Ok, maybe this year's Duke basketball team actually is human.

The Blue Devils looked like a force to be reckoned with through their first two preseason games, defeating Belmont 102-62 and taking down No. 8 Tennessee 103-64. Duke settled down a bit on Sunday against No. 17 Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse.

Duke headed home with a 90-84 victory, but Sunday's exhibition finale was certainly the toughest test it faced throughout the entire preseason, and it's not even close. The Blue Devils adjusted well offensively in the second half and continued to defend at a high level, but Kansas gave Duke some issues throughout the contest.

Nonetheless, Jon Scheyer and Co. squeezed out a victory. Here are three big winners from the win at Allen Fieldhouse.

Patrick Ngongba

Junior center Patrick Ngongba is an interesting case this season. I'm not sure how much his box score numbers will jump in 2026-27, but I'd be shocked if he wasn't one of the top two or three most impactful players on this team. The 6'11" big man impacts winning in different ways and led the charge for the Blue Devils against Kansas.

Ngongba went for a game-high 28 points with 10 rebounds, four assists, and two blocks on 9-of-12 shooting from the field, 1-of-2 shooting from three-point range, and 9-of-10 shooting from the free-throw line. The Paul VI Catholic product transformed his body this offseason, and it's showing in the way he uses his body and footwork to create separation around the rim.

The Jayhawks challenged Duke with physicality, so many of Ngongba's points didn't come easily. However, Duke attacked any mismatch he could find off switches, and he created space through physicality well. Additionally, his passing was extremely impressive, an area he made a big jump in last season. Ngongba does a fantastic job anticipating the defense collapsing on him to find cutters or shooters along the perimeter.

John Blackwell

Wisconsin transfer John Blackwell is a bucket getter, and he's proven that throughout the preseason. The former Badger went for 23 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field, 4-of-7 shooting from the perimeter, and 7-of-8 shooting from the charity stripe against Kansas. However, what stood out most about Blackwell's scoring throughout the preseason is that he's not forcing shots, but is taking what the defense gives him.

Blackwell averaged 13.6 shot attempts a game last season, and I still think he's going to be the Blue Devils' top scorer this year. But he's not forcing his way into that role. The 6'5" guard moves well without the basketball, cuts with efficiency, and impacts the game in ways other than scoring. We knew going into the year he was a much more versatile player than just a scorer, but he's not forcing himself into a lead scoring role.

Blackwell has still been a highly effective scorer for the Blue Devils so far, but he's not making that his priority. That's an impressive part of Blackwell's game and veteran savvy that shouldn't go unnoticed.

Free-Throw Line

Free-throw shooting was an issue for the Blue Devils a season ago, and it cost them in several games. According to KenPom, Duke ranked 175th nationally in free-throw shooting percentage (72.9) in 2025-26. Scheyer's club was efficient from the stripe through its first two preseason outings, but it played a major role in Duke beating Kansas.

The Blue Devils entered the halftime locker room in a 45-43 deficit, but forced the issue at the rim in the second half. As a result, they got to the line. Duke shot 19 free throws in the second half compared to the Jayhawks' 10, and knocked down 16 of them (84.2%). For the game, the Blue Devils went 27-of-33 (81.8%) from the charity stripe compared to Kansas' 18-of-27 (66.7%) clip. That's a +6 advantage in attempts and a +9 advantage in makes.

Duke has the personnel this year to be a really good three-point shooting team, but it seems like the Blue Devils will hunt for high-percentage looks near the rim and trips to the free-throw line. A season ago, knocking them down was the issue. Duke looks vastly improved in that facet of the game ahead of the regular season.

Scheyer and Co. now prepare to open the regular season at Cameron Indoor Stadium against Army on Nov 2.