Duke sophomore center Patrick Ngongba II was sidelined for the ACC Tournament with a foot injury, and though he was seen in a walking boot in Charlotte, the expectation was that he would return to the starting lineup for the NCAA Tournament.
Instead, on Wednesday, Jon Scheyer announced that it’s “very unlikely” that Ngongba will play when the top-seeded Blue Devils open tournament play on Thursday against No. 16 seed Siena at 2:50 p.m. ET in Greenville, South Carolina.
While it’s a concerning update that Ngongba isn’t ready to go just yet, it’s undoubtedly the right call for Scheyer to treat his starting center with a little extra caution. Especially after already losing starting point guard Caleb Foster for at least the first two weekends of March Madness to a foot injury he suffered in the regular season finale win over North Carolina.
Duke can be careful with Patrick Ngongba for at least one more game
Duke was able to win the ACC Tournament without two of its starters in the lineup. The transition from Foster to Cayden Boozer wasn’t seamless, but Scheyer found solutions to keep the offense functioning without the additional spacing that Foster’s 40-percent three-point shot creates. Maliq Brown’s entrance into Ngongba’s spot at the five didn’t require nearly as much tinkering from the coaching staff…