Jon Scheyer sets 80-year Duke basketball record that Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski couldn't
DURHAM, N.C. – The success of Jon Scheyer’s first season with Duke basketball has yet to be determined.
Despite winning their fourth consecutive game in a blowout, 81-65 over Virginia Tech, the Blue Devils are only as good as their performance in March. But on Saturday night against the Hokies, the 35-year-old coach accomplished something his predecessors, including Hall of Famer Mike Krzyzewski, never could.
Scheyer became Duke’s winningest first-year coach as the Blue Devils improved to 21-8 overall and 12-6 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. He passes Harold Bradley (1950-51) and Gerry Gerard (1942-42), who each won 20 games in their first seasons at Duke.
Bradley went 20-13 and Gerard was 20-6. Coach K didn’t win 20 games until his fourth season at Duke, then went 11 consecutive seasons with at least 20 wins.
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The win over Virginia Tech also moved Scheyer closer to another Year One milestone. With a victory over NC State on Tuesday, Scheyer would become just the third Division I men’s basketball coach to end his first season with an undefeated record at home, joining Syracuse’s Jim Boeheim and Kentucky’s John Calipari.
The Blue Devils are 15-0 at Cameron Indoor Stadium this season but face a Wolfpack squad that defeated them 84-60 at PNC Arena in January.