Duke enters Tuesday's exhibition against Tennessee at No. 2 in the new AP preseason poll. The Volunteers are No. 8. Those rankings make this a more demanding public comparison than Duke's first scrimmage, a 102-62 win over Belmont. They do not turn an October exhibition into a result that counts toward either team's season record.
The useful Duke question is whether its guards can keep several scoring options available against a ranked opponent. In the Belmont scrimmage, John Blackwell scored 15, Cayden Boozer 12 and Deron Rippey Jr. 11. Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje and Dame Sarr led Duke with 19 each. Five players reached double figures, but the score and individual totals alone do not show how Duke will create those chances against Tennessee.
Tennessee has a perimeter problem to address
Tennessee's first exhibition supplied a specific test for the other side. The Vols led Xavier by eight at halftime and lost 86-70. Xavier made eight of 14 three-pointers after the break while Tennessee made one of 12, according to the Tennessee recap. That does not prove Tennessee will give Duke the same looks. It does put the Vols' perimeter possessions under a sharper light when another talented backcourt arrives.
Terrence Hill Jr. scored 22 against Xavier, and Juke Harris added 15. Tennessee had players who could score even as the game turned. Its challenge Tuesday is to make its own guard production last while preventing Duke from spreading points across several players. Duke, in turn, needs more than another large final score to learn which guards can sustain its offense when the opponent pushes back.
The matchup is set for 7 p.m. Eastern on October 20 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The first exhibition results point to questions, not predictions. Watch which Duke guards initiate good shots when the first action stalls, and whether Tennessee's perimeter possessions hold up through both halves. Those observations would say more about the teams than comparing a 40-point Duke win with a 16-point Tennessee loss.
