Less than an hour after Mike Krzyzewski won No. 880, he wanted to start working on No. 881.
He will get the chance tonight at 7:45 when Duke opens its ACC schedule against Miami at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
The No. 1 Blue Devils (12-0), who moved Krzyzewski into sole possession on the coaching list at UNC Greensboro on Wednesday, have won 26 straight home games, second to Kansas' 67. They have won 22 consecutive games overall since losing at Maryland during the final week of the 2009-10 regular season.
Duke can tie two other 23-game streaks tonight and bear down on its 32 straight wins in 1998-99, a run that ended in the NCAA title game against Connecticut.
Despite Duke's dominance before and after point guard Kyrie Irving's knee injury, Krzyzewski makes few assumptions about Miami (11-3). The Hurricanes have feasted on a relatively modest schedule, losing at Memphis 72-68, at Rutgers 61-45 and against Central Florida 84-78 in the Orange Bowl Classic.
Coach Frank Haith's Hurricanes recently won three straight games in a Las Vegas tournament, however, and routed Pepperdine 94-59 Thursday night. Star guards Malcolm Grant (18.9 points a game) and Durand Scott (13.3), returning from a holiday trip to their New York homes, reached campus only four hours before the tip but still combined for 37 points.
Haith, 1-9 against Duke in his seven seasons, immediately looked forward to the Cameron visit.
"The last four times we've played Duke, we've led them at halftime," he said. "I think our guys are all excited about the opportunity to play the No. 1 team in the country on their home court."
Duke won their ACC semifinals matchup 77-74, and the most recent four games were decided by seven or fewer points.
Kyle Singler (17.4 points a game) and Nolan Smith (17.8) have dominated the scoring lately with Irving (17.4 points, 5.1 assists) sidelined by a toe injury. Both have scored 20 points or more the past three games, hitting 15 of 23 3-point attempts.
Duke leads Division I in 3-point percentage (44.2) and average point margin (27.5).
Besides the flashy guards, Miami has gotten notable production from center Reggie Johnson (a former Winston-Salem Prep star averaging 9.9 rebounds and 12.1 points on 57-percent shooting), forward Adrian Thomas (8.5 ppg) and guard Garrius Adams of Apex (6.9 ppg).
Donovan Kirk, a freshman from Pontiac, Mich., had started three games but decided to transfer after the Las Vegas trip.
lrawlings@wsjournal.com
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