Duke vs. Wisconsin 2015: Game Time and Stats to Know for National Title Game

When the clock hit zero on Saturday night, more than a basketball game had ended.

Kentucky’s quest to run the table and win the NCAA tournament without a single blemish fell short as the Wisconsin Badgers pulled off an enormous upset in nail-biting fashion.

A squad once believed to be bound for the history books became another Goliath at the hands of Frank David.

Earlier in the day, Duke went all evil-stepsister in a blowout over the Michigan State Spartans, a seventh-seeded Cinderella that surprised a lot of analysts and fans around the sport by making it to the Final Four. In the end, though, the Blue Devils were too big, too strong and too darn good.

Sixty-eight teams entered this battle, and now just two remain. Monday night’s clash between Wisconsin’s hardened veterans and Duke’s green, super-talented youngsters could be one for the ages.

Championship Information

Date	Time	How to Watch
Monday, April 6	9:18 p.m. ET	CBS

Numbers Don’t Lie

Number: 20.1
Significance: Sam Dekker’s scoring average in the NCAA tournament

Streeter Lecka/Getty Images

Frank Kaminsky is the engine that drives this Wisconsin train. Throughout the year, he has been more than just the best Badger—the Tank has also garnered national recognition in being named the AP Player of the Year.

Against Kentucky, the narrative didn’t change much. Kaminsky shouldered much of the offensive load with 20 points and anchored a stout defensive effort with 11 rebounds and two blocks.

But during this tournament, Sam Dekker has become more of a co-star than a sidekick.

Jae C. Hong/Associated Press

The junior forward’s draft stock has skyrocketed during March—and April, of course—thanks to his sniper-like shooting performances. His 20.1 points is impressive, but reaching that number while hitting 61.9 percent of his shots is even more remarkable.

Dekker isn’t the only wingman who has opened some eyes during this tournament. Duke freshman Justise Winslow has played a similar role in creating room for Jahlil Okafor with an efficient scoring surge.

ESPN’s Chad Ford thinks that the Dekker-Winslow matchup will be exciting to fans and scouts alike:

"

Okafor-Kaminsky a good match-up but 1 that has NBA folks drooling is Winslow-Dekker. If Dekker awesome again, draft stock bumps up again

— Chad Ford (@chadfordinsider) April 5, 2015"

Dekker has proven to be insanely clutch, too. With under two minutes left and the score locked at 60-60 against UK, the spikey-haired shooter stepped beyond the arc and buried a triple.

It was the burst of wind that propelled the Badger boat past the SS Wildcat.

If Dekker’s tournament hot streak keeps flowing into the championship, he’ll hop up the draft board while Wisconsin lifts up the Naismith Trophy.

Number: 41.5
Significance: Frank Kaminsky’s regular-season three-point percentage

Nati Harnik/Associated Press

Kaminsky is a slender seven-footer, much more of a beanpole than a freight train. He’s as skilled a player as there is in college, but he rarely dominates based on strength alone.

Jahlil Okafor (270 pounds), who will be matched up with No. 44, has at least 28 pounds on Kaminsky, who is generously listed on Basketball-Reference.com at 248.

Duke’s behemoth big fella will break out every post move he has on the offensive end. Like Karl-Anthony Towns did against Wisconsin, Okafor will probably get his points...and so will Kaminsky.

This is a big-time matchup between two offensively gifted centers.

Mike Wise of TheUndefeated.Com (an admittedly ironic publication at the moment) gives this bout some historical context:

"

Kaminsky-Okafor is the best big-man title game matchup since Oden-Noah in 2006 and before that Ewing-Olajuwon in 1984. #UScentersstillmatter

— Mike Wise (@MikeWiseguy) April 5, 2015"

Before falling victim to Duke’s dunk party, MSU coach Tom Izzo said that his team would attack Okafor, who “hasn’t been stellar defensively.”

Andy Lyons/Getty Images

“That'll be an area we'll try to attack, more on ball screens, get him moving around, make him move around the court, make him run up and down the court," Izzo said, per Kyle Austin of MLive.com.

Obviously, things didn’t work out for the Spartans, but the point is this: the greatest tournament coach in history viewed Okafor’s defense as a weakness. That says a ton.

It’s not hard to stand around the rim and swat away guards like flies. But Kaminski’s Dirk Nowitzki-like ability to knock down outside shots will pull Okafor from the comfort of the paint, opening up room for Dekker and Nigel Hayes to slash down the lane.

The bruising style of Okafor and the range of Kaminsky will definitely provide for a fun-to-watch collision. But as Beth Long of the Chicago Sun-Times points out, the folks of Illinois will have reason to cheer no matter what:

"

Reminder that Frank Kaminsky is from Lisle (Benet) and Jahlil Okafor from Chicago (Whitney Young) -- Chicagoland having a heck of a tourney

— Beth Long (@Beth_Long) April 5, 2015"

If you’re not from Illinois, though, don’t worry. You can still enjoy the heavyweight fight.

Number: 34-2
Significance: Duke’s record when Tyus Jones has three-plus assists

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

Tyus Jones is just 18 years old, but he plays like a 30-year-old NBA veteran.

He doesn’t get flustered. He’s always in control. The moment is never too big.

Like Kaminsky for Wisconsin, Okafor is Duke’s star, headliner, best player and top NBA prospect. But like like Dekker, Tyus Jones is the straw that stirs that dark-blue drink.

In the three games that Jones had fewer than three assists, Duke took two defeats—a 74-64 loss to ACC-champion Notre Dame in the conference tournament and a midseason slip-up to the always-pesky NC State Wolfpack.

When Jones is at his best running the show, Duke plays its best basketball. The freshman’s tournament averages of 5.4 dimes and 11 points have been an enormous reason why the Blue Devils have made it this far.

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

C.J. Moore, a College Basketball Lead Writer at Bleacher Report, broke down this kid’s clutch gene:

"

Jones, who once made 18 of 18 free-throw attempts in a state championship game at Apple Valley, scored 22 points this season in an early-December win at potential finals opponent Wisconsin; and he averaged 16.2 points against opponents that ended up with a No. 7 seed or better, with most (65.7 percent) of those points coming after halftime. 

"Tyus never gets rattled. Never gets shook. Never gets too excited. Too high. Too low," his mother, Debbie, said. "He just knows when and how to step up and make it happen. If a bucket is needed or a big play is needed, he just finds a way. He's been doing that at every level." 

"

Jones also single-handedly defeated the North Carolina Tar Heels with a flurry of late-game heroics back in February.

Duke’s big man will command the most attention, both on the court and in the media. But in the game's biggest moment, it could be Jones who takes the reins.

All stats are accurate courtesy of Sports-Reference.com.