Photo credit: Rob Kinnan-USA TODAY Sports
Lost in Storm: Duke Basketball Rookie Leapfrogs Jon Scheyer on List
Jon Scheyer, whose 297 career splashes from downtown rank No. 4 in Duke basketball history, was quite adept at stopping on a dime to pull the trigger from deep. Now, the second-year head coach benefits from having a player with a somewhat similar style and stroke as a 3-point marksman in freshman guard Jared McCain.
Losses, especially those as court-stormed as the Blue Devils' 83-79 road defeat at the hands of unranked Wake Forest on Saturday, often mute mentions of feats that an individual reached during the game.
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But during this week's Fast Break with Jon Scheyer, the 36-year-old Scheyer detailed what makes the 20-year-old McCain stand out among first-year college snipers. So, it's fitting to note that McCain's 3-for-4 clip from deep at Wake pushed his 3-point total to 62, bumping Scheyer's 61 in 2006-07 to No. 9 among all-time Duke freshmen.
McCain needs nine more to tie No. 7 on the list, AJ Griffin (71), and 35 more — ambitious but not yet unrealistic — to tie Gary Trent Jr.'s Blue Devil rookie record (97).
Here's what Jon Scheyer said about the dedicated approach and innate characteristics that distinguish ACC Rookie of the Year candidate Jared McCain as a potentially legendary Duke basketball weapon beyond the arc:
"I think the separator with Jared is his [shooting] ability on the move. Whether it's going to his left, whether it's going to his right, whether it's in transition, or full speed, he can be running a certain direction; when he plants, he's going straight up, and his balance is the same way every time.
"When it's repeatable — you know, he has a repeatable motion — you have a chance to make a lot of shots. And that's what he's done, and that's very advanced for his age.
"And the fact that he's only a freshman, when you're dealing with better length and athleticism to get your shots off, it helps that he's working at it full speed all the time."
NEXT DUKE BASKETBALL GAME: No. 10 Blue Devils (21-6, 12-4 ACC) at home versus unranked Louisville (3-13, 8-19 ACC), 7 p.m. ET Wednesday (ACCN)
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