No. 1 Duke will likely be without sophomore center Patrick Ngongba II for Thursday’s NCAA tournament first-round matchup against No. 16 seed Siena.
“I think it’s very unlikely that he plays tomorrow,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer told reporters on Wednesday. “We’re going to keep taking it day by day. And again, he’s itching to play, but we’re not quite there for tomorrow.”
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Ngongba has been out since March 2 with lingering foot soreness and was seen on a knee rover with a boot on his right foot.
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Ngongba averaged 10.7 points, 6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.1 blocks in his first season as Duke’s starting center. Last year, the 20-year-old averaged 3.9 points and 2.7 rebounds before his minutes increased toward the end of the season, when Maliq Brown was dealing with a dislocated shoulder.
The roles will be reversed this year. If Ngongba is unable to play, Brown will likely see most of the minutes at center. He has started in Ngongba’s absence and has averaged 4.8 points, 4.9 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.9 steals. Brown was also named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and Sixth Man of the Year.
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Brown is also familiar with Siena head coach Gerry McNamara, who was an assistant coach at Syracuse during Brown’s first two seasons. McNamara led Siena to a 23-11 record, the MAAC tournament championship and the team’s first NCAA appearance since 2010. McNamara has also been tied to the Syracuse head coaching vacancy.
Duke is also expected to be without senior starting point guard Caleb Foster. Foster was ruled out indefinitely after fracturing his foot in the regular-season finale against North Carolina. Duke freshman guard Cayden Boozer, the son of former NBA veteran Carlos Boozer and the twin brother of unanimous first-team All-American Cameron Boozer, has started in Foster’s place.
Despite the injuries, Duke was able to come away as the ACC tournament champions and remains one of the favorites to win the NCAA tournament.
