NIT Season Tip-Off: Will Duke Continue Its Dominance In November?

On Wednesday night, November 25, the Duke Blue Devils (4-0) will meet the Arizona State Sun Devils (4-0) in the semifinals of the NIT Season Tip-Off at Madison Square Garden, NYC.

This game pits ASU's Eric Boateng versus his former college basketball team, the Duke Blue Devils. The game also features the Blue Devils and Sun Devils playing each other for the first time in both of the schools' histories.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski and ASU coach Herb Sendek will also be meeting each other once again, just as the two battled in the ACC when Sendek was coaching at NC State.

The last time the Blue Devils and Sun Devils each stepped onto the basketball court, they produced similar results. The Arizona State basketball team set a school record by hitting 18 three-pointers in a 104-65 rout of San Fransisco.

Rihards Kuksiks scored a career-high 27 points on a career-best seven three-pointers for the Sun Devils. The junior forward also recorded five rebounds and a career-high eight assists in a big offensive outburst for Sendek's team.

Duke was deadly from the perimeter, as well, in their 104-65 win over Radford College, knocking down a school record 13 three-pointers in the first half and matching a school record with 18 three-pointers in the game.

Duke was led by freshman Andre Dawkins, who was 6-8 from three-point territory and racked up 20 points. Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith each had big games as well, both shooting 4-7 behind the three-point arc.

Going into their semifinal matchup in New York City, it is hard to say which team has the advantage.

Duke has been firing on all cylinders since Nolan Smith returned to the team after being suspended for the first two games of the season by the NCAA for playing in an unsanctioned summer league.

Smith was just recently named the ACC Player of the Week, averaging 22.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 6.0 assists, leading Duke to wins over Charlotte and Radford. The 24 points he scored against Charlotte is his current career-high.

On the other side of the spectrum, Arizona State has been playing great basketball, as well. They were nearly upset by TCU in their third game of the year, pulling out a tight 52-49 win, but have since shown improvements on the offensive ends.

Rihards Kuksiks has been the star player for Sendek's team, averaging 13.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game. Former Duke player Eric Boateng has started off his season well, averaging 11.5 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game.

The semifinal match between the Sun Devils and the Blue Devils has the makings for a slugfest, both on the offensive and defensive end. Both teams showed that they can knock down the three-pointer, and with Boateng in the middle for the Sun Devils, the young Duke frontcourt players will be banging down low.

It should be a tough test for both teams, but the Duke Blue Devils should prevail in the end. The Sun Devils have the opportunity to knock Coach K's team off, however, but Duke should prove to be too much for ASU to handle.

That would leave either Duke/ASU versus the winner of the other semifinal match between Connecticut/LSU to determine the winner of the NIT Season Tip-Off.

Connecticut has struggled without Hasheem Thabeet this year, and LSU has been thriving since the season began.

UCONN, under the leadership of Jim Calhoun, has struggled since the season's opening tip. William & Mary proved to be a tough first test for the Huskies, as UCONN escaped with a 75-66 win.

The following game didn't go so well, either, as Colgate battled UCONN for as long as they possibly could, eventually losing the game 77-63. The win left UCONN 2-0 and with many questions that needed to be answered.

The final tune-up before their upcoming match against LSU was a 76-67 win over Hofstra, a less-than-thrilling performance by the Huskies. If UCONN wants to get back into the national championship talks, they first need to get a win against a quality team such as LSU.

LSU, on the other hand, has started the season the way they left off last. With a 3-0 record, and a quality win versus an always dangerous Western Kentucky team, Trent Johnson has his Tigers prepared to face the Huskies on the grandest of stages, Madison Square Garden.

Led by junior guard Bo Spencer, who has averaged 20.3 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists in his first three games this season, and sophomore forward Storm Warren, who has averaged 16.3 points, 11.7 rebounds, and 1.7 assists through three games, LSU is poised to battle for a place in the NIT Season Tip-Off Championship Game.

ASU vs. UCONN, Duke vs. LSU, ASU vs. LSU, or Duke vs. UCONN

How will the championship game play out? Who will earn their place into the championship final and battle for a preseason title? If you want my take, I'd say Duke Vs. LSU looks like an exciting game, and a meeting that could be imminent.

Duke would match up well with the Tigers, and with the Blue Devils' experienced guards and talented frontcourt players, it would seem that Duke would be the favorites if that scenario played out.

You also have the possibility of Duke being upset by ASU and playing either LSU or UCONN. I don't see that happening, but there is always the chance that an underdog will rise to the occasion on a big stage like that of MSG.

Duke versus LSU is my prediction for the championship game, with the Blue Devils taking the title. Nolan Smith has played too well and Kyle Singler is too talented for the Blue Devils to be denied the championship.

Trent Johnson will have his team prepared, that's a given; it's just tough to go out and defeat a Top-10 team at a neutral site. Duke gets the best of the Tigers, but they don't go down without clawing back into the match and giving the Blue Devils a fight.