Duke announces Dereck Lively II, Dariq Whitehead are out against Wake Forest due to illness

Duke men’s basketball will be without two of the top rated freshmen in the country against Wake Forest on Tuesday evening, the school announced. Both Dereck Lively II and Dariq Whitehead will miss the game with a “non-Covid related illness.”

Lively has played slightly more than Whitehead this year, averaging about a minute and a half more per game on the floor while appearing in three more games than Whitehead. Lively has also started in nine games at the center position.

Whitehead, however, has been the slightly more productive player coming off the bench to play on the wing as a small forward. Whitehead is averaging 6.7 points and 2.3 rebounds a game and has started one of the nine games he’s appeared in.

Lively was the No. 1 prospect in the 2022 class, according to the On3 Consensus Player Rankings. Whitehead was the No. 2 prospect in the class.

And stat contribution aside, their absence means Duke needs to fill nearly a games worth of minutes in the front court.

Duke, with Lively and Whitehead out, lost 81-70 to Wake Forest

Down two main rotation players and on the road against a hot Demon Deacons team, the Blue Devils couldn’t hold up and lost by double digits. Duke only led the game for a few seconds early in the first half with Wake Forest keeping the visitors at arms length most of the game.

Powering the Wake Forest offense was a balanced scoring array. All five starters finished in the double figures. Guards Cameron Hildreth and Damari Monsanto scored 16 and 13, respectively. A 17-point outing from Duke sophomore guard Jaylen Blakes was enough to keep a tilted game from becoming a blowout.

As a team, Wake Forest shot better percentages from the field and three-point range, out rebounded the Blue Devils and attempted (and made) 12 more free throws than Duke.