Duke forced to adjust with the loss of Jones

DURHAM, N.C. — No. 1 Duke has to figure out how to replace arguably its most irreplaceable player — point guard Tre Jones.

The strength of this Blue Devils team has been how neatly its four star freshmen fit into clearly defined roles. Zion Williamson makes headlines with his once-in-a-generation athleticism while RJ Barrett delivers consistent scoring and Cameron Reddish focuses on long-range shooting.

Jones is the least talked about of the foursome, but the things he provides — running the offense with unflappable efficiency, and pressuring the opposing team’s point guard on defense — are tough to quantify and even tougher to replace.

Jones is out indefinitely after injuring his right shoulder early in the Blue Devils’ 95-91 loss to Syracuse on Monday night that will surely drop them from the top spot in the polls.

And Coach Mike Krzyzewski has until Saturday — when No. 4 Virginia visits the Blue Devils (14-2, 3-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) — to come up with a backup plan.

“There are bumps in the road along the way for a lot of people,” Krzyzewski said, calling it “a very difficult night for our basketball program and our team. We’ll figure out ways of handling it.”

Team spokesman Mike DeGeorge said Jones separated his right AC joint during a collision with the Orange’s Frank Howard while chasing a loose ball with 14:23 left in the first half. Jones laid on the court in obvious pain, with trainers holding towels to shield him from onlookers while the team’s medical staff evaluated him. He walked to the locker room holding his right wrist while apparently trying to immobilize the shoulder.

“You could see excruciating pain on his face,” Krzyzewski said. “We just tried to calm him. Not that he was yelling. He felt that something could be broken. And that’s how much pain he was in.”

Without Jones and without Reddish, who was held out with flu-like symptoms, Duke looked nothing like the team that had won 14 of 15 and nine in a row since a loss to Gonzaga in Maui.

Little-used sophomore Jordan Goldwire — who averages less than 9 minutes — was first off the bench to replace Jones and wound up playing 8 minutes. Sophomore guard Alex O’Connell logged 34½ minutes — more than 20 more than his average. Barrett, who averages an ACCbest 23.4 points, assumed some of Jones’ duties at the point while also remaining one of the team’s two primary scoring options along with Williamson.

Jones