Elon Men’s Basketball Squares Off With #1 Duke on Thursday Night

ELON, N.C. – Exactly two years after its last meeting with top-ranked Duke, the Elon University men’s basketball team is set to face the No. 1 Blue Devils yet again this week, as the two teams square off on Thursday night, Dec. 20. Tip is set for 7 p.m. inside Cameron Indoor Stadium and the game will be televised on ESPNU.

Elon (6-4) at #1 Duke (9-0)
Site: Durham, N.C.
Arena (Capacity): Cameron Indoor Stadium (9,314)
Series: Duke leads, 17-7
Last Meeting: December 20, 2010 – Duke won, 98-72
TV: ESPNU – Tom Hart (play-by-play) and Jay Williams (color)
Radio: WPCM 920 AM – Taylor Durham (play-by-play) and Dick Stewart (color)

THE SERIES: Thursday night marks the 25th all-time meeting between Elon and Duke. Duke leads the series, 17-7, after claiming a 98-72 victory over the Phoenix in its last meeting on December 20, 2010. Thursday is only the second time Elon and Duke have met since Elon moved to the Division I ranks. Thursday is the fourth time the two schools have met since Trinity became Duke.

LAST MEETING: Kyle Singler led five Blue Devils in double figures as No. 1 Duke defeated the visiting Elon Phoenix, 98-72, on December 20, 2010, at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The defending national champion Blue Devils moved to 11-0 on the year with the win. Jack Isenbarger led the Phoenix with 21 points in the setback. Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski notched his 879th career victory in the win, which tied him with the legendary Dean Smith as the winningest coach in the ACC at the time.

ELON VS. THE ACC: Elon is 34-127 against current members of the Atlantic Coast Conference. The last time Elon defeated one of the current members of the ACC was in 2005 when the Phoenix went on the road to defeat the Oliver Purnell coached Clemson Tigers, 74-69, on December 30, 2005. Thursday is Elon’s only game this season against a member of the ACC.

LOOKING BACK: Elon rallied from eight points down against UMass on Saturday, Dec. 15, to send the game to overtime, but a 5-0 run by the Minutemen in the extra session proved to be the difference in a 78-73 setback for the Phoenix. Jack Isenbarger for a game-high with 22 points, while Lucas Troutman recorded his first double-double of the season with 14 points and 10 boards. Sebastian Koch ended the day with 15 points for the Phoenix. The game was the 2012 Hall of Fame Holiday Showcase in conjunction with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

ON THE HORIZON: Following Thursday’s game at Duke, Elon wraps up a three-game road stint on Dec. 22 when it heads to New York to face Columbia. The Phoenix plays its final home game of 2012 on Dec. 31 when it hosts Manchester.