Explore the latest developments concerning Duke minus Patrick.
Duke minus Patrick Ngongba (foot) for NCAA tournament opener
Jay Bilas joins "The Rich Eisen Show" to break down why he didn't select Michigan or Duke to reach the Final Four. (1:07)
GREENVILLE, S.C. — Duke will open the NCAA tournament Thursday without big man Patrick Ngongba II, who continues to recover from a foot injury, putting some added pressure on star freshman Cameron Boozer.
The 6-foot-11 sophomore was listed as out Wednesday night on the pregame availability report.
Speaking earlier Wednesday, Duke coach Jon Scheyer said Ngongba was "very unlikely" to see action in the Blue Devils' tournament opener against Siena and suggested Ngongba could miss the weekend.
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Roster attrition is a factor during the postseason in any sport. Optimistically, college basketball’s shorter regular season should mean the title picture is less altered by injuries than, say, the NBA.
That is not necessarily the case this season, though. The injury bug has recently bitten two No. 1 seeds (Duke and Michigan), and a third (Arizona) played through a flurry of nagging injuries late in the season. Multiple All-Americans on dark-horse title contenders are out for the season.
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Jon Scheyer updates status of Caleb Foster, Patrick Ngongba
Duke has won 11 straight games entering the NCAA Tournament, including running through the ACC tourney for its second straight title. That run was capped by a 74-70 victory over Virginia on Saturday despite being without two starters: Caleb Foster and Patrick Ngongba.
As the Blue Devils start the NCAA Tournament on Thursday against Siena as the top overall seed, Jon Scheyer gave an update on the status of the two players.
"Caleb is going to be a little while still," Scheyer said on Sunday. "Again, he's progressing well.”
Foster fractured his foot in the final regular-season game against North Carolina and has been out since. Still, his impact on the bench continues to help the Blue Devils.
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