Duke's March Madness Path: Toughest Draw, Injury Woes

0:00On March 19th, Duke Blue Devils drew one of the toughest regions in this year's March Manage Tournament. ESPN analyst, Jay Bylus, a former Duke player and coach, predicts Michigan State will knock them out before the final four. He sees the Spartans joining Florida, Arizona, and Iowa State in the big show, calling Duke's path the hardest draw. Bylus points to injuries plaguing the team right now, along with Michigan State's better and experience in a single elimination setup. Duke's dealing with key absences that thinned their bench and limit defensive punch, even after dominating the ACC regular season tournament. Coach John Shire remains laser focused on finally grabbing that national title they missed last year. After putting together a special group that fell just short, he's using every setback as fuel to push harder through the brackets early rounds. injuries are easing a bit, but Patrick and Gongba the second sits out the opener against Ciena on March 19th, while Caleb Foster could miss until. Much later, Shire's taking it day by day, noting real progress ahead of tip off.

1:05Duke's still expected to handle Ciena easily, at the Bond Sekker's wellness arena, then face the TCU Ohio State winner next. With standouts like Cameron Booser leading the charge, they could silence the skeptics and climb that steep bracket hill.