By: Ben McCormick
October 22, 2022
Duke's annual midnight madness event, Countdown to Craziness took place Friday night. The player introductions had a new twist this year with an elevated stage for the players. Sophomore Stanley Borden made the most of the stage as he broke out a trench coat and sunglasses and proceeded to play "Carless Whisper" on the saxophone. It was a moment that certainly earns him consideration for one of the most memorable player intros in the events history.
Top ranked freshmen Dereck Lively II and Dariq Whitehead did not play in the annual Blue/White scrimmage due to injuries.
The blue team consisted of sophomore Jaylen Blakes; freshmen Kyle Filiposki and Christian Reeves; junior Jeremy Roach; and graduate transfers Jacob Grandison and Max Johns. The white team consisted of freshmen Mark Mitchell, Tyrese Proctor, and Jaden Schutt; sophomore Stanley Borden; junior Spencer Hubbard; and graduate transfers Ryan Young and Kale Catchings.
From the jump, blue team looked great. The game began with a block from freshman center Christian Reeves. Both teams struggled to shoot it from deep to begin the 16 minute scrimmage. The first basket of the game, however, belonged to Mark Mitchell with a fast-break dunk.
Reeves was the pleasant surprise of the night for Duke fans. The former 3-star center at Oak Hill, Reeves is supposed to sit out this season as a redshirt. Per Shawn Krest, Reeves said the plan is still to redshirt. However, with the kind of performance Reeves put up, it is seems certainly possible that Reeves may suit up. Reeves ended the game with 11 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 blocks.
Team captain Jeremy Roach led the game in scoring with 12 points, including three three pointers. Jaylen Blakes was the third member of blue team to score in double figures as he scored 10 points to go along with solid on ball defense. Kyle Filipowski scored 5 points and Jacob Grandison scored 3 points to round off blue team's 41 total points.
White team was led by freshman guard Tyrese Proctor ,the lone member of the team to break double digits, who scored 10 points. Kale Catchings was second in scoring for white team with 7 points. Ryan Young scored 4 points, Mark Mitchell 3 points, and Jaden Schutt 2 points to round out white team's 26 total points.
It was a dominant 41-26 win for blue team who thrived off the play of the team's two returning scholarship players and the great play of Christian Reeves.
The Blue Devils will be in action on Nov. 2 in an exhibition with Fayetteville State.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Christian Reeves
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