DURHAM, N.C. -- Mike Krzyzewski tried to look convincing when he said No. 2 Duke had to regroup following its worst loss of the season.
But the coach of the Blue Devils knew he had lost more than a game to No. 16 Maryland on Tuesday night.
Center Carlos Boozer of Juneau went down in the second half with what Krzyzewski said was a broken bone in his right foot, meaning Duke's run at a national championship is in jeopardy.
"We've just got to circle the wagons and get tougher," Krzyzewski said.
The 6-foot-9 Boozer, Duke's main inside threat, hurt his foot early in the second half, tried to return, then left for good with more than 11 minutes remaining in the 91-80 loss.
The Blue Devils (25-4, 12-3 Atlantic Coast Conference) shot 24 percent in the second half without Boozer, who averages 13.9 points and 6.5 rebounds. Boozer had 16 points and seven rebounds before his injury. Boozer broke the fifth metatarsal in his left foot before his freshman season began, and even though he played every game for Duke it took until the middle of the season before he returned to his preinjury form.
Krzyzewski said Boozer would be X-rayed again today, but probably will miss Sunday's rematch with No. 4 North Carolina, the ACC tournament in Atlanta next week -- and maybe beyond.
"He may not be back unless we got deep into the (NCAA) tournament," Krzyzewski said. "It depends on how big the fracture is."
In other games involving ranked teams on Tuesday, it was No. 3 Michigan State 51, No. 22 Wisconsin 47; No. 18 St. Joseph's 84, Massachusetts 69; and No. 19 Syracuse 80, Pittsburgh 69.
A win by North Carolina over N.C. State on Wednesday night would clinch the No. 1 seed in the ACC tourney for the Tar Heels and snap Duke's run of outright regular-season titles at four.
"We pretty much saw this game as a must-win, and we didn't get it," Duke forward Mike Dunleavy said.
While the Terrapins (19-9, 9-6) gained confidence from the win, the mood in the Duke locker room was one of concern.
Casey Sanders, a 6-11 sophomore who has been a major disappointment so far in his career, will take over most of the inside load with Boozer out.
That's because Matt Christensen, Duke's top frontcourt reserve all season, has been sidelined with sore knees.
"Matt's thing kind of depends on the day, but he's had a series of bad days. That has been disheartening," Krzyzewski said.
Duke's depth also took a hit early in the season when 6-10 Nick Horvath injured his foot and has missed 21 straight games. His return is still uncertain.
Sanders was in tears after the Maryland loss.
"If my team needs me, than I'll be there for them," said Sanders, who picked up four fouls in four minutes Tuesday night and has averaged just eight minutes in 15 ACC games. "If that takes extra running, extra reps in practice, whatever.
"Every player on this team comes to this school to play. I know it kills certain players on the team not to be able to play. I just didn't want it to happen like this."
