The battle-tested Duke basketball team faces a serious challenge from the Patriots…

 

Take into consideration that the Blue Devils, rated fifth, have already triumphed over Auburn, ranked second, at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Combine that with the fact that the remaining 2024–25 Duke basketball home schedule does not include any presently rated opponents because of the ACC’s generally poor play this season. The 2024–25 Duke basketball team does appear to have a realistic chance of finishing 17–0 in Durham, surpassing the 16-0 record set by Jon Scheyer’s inaugural 2022–23 team.

ALSO READ: Jon Scheyer’s Performance During Duke’s Final George Mason Performance However, a number of the 11 visitors that are still available are dangerous. Among them are the George Mason Patriots (7-3, 0-0 Atlantic 10), who will visit Coach K Court on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET (ACC Network) with a five-game winning streak and a No. 85 NET ranking.

George Mason defeated James Madison, Duke’s 2024 NCAA Tournament Round of 32 opponent, on Nov. 29 and knocked off Tulane, starter-of-late Blue Devil graduate guard Sion James’ former school, on Dec. 7.

On top of the quality wins, it’s worth noting that the Patriots are holding opponents to 35.4 shooting from the field, the third-best mark in the country, and just 27.3 percent from three.

And the upstart program is hungry to build on an the 2023-24 team’s 20-12 overall record in the first season under the command of Tony Skinn, who was a double-digit scorer in helping to power the 2005-06 Patriots to the school’s only Final Four and as an unforgettable No. 11 seed Cinderella.

That memorable journey reached full steam when the Patriots ended No. 3 seed UNC’s season in the Round of 32. In other words, Skinn has experience when it comes to stunning a Tobacco Road blueblood.

Now, he hopes to do so on Tobacco Road as an up-and-comer head coach.

With a nine-deep rotation, seven players averaging seven points or more, relatively widespread distribution in grabbing almost 40 rebounds per game, six defenders with at least seven steals for the season, and respectable collection of threats beyond the arc, it’s safe to say that Skinn’s George Mason Patriots have the makeup to potentially give Scheyer’s Duke basketball powerhouse a scare in Cameron.