.

This was a very good win for Duke that will help them eliminate the stench of the home loss to Stephen F. Austin very quickly. It is also a huge confidence builder for a very young team to go on the road and pick up a win against a quality basketball team in a tough place to play.

Time will tell if this performance from Carey was the first real sign of a breakout from a future lottery pick or a flash in the pan, but given Carey’s talent, the former is the more likely scenario. ACC opponents just put on notice that Duke isn’t going to be an easy out with Carey demonstrating the capability to go full Hulk mode in any game, which is a frightening prospect for the rest of the country.

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