Duke basketball guard breaks nose during practice
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Duke basketball sophomore Jaylen Blakes caught an incidental elbow during practice on Wednesday and broke his nose, first-year head coach Jon Scheyer told the media on Friday.
Even so, when the unranked Blue Devils (13-5, 4-3 ACC) host the No. 17 Miami Hurricanes (15-3, 6-2 ACC) at noon ET Saturday, Blakes plans to play, presumably again as the first or second guard off the bench, while wearing a protective face mask.
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"Jaylen will be ready to go," Scheyer confirmed. "Our medical team did a great job. About an hour after [the injury], they were able to reduce the fracture. And he handled it like an absolute champ and is tough as nails. So he's able to play. He'll just be wearing a mask for the time being.
"He's shown a lot about just doing whatever he needs to do to get out there on the floor...Whatever you want to put in front of him, 'strong' and 'tough' should be right along with Jaylen Blakes's name."
Scheyer noted they have "held him out of contact" since the injury but, again, "besides the mask, he'll be ready to go" against a guard-laden Miami Hurricanes squad that features seasoned backcourt leaders in Isaiah Wong and Nijel Pack.
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After riding the pine most of his first Duke basketball campaign last year, Jaylen Blakes has emerged this season as an energy booster and defensive stopper with an eye for generating fastbreak opportunities.
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound former four-star recruit has played in all 18 games for the 2022-23 Blue Devils, averaging 5.2 points, 2.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 0.9 steals in 19.3 minutes.
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