1 week Ago By Gary Parrish
Duke coach Jon Scheyer prioritized length at all positions last offseason — and it paid off. No, the Blue Devils didn't win the national championship they were projected to win, having stumbled down the stretch in a loss to Houston in the national semifinals. But they still went 35-4 and finished as the sport's only team to rank in the top five in adjusted offensive efficiency and adjusted defensive efficiency, according to BartTorvik.
com. The unusual length was among the reasons. So, to the surprise of no one, Scheyer is approaching his latest roster rebuild similarly.
On Monday, he secured a commitment from Washington State transfer Cedric Coward, a 6-foot-6 guard who shot 55.7% from the field and 40.0% from 3-point range this past season before a torn labrum ended his fourth year of college basketball just six games in.
Coward has made himself eligible for the 2025 NBA Draft but is expected to withdraw and enroll at Duke, which will represent the California native's fourth school. Before playing at Washington State, Coward spent one year at Willamette University, a Division III institution, and two seasons at Eastern Washington. "I think Blue is my color," Coward posted Monday on Instagram.
"I'm excited to be joining the Duke family." Coward's addition to Duke's roster has the Blue Devils up to No. 8 in Version 10 of the 2025-26 CBS Sports preseason Top 25 And 1 college basketball rankings, where Houston remains No.
1. Why Houston? It's because the Cougars are projected to return three starters — specifically Emanuel Sharp, Milos Uzan and Joseph Tugler — from a team that finished 35-5 after falling to Florida in the championship game of the 2025 NCAA Tournament. That core will be joined by a recruiting class highlighted by Creighton transfer Pop Isaacs, five-star freshman Chris Cenac Jr.
, and four-star freshmen Isiah Harwell and Kingston Flemings, each of whom should play a role in helping Kelvin Sampson try to take the Cougars to the Final Four for the third time in a six-year span. Top 25 And 1 rankings.
