Associated Press
Ryan Kelly has been playing well as of late. The senior has been shooting the ball well, earned ACC Player of the Week honors, and through the first half was outscoring Clemson 12-10.
However, Kelly didn’t return to the floor for Duke following halftime, as he injured his right foot. Kelly missed time last year with the same injury, one that in return hurt the Blue Devils (i.e. Lehigh).
According to Laura Keeley of the News & Observer, Kelly will have at CAT scan and X-ray on Wednesday. In Kelly’s absence, Quinn Cook took over, as Duke rolled 68-40.
This is a critical time for Kelly to miss time with one of the biggest games of the season for the Blue Devils on the horizon. The nation’s No. 1 team heads to Raleigh on Saturday for a matchup against No. 20 North Carolina State, the only other ranked opponent in the ACC. N.C. State was the ACC preseason favorites, with Duke right behind the Wolf Pack.
If Kelly can’t go Saturday, the depth of Duke will be on display with the team’s third leading scorer (13.5) and second leading rebounder (5.4) out of the lineup. Josh Hairston will be called on more, while Amile Jefferson and Alex Murphy should be expected to take some Kelly’s minutes. In nine minutes, Jefferson scored five points and grabbed three boards. Murphy had a nice take, converting on the layup and drawing the foul (missed free throw) in the first half for his only two points in five minutes of action.
#Duke‘s Mike K says Ryan Kelly hurt his foot, same one he sprained over Xmas (and same as last year). Will have CAT scan, X-ray tomorrow
— Laura Keeley (@laurakeeley) January 9, 2013
Terrence Payne is the interim editor for Devils in Durham. Follow him on Twitter@terrence_payne
Posted on January 8, 2013 by Terrence Payne
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