Wisconsin’s Duje Dukan to Miss First Two Games
Posted by Eric Clark on November 6th, 2014Wisconsin’s Duje Dukan will miss the first two games of the upcoming season after a review of an NCAA eligibility issue from 2012-13 was resolved on Wednesday. According to a press release from Wisconsin Athletic Communications, Dukan “regained a fourth year of competition” for the 2014-15 season. The issue derives from the fact that he played in a scrimmage and exhibition game two years ago before deciding to sit out the entire season with mononucleosis. He wasn’t eligible for an NCAA hardship waiver at the time because he was not debilitated for the entire season, thus using up a full year of eligibility. He successfully appealed for a reinstatement of his fourth year during this offseason, but the NCAA penalized him two games for every contest he participated in 2012-13. He will miss both of the Badgers’ exhibition games and the first two games of the regular season against Northern Kentucky and Chattanooga.
Duje Dukan will miss Wisconsin’s contests versus Northern Kentucky and Chattanooga.
Dukan averaged 8.2 minutes per game for the Badgers last season, coming off the bench in all 38 contests. He will see more competition for playing time in the frontcourt from sophomore Vitto Brown, as both will act as substitutes for mainstays Frank Kaminsky and Sam Dekker. Nigel Hayes may also crack the starting lineup at some point and could push Dekker to small forward. In his fifth year with the program, Dukan shares the title for longest-tenured Badger with fellow redshirt senior Josh Gasser. While Dukan’s leadership is certainly important for Wisconsin’s current campaign, his three-point shooting may be his most crucial asset. The Badgers attempted 790 threes last season, second in the Big Ten only to Michigan’s 794. Gone is gunner Ben Brust, who attempted 244 treys on his own last season. Exactly half of Dukan’s shots last year were three-pointers, and if he can establish himself as a consistently viable threat from downtown, he could garner more minutes on the court.
The Deerfield, Illinois, native also needs to increase his rebounding totals in order to fend off competition from Brown. Standing at nearly 6’10″, Dukan’s 1.5 RPG performance from last season isn’t enough to warrant minutes in a starting rotation with Kaminsky and Dekker. According to the roster on Wisconsin’s official basketball page, Dukan also currently weighs 218 pounds – almost 20 pounds less than Brown. His absence for those first two regular season contests will mean little for a squad that is 33-6 in regular season non-conference play in the last three years, but if anything, Dukan’s absence will give head coach Bo Ryan a chance to get a closer look at what Brown can do with more minutes.
