Courtesy: Duke Photography

DURHAM, N.C. - David McClure of the men's basketball team was named the Ronald McDonald House Charities Duke Student-Athlete of the Week by the Duke Radio Network.  McClure scored 10 points at N.C. State Saturday and then followed it up with eight points, including the game-winning lay-up, against Clemson Thursday.

McClure hit 5-of-6 shots off the bench against N.C. State and added four rebounds and four steals in a 79-56 win in Raleigh Saturday and then had eight points and six rebounds in a career-high 34 points against Clemson.  With the game tied at 66, McClure took a bullet pass from Jon Scheyer and hit a floater in front of the basket as time expired to give the Blue Devils a victory.

Past Winners

McClure also sat down with Blue Devil Weekly last week for a question and answer session, which is below:

DURHAM, N.C. - Dave McClure is in his third season at Duke but just his second on the court. He missed much of his freshman year and all of last year with a knee injury and subsequent surgery. Now recovered, he is playing a critical role for the 2007 Blue Devils, usually in the role of the second big man. He has provided a spark on both the offensive and defensive ends in helping Duke to a 16-3 start. Usually he comes off the bench, but he has started twice. McClure averages five points and five rebounds per game, while shooting 58 percent from the floor and ranking No. 2 on the team in steals. This interview can also be seen on “Inside Basketball with Duke’s Coach K” on Jan. 27 on Fox Sports Net South at 9:30 a.m.

You seem to do a little bit of everything on the court. Coach Mike Krzyzewski calls you a glue guy. Have you always been like that? Where does that come from?
“As I was growing up, a wise woman in my life, my mother, never let me play in my age group when I started going to basketball camps. She always made me play up so I didn’t get stuck down in the center role, so I could build my guard skills a little bit. Once I got to high school, I was one of the tallest guys on my team, so I got stuck in the post. Come summer, with AAU teams and playing with bigger guys, I was thrown back into the wing role or guard role. I never really have had a consistent position, so it forced me to learn a little bit here and there, and to do all I could to be on the court.”

You’re a good example of one of those players Coach K is referring to when he says he doesn’t coach positions, but basketball players.
“We have a team full of them this year — Lance, Gerald and myself — who can play multiple positions. That gives our team a lot more character. A team might not know exactly what we’re going to do, what lineup we’re going to throw at them. It gives us a lot of versatility, and I’m glad I can be a part of that.”

Sitting out last season to rehab your knee, how difficult was it to be on the bench for a whole year?
“Extremely hard. When I made the decision to have the surgery, I didn’t know how hard it was going to be. I’d never had to sit out from basketball for any long periods since I started playing back in grade school. When it finally came about, I was on crutches for about three months. After two months off crutches, I upgraded to the bike. Eight months later, I was allowed to start jogging.

“It was such a slow process. I think I just didn’t realize that it was going to be so tolling. It was almost as grueling getting back into shape and rehabbing my knee as it was playing — just mentally having in the back of my mind, what if all this work doesn’t pay off? What if I can’t get back. It was extremely difficult.”

So then how does it feel now to be healthy and contributing again?
“Great. Due to our team morale and my injuries freshman year, I couldn’t get into a rhythm. It was difficult to watch last year knowing I could help here or there. Finally now I’m able to be able to be out there contributing, whether it’s rebounding one game or defense another game, a couple of putbacks here and there. Every little piece I can add to the puzzle is great.”

As that “glue guy” we were talking about before, what’s your mindset when you step out onto the floor?
“To give a spark, some energy to the team. With our team this year, I think sometimes people are standing around with their eyes wide open, kind of going through the motions. Everybody, when they can, has to give a spark. Oftentimes when I’m out there I have that opportunity, whether it’s in a passing lane, to grab a big rebound, or to run with somebody. Regardless of what it is, just talking on defense, letting Greg (Paulus) know who he has, every little bit counts. Energy is the most important thing.”

With some of the rebounds you’ve gotten, 12 against Temple, 11 against Miami, you could be leading the ACC in rebounds per minute played. How did you develop a knack for rebounding?
“That’s something I got used to in high school. Someone told me you only have to do one thing well to be successful in the sport. At that time in my life, rebounding came naturally to me. One of my coaches in middle school told me every rebound I got in one game he’d give me a quarter. I don’t think he ever paid me, but it got me in that mindset. Through my high school career I believe I averaged around 12 rebounds a game. It’s always been something I looked to make my signature on. It’s a little bit tougher with the bigger guys, but when I have the opportunity to get it, I’m going to go up there strong.”

You mentioned your mom a minute ago. Tell us more about your relationship with her.
“It’s really a special one. She’s been the one. She was a head nurse in a hospital in the city in the open heart surgery room. She retired when I was born. My dad was the one going to work every day. He commuted to Brooklyn from Connecticut, and he’d come home late. All day whether it was a drive to school, basketball practice, to a game, to camp, my mom was the one who was driving me.

“Even if it was an hour drive to a camp, she’d come up every day to make sure I wasn’t playing at my age level, to make sure I was competing hard every game, that I wasn’t skipping out on the stations. She ended up being the bookkeeper for all my teams from fourth grade through high school.

“When I got to high school, she started working again as a nurse. Last year she had just retired for the second time and moved to Florida. She couldn’t watch me because I was injured. For the past 20 years of her life that’s what she’d been doing, whether it was watching me with basketball or my sister with gymnastics. I believe she was bored. Now she’s in Durham during the season and has an apartment about five minutes away from here. She says that every game she can make, she’s going to be here.”

Why do you think she didn’t want to see you get stuck playing center when you were a little kid?
“She knew when I was growing up that I was always the tallest kid. Once I entered elementary school, I was head and shoulders above everybody else in the class. My dad was a basketball player. You always hear about kids getting stuck with only knowing how to play center, then as they grow up they’re not always the tallest guy and they have trouble adjusting. She always wanted the best for me, was always thinking ahead. She took it to heart and made sure that wouldn’t happen to me as best she could.”

How much did your training last summer mean to your ability to contribute at a high level this year?
“My parents moved to Sarasota the middle of my freshman year. I’d heard of the IMG Academy down there, and I new it was one of the best places in the country for training, skill work, conditioning. I looked into it and it looked almost overwhelming thinking about what I’d been doing as I was coming back from my knee. I’d barely touched the court at all. As I was reading the brochure it almost seemed overwhelming. My parents went and took a look at it. When I got down to Florida (after the semester ended), I was looking to do some rehab with my dad. I got home, they welcomed me with some smiles and a nice home-cooked meal and said, ‘We’re getting you up at 9:30. You have to be at IMG.’

“I sat back and looked at them. At first I was arguing, parents and children sort of thing. But I went and took a look at it. It was unbelievable the knowledge and technology they had to evaluate my leg, see what I could and couldn’t do, how much I could and couldn’t take. They adjusted every workout for me. It wasn’t just a generic thing. They took their time. They knew exactly who you were and what you could do and tried to play to your strengths. As time went on, I was able to start growing and doing more and more. When I got back here, I was basically ready for a grueling preseason.”

What do you think about the way this team has played defense?
“It’s really special to play the way we’ve been playing on defense. You can’t get many teams to communicate the way we have. It is strange because we are so young, but I think the fact is that we have so many great guys on this team who all want to do well, who all want to do well for Duke. When you get that on the defensive end, it’s really hard to turn your eyes inward and look at yourself. Everybody’s kind of moving together as one. With the attitudes that we have, given the way that we play and the way that we all want to be great together, it creates something special.”

Conversely, why has it taken so long for the offense to get going?
“As much as it is a natural thing to be playing as one on the defensive end, it takes a little bit more time on the offensive end. Where the last three or four years have been based around J.J. (Redick) and Shelden (Williams), now we have a more well-rounded offense where we never know game in and game out who’s going to be the leading scorer. You never know who’s going to get the opportunity. Teams are playing us differently. Where defense is easy for us to come together and it helps us get strong together, offense takes more time. As the season goes on, you’ll see us bonding more and more.”