Joey Baker: We Can't Worry About What Other Teams Are Doing
Duke pulled into first place in the ACC by half a game after Louisville lost its second game in a row on Saturday. The Cardinals played at the same time as Duke was blowing out Notre Dame, 94-60, but the Blue Devils weren’t watching the scoreboard for out-of-town games.
“The most important thing is just worrying about ourselves,” Joey Baker said. “We still have to win ballgames and take it one game at a time. We’ve got a big game on Wednesday (against NC State) we have to get ready for. We can’t look at other teams too much. We have to look at ourselves.”
Baker helped contribute to Duke’s second-half run, scoring all eight of his points after halftime, when Duke extended a slim halftime lead to a much larger margin. The run coincided with Zion Williamson getting introduced to the crowd.
“There was a lot of energy in the building,” Baker said. “Especially when he walked in. We just fed off of that. It helped bleed into the run. It was a good feeling.”
Baker was happy to see Williamson, who was his teammate last season. “I came into college with him,” he said. “He’s one of my good friends. I had no idea he was coming. He just showed up. It was pretty cool.”
While the crowd erupted upon Williamson’s arrival, Baker said he thought it helped lift the players on the court too.
“I definitely think it plays a role,” he said. “You want to play well in front of your former players, especially the level of players that came in. Those are three legends here tonight: Quinn (Cook), Zion, Tyus (Jones). You want to represent the brotherhood in the best way possible.”
