Duke’s longest stretch of success in a decade comes as Wake Forest is riding a rare streak of its own.
Only one of the runs of success will be extended when the teams meet on Saturday in Winston-Salem, N.C.
No. 2 Duke carries a 12-game winning streak into the Atlantic Coast Conference clash, the longest by the Blue Devils (16-2, 8-0 ACC) since 2015.
With six victories in a row, Wake Forest (15-4, 7-1) has its longest winning streak in league play since 1996-97.
“We know it’s going to be a big-time game, a big-time challenge,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “At the end of the day, are you winning games or are you not? And they’re winning games.”
Duke has been idle since last weekend’s 88-63 win at Boston College.
Wake Forest edged visiting North Carolina 67-66 on Tuesday despite some concerning stats. The Demon Deacons didn’t record a first-half assist and finished 2-for-15 on 3-pointers.
But getting the right result is what mattered.
“It says they are a resilient, tight-knit group that didn’t have their ‘A’ game,” coach Steve Forbes said. “It says something about them. When you don’t have your fastball, but you still have something there. … At this moment in time, we found a way to win.”
Wake Forest didn’t make a second-half substitution in the game despite the Tar Heels going deeper on the bench.
“I just liked the way we were playing,” Forbes said. “We asked them (if they needed breaks) and they felt good.”
Duke, meanwhile, is bound to send waves of players at the Demon Deacons.
Tyrese Proctor had 20 points in the Blue Devils’ win at Boston College for his most points since January 2024.
“He has been busting his butt every day working,” Scheyer said. “The points came with his competitiveness, his defense, everything else that he did.”
Duke’s freshman star Cooper Flagg has nine games with 20-plus points. Five of those have come in ACC play, including 28 points at Boston College.
This will be Wake Forest’s first time matching up against Flagg, but the programs are no strangers.
“We know them well. We play them twice a year,” Scheyer said. “They’re a little bit different this year to me because they’re elite defensively. They’ve always been elite in terms of offense.”
Flagg and Wake Forest guard Hunter Sallis are both averaging 19.2 points per game. Sallis had a stretch of seven consecutive games with 20 or more snapped this week, but the Blue Devils are aware of what he can do.
Sallis racked up 29 points in last year’s upset of Duke.
“Ton of respect for Sallis and what he has done,” Scheyer said. “What he did to us last year at Wake certainly was a big-time performance.”
Wake Forest is putting a 10-0 home record on the line. The Demon Deacons have already dispatched ACC in-state rivals North Carolina State and North Carolina at home.
Duke’s 5-0 road record is its best mark since winning its first seven road games in 2018-19.
–Field Level Media
