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Duke’s Matt Jones sidelined with sprained ankle

Matt Jones, Dan Garvin

Matt Jones, Dan Garvin

AP

Already limited in numbers, No. 20 Duke took another personnel hit in the form of junior guard Matt Jones.

Friday afternoon the program announced that Jones will miss the Blue Devils’ game at No. 18 Louisville as a result of a sprained left ankle suffered in their win at No. 5 North Carolina Wednesday night. Jones played just nine minutes as a result of the injury, with freshman Luke Kennard absorbing many of those minutes in his sixth man role.

Without Jones, Kennard in all likelihood will move into the starting lineup as Duke doesn’t have another option.

Jones joins power forward Amile Jefferson on the sideline for head coach Mike Krzyzewski. Jefferson’s absence has limited the team’s front court depth, as neither freshman Chase Jeter nor Rice transfer Sean Obi have been able to show that they’re capable of handling extended minutes.

Duke has more talent on the perimeter, but losing Jones means that Duke now lacks an option to get their key options a moment of rest during the course of a game. That shouldn’t change much offensively, but it will impact how Duke plays on the defensive end as avoiding foul trouble becomes even more important.