Jeremy Roach Set to End Duke Basketball's Insane 1,000-Point Drought

It used to be that an average of over one Duke basketball player per year eclipsed 1,000 career points. But that count has been zero every season since 2016-17. That year, the Blue Devils' 67-deep 1,000-point club welcomed three: Grayson Allen, Luke Kennard, and Amile Jefferson.

The drought, resulting from recent top-shelf scorers consistently leaving Durham early for the pro ranks, is easily the longest this century.

In case anyone forgot — understandable, if so — Cameron Indoor Stadium tradition dictates that a mid-game announcement accompany the milestone moment when it happens at home.

On Friday night in the No. 2 Blue Devils' highly publicized home game against No. 12 Arizona, Jeremy Roach has a chance to remind folks of that tradition. The senior co-captain guard, one of four returning starters from last season's squad, sits at 994 points.

Jerm just knows how to get a bucket @Jeremyroach10 pic.twitter.com/waBYVA9PAf
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) November 9, 2023

Whenever Roach adds six more to his total, Duke basketball will need only one more 1,000-point scorer to tie Louisville's 69 for the second most in history (UNC ranks No. 1 on that list with 81).

And due to the rare-these-days deep cast of returning Blue Devil starters, Duke might match the Cardinals, who have no players nearing the 1,000-point mark, later this season via sophomore forward Kyle Filipowski.

Filipowski entered Monday night's season-opening 92-54 home victory over Dartmouth with 543 points. His game-high 25 points against the Big Green pushed that to 568.

Assuming Filipowski stays healthy and posts an average at least close to his 15.1 points per game as ACC Rookie of the Year, he should join Jeremy Roach in the Blue Devils' 1,000-point club before his probable departure to the NBA in the spring.

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