The Duke basketball team may be getting a significant boost for the second part of its rivalry with North Carolina, and it’s someone the Tar Heels are extremely familiar with.
Backup center Maliq Brown has been out for the No. 2 Blue Devils since February 17, when he suffered a dislocated shoulder against Virginia. It is the second time this season that the Syracuse transfer has missed significant time due to an injury, after a toe injury forced him to sit out four games.
Ironically, he returned from a toe injury against North Carolina on February 1 and may play against the Tar Heels again.
“Maliq has been working really hard. Maliq has been telling me for two weeks, ‘I’m ready,’ when he hasn’t been,” Jon Scheyer said Thursday afternoon. “But that’s his mindset, to be ready.”
In Brown’s absence, Duke has handed extended minutes to freshman forward Patrick Ngongba II, who has played at least 11 minutes in every game since the junior was out.
His greatest effort came in a blowout win over Miami, when he had nine points and four rebounds in 18 minutes.
“He hasn’t practiced yet.” He’ll try to do some today, but we’re not going to risk anything unless he’s absolutely prepared,” Scheyer continued.
“We’ll have to see today and tomorrow, if there’s a chance, but he literally hasn’t practiced one time with us yet.”
North Carolina does not have an outstanding frontcourt, but players like Ven-Allen Lubin and Jae’Lyn Withers have improved significantly under Hubert Davis since their last meeting with Duke.
Lubin has scored in double figures in six of his last eight games since his breakout performance against the Blue Devils, while Withers has scored at least 11 points in four of his previous six.
On Saturday night, the Duke-North Carolina game will tip off at 6:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) inside the Dean Dome.
