Ryan Kelly?s status for Saturday?s showdown at NC State in doubt due to foot injury

[admin]

Even though Duke has been the best team in college basketball over the first two months of the season, the Blue Devils are a bit more fragile than other elite teams.

Since Mike Krzyzewski only utilizes a seven-man rotation and lacks both a backup point guard and reliable reserve big men, Duke is not well-equipped to overcome an injury to a member of its starting five.

The Blue Devils lost starting forward Ryan Kelly during Tuesday's 68-40 rout of* Clemson to a right foot injury, the same foot he sprained last March when he missed the ACC tournament and his team's opening-round NCAA tournament loss to Lehigh. Kelly scored 12 first-half points, but he was late emerging from the locker room after halftime and did not shed his warmups the entire second half.

Krzyzewski told reporters in Durham after the game that Kelly won't undergo X-Rays or a CAT scan until Wednesday, so the time table for his return won't be known until then. The injury is especially ill-timed since Duke's next game is one of its most difficult in ACC play, a visit to No. 20 NC State on Saturday afternoon.

Kelly is Duke's third-leading scorer and second-leading rebounder, averaging 13.5 points and 5.4 rebounds while shooting 50 percent from behind the arc. His outside shooting and passing ability helps Duke spread the floor and creates opportunities for his teammates.

If Kelly can't play in future games, it will probably mean more playing time for unproven reserves who aren't as skilled as Kelly and have not looked ready to shoulder a heavier scoring load so far. Steady forward Josh Hairston would likely move into Kelly's spot in the starting lineup with either freshman Amile Jefferson or redshirt freshman Alex Murphy likely to absorb the remaining minutes.

Duke didn't miss Kelly on Tuesday thanks to a 15-point halftime lead and the brilliance of point guard Quinn Cook. On the heels of an 0-for-11 performance from the field against Wake Forest this past weekend, Cook lit up the Tigers for 27 points on 12 of 16 shooting to with five rebounds and five assists.