Shortly after Duke freshman center Elton Brand had surgery on
Dec. 30 to repair a broken bone in his left foot, coach Mike
Krzyzewski declared there was "absolutely no chance" Brand would
return this season. Even as late as Feb. 6, the day after the
Blue Devils were humiliated 97-73 at North Carolina, Krzyzewski
said Brand wouldn't be back. But thanks to a high-tech rehab
program, Brand's injury healed with astonishing alacrity, and on
Sunday he returned to action, scoring 14 points and grabbing
seven rebounds in 16 minutes as Duke drilled then No. 12 UCLA
120-84.
Though Brand, who was Duke's leading scorer and rebounder before
he was injured, was a bit out of sync on Sunday, he will have as
many as five more games to shake off the rust before the NCAA
tournament begins. "His timing is off," Krzyzewski said after
the game, "but I was very pleased. It was good to see him muscle
up a few."
That muscle is exactly what the Blue Devils lacked in that loss
to the Tar Heels. If Brand's teammates—most notably junior
guard Trajan Langdon, who had 34 points against UCLA, and senior
forward Roshown McLeod, who scored 23—can get him back into the
flow without fouling up their own offensive rhythm, the Blue
Devils could have what it takes to go all the way.
Issue date: March 2, 1998
|
|
