No. 11 Duke (7-2) at No. 6 Syracuse (5-1)
When: Saturday, 1:30 p.m. (ESPNU)
Last time: March 26, 2016, Duke won 16-15 (OT); May 1, 2016, Syracuse won 14-8
Duke’s first conference game of the season (and Syracuse’s return to conference play) is a rematch of the 2016 and 2015 ACC championships, both won by Syracuse. The Orange won the most recent final 14-8, outscoring the Blue Devils 6-1 in the fourth quarter (You might remember it: following a rain delay, the game was moved to an alternate field and Paul Carcaterra handled broadcasting duties via periscope — weather aside, it was pretty cool). Sergio Salcido (7, 14) led the way with two goals and three assists, and adding that to his four goal, two assist performance from the team’s regular season clash at Duke, put together a solid year against the Blue Devils.
Conversely, Duke’s Jack Brucker (21, 11), was held to one point in each game against the Orange last season (It hasn’t been a one-sided battle; he did score five goals against them in the 2015 ACC championship.), whereas Justin Guterding (25, 21) had three goals in the first meeting of the season.
Syracuse is earning a reputation for pulling off low-scoring nailbiters (a 9-8 win at St. John’s two weeks ago, then an 8-7 overtime win at Hopkins last weekend), but Duke’s not necessarily looking for that kind of battle. The Blue Devils are averaging 13 goals per game over the past month (that includes a game against Richmond, and nobody scores against Richmond), and their 35% shooting is fifth in the nation. Duke’s man-up unit has been successful as well, and currently ranks third with a 56% rate of success. Meanwhile, Syracuse is killing 65% of its penalties, which is not especially great (it’s the 33rd best, to be exact), and the Orange gave up two extra-man goals on three opportunities last weekend against Hopkins.
