No. 8 Duke back in action, AP Top 25 games: Jan. 7

DURHAM, N.C., Sporting Alert – Jeff Capel will begin his duty as the acting head coach for Duke while Mike Krzyzewski recovers from lower back surgery.

Capel will lead the No. 8 Blue Devils into the ACC battle with Boston College at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Saturday and many are eager to see how he will handle the situation.

Krzyzewski is expected to be out for at least a month but the veteran coach asserted confidence in his coaching staff and revealed that he will not interfere while he’s sidelined.

Duke Blue Devils vs. Boston College Eagles

Duke (13-2, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) bounced back from the defeat to Virginia Tech with a commanding 110-57 win over Georgia Tech on Wednesday with Grayson Allen returning from a one-game suspension and Harry Giles starting for the first time this season.

Boston College (8-7, 1-1) is coming off a 79-66 defeat to Wake Forest on Tuesday night, which snapped a two-game winning streak for the Eagles.

Boston College is also looking to end a losing streak against Duke of 11 games this weekend.

It will be the 22nd meeting between these two teams with the Blue Devils leading the all-time series 19-2.

Kennard Heads Duke Scoring Chart

Luke Kennard leads the Blue Devils in scoring at 21.0 points per game and he leads five of his teammates averaging double figures this season.

Kennard also ranks third in the ACC in scoring behind Michael Young and Jamel Artis of Pittsburgh.

Jayson Tatum is averaging 16.3 points and 7.3 rebounds across seven games, Grayson Allen is scoring 15.9 points, Amile Jefferson is averaging 13.8 points and 10.6 rebounds per game, while freshman guard Frank Jackson is putting out 12.0 points per game.

Harry Giles Finding His Feet

Freshman talent, Giles, who started his first game in a Duke uniform against Georgia Tech in midweek, collected his first college double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Giles has played four games since returning from injury, while his 17 minutes on Wednesday was a second-high.

Jerome Robinson, who is ranked fourth in the ACC in scoring at 20.6 points per game, leads Boston, with Ky Bowman getting 11.9 points and A.J. Turner at 10.0 points.

OTHER AP TOP 25 SCHEDULE

In other games on Saturday, No. 18 Butler, fresh off of its upset win over No. 1 and defending champion Villanova, will visit Georgetown at 12:00 ET, the Nova Wildcats are hosting Marquette at 7:30 PM, while No. 7 West Virginia will try to bounce back from Tuesday’s defeat to Texas Tech against TCU.

Elsewhere, No. 2 Baylor will aim to stay undefeated this term when it entertains Oklahoma State, No. 5 Gonzaga, the only other NCAA Division I team with a 100-percent record this season, will try to improve to 16-0 against Portland on the road.

Third-ranked Kansas host Texas Tech at Allen Fieldhouse, while No. 6 Kentucky battles against Arkansas at home and No. 14 North Carolina face-off with NC State in an ACC classic.

NCAA COLLEGE BASKETBALL
AP TOP 25 SCHEDULE, STREAM
SAT., JAN. 7

NO. 18 Butler at Georgetown 12:00 PM FOX, Fox Sports GO
TCU at No. 7 West Virginia 1:00 PM ESPNU, WatchESPN
Boston College at No. 8 Duke 2:00 PM ACCN, WatchESPN
No. 21 Virginia Tech at No. 12 Florida State 2:00 PM ACCN, WatchESPN
No. 9 Louisville at Georgia Tech 2:00 PM ACCN, WatchESPN
No. 10 Creighton at Providence 2:00 PM CBSSN
St John’s at No. 16 Xavier 2:30 PM FS1, Fox Sports GO
Clemson at No. 23 Notre Dame 3:00 PM ESPNU
Illinois at No. 25 Indiana 5:00 PM ESPNU, WatchESPN
Tennessee at No. 24 Florida 5:15 PM ESPN2, WatchESPN
No. 15 Oregon at Washington State 7:00 PM PAC12
Oklahoma State at No. 2 Baylor 7:00 PM ESPNN
Texas Tech at No. 3 Kansas 7:15 PM ESPN2, WatchESPN
Marquette at No. 1 Villanova 7:30 PM FS1
NC State at No. 14 North Carolina 8:00 PM ESPN, WatchESPN
Arkansas at No. 6 Kentucky 8:30 PM SECN, WatchESPN
No. 22 Cincinnati at Houston 9:00 PM ESPNU, WatchESPN
Colorado at No. 17 Arizona 9:30 PM PAC12
No. 5 Gonzaga at Portland 10:00 PM ESPN3
No. 19 Saint Mary’s at San Francisco 11:00 PM