Duke Basketball Defensive Star Injures Shoulder in Blowout Win
The Blue Devils celebrated a commanding win over Virginia on Monday night, but left Charlottesville with concerns about one of their key players.
Maliq Brown, Duke’s backup center, injured his shoulder while contesting a pass in the final minutes of the first half. Although the play was routine for Brown, he grabbed his left shoulder in pain immediately after deflecting the ball, prompting a stoppage in play as he walked to the locker room for evaluation.
At the start of the second half, Duke announced that Brown would not return to the game. By then, he was seen on the bench wearing a sling. After the 80-62 victory, head coach Jon Scheyer confirmed Brown had suffered a dislocated shoulder, but provided no further details.
“He’s a big loss for us,” Scheyer said.
Brown had contributed two points, one rebound, and two assists in ten minutes of play. During his time on the floor, the Blue Devils outscored the Cavaliers by 13 points.
Freshman center Khaman Maluach posted two points and four rebounds in 19 minutes, while Patrick Ngongba II added eight points and one rebound in 11 minutes.
This injury comes as Brown was returning from a three-week absence due to a toe injury. He had been providing the Blue Devils with strong defensive play, enhancing their performance on that end of the court.
There is no timeline for Brown’s return, as he was scheduled to undergo additional imaging on his shoulder later that night.
No. 3 Duke (23-3, 15-1 ACC) will next take the court on Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. ET (FOX) for its final non-conference game of the season against Illinois (17-9, 9-7 Big Ten) at Madison Square Garden.
