Duke Basketball: 6 Records the Blue Devils Won't Break in 2012

Mike Krzyzewski and his Blue Devils are off to a great start, winning 12 of their first 13 games.

With massive departures from last year's team, Duke is figuring out how to best play together.

By the end of this week, Coach K's crew will have crossed over from their pre-conference schedule to their ACC slate of games.

Even though we are less than half the way through the 2011-12 season, here are six school (season) records that this team is not likely to break this year.

Some good. Some not so good.

Turnovers Committed (661)

This year's Duke team turns the ball over more than they should.

So far in 13 games, the Blue Devils have given it back to their opponents 176 times—almost 14 times per game.

At this rate, they won't be in the same zip code as the 1989-90 team that committed 661 turnovers—over 17 per game.

It's strange that a Bobby Hurley-led team is the one that holds this record.

We'll excuse them. They were an NCAA finalist that year.

Most Three-Pointers (407)

This year's Blue Devils like shooting from beyond the arc, and they are pretty good at it too.

So far, with about one-third of the 2011-12 season played, Duke has hit 109 three-pointers.

The 2000-01 National Championship team was a three-ball shootin' team.

They didn't just like shooting from downtown...they loved it.

Shane Battier and the boys hit 407 threes on their way to cutting down the nets in Minneapolis.

Most Free Throws Made (888)

This year's Blue Devils go to the line and hit a lot of free throws.

Right now, they are ranked No. 6 in the country with 252 made FTs.

Unless Mason Plumlee and the rest of Coach K's crew start going crazy at the line, they will not touch the 1989-90 team that hit an NCAA-record 888 shots from the charity stripe.

Best Free Throw Percentage (79.1)

Even though this year's Duke team goes to the line a lot and converts many of their attempts, overall, they are a little shaky from the line in terms of FT percentage.

They are currently shooting 67.9 percent as a team, which puts them in a tie for 187th in the nation with Georgia State and Vermont.

No one from the 1977-78 basketball team was selected in the 1978 NBA Draft, and yet, that team made their opponents pay for it when they put them on the line.

Jim Spanarkel and the Blue Devils hit 79.1 percent of their FT attempts on their way to a respectable 27-7 season.

Most ACC Victories (16)

Only one Duke team (1998-99) has run the ACC table since the conference expanded to a 16 game-schedule.

Elton Brand led the Blue Devils to a perfect season (16-0) in league play.

I'm not saying that couldn't happen this year, but...

Most Losses (18)

Sometimes you only find out how important someone is when they are gone...even if they are gone temporarily.

In the 1994-95 season, Coach K was only on the sidelines for 12 games before leaving the team for back surgery. The Blue Devils went 9-3 in those dozen games.

Pete Gaudet took over as interim head coach and posted a 4–15 record (2–13 in ACC play).

Duke finished the season 13–18 (ninth place in the ACC at 2–14).

I can't even imagine the circumstances by which the Blue Devils would break this record of futility.

We would be talking about one of the most collosal collapses in college basketball history.