Duke's Kyle Filipowski embracing villain role: 'You're spending your money to watch me beat your a--'
Filipowski led the Blue Devils with 15.1 points and 9 rebounds per game
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Kyle Filipowski is joining the likes of Christian Laettner, J.J. Redick and Grayson Allen.
The rising Duke sophomore is now on the list of Blue Devil villains, but he sure is embracing the role.
All the hate he received as a freshman is just motivation to put Duke back to the pinnacle of men’s college basketball, Filipowski says.
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Duke's Kyle Filipowski defends the ball against Virginia's Ben Vander Plas in Charlottesville, Feb. 11, 2023. (AP Photo/Mike Kropf)
"I did experience some (hate) last year, just hearing a lot of bad talk about me," the seven-footer said on Duke basketball’s "The Brotherhood" podcast. "That's what happens when you're a really good player playing for a really good team…
"I use it as fuel to the fire. It makes me laugh because I'm like, 'You guys are talking s--- to me while you're watching me play. You're spending your money to watch me beat your a--.' It's very entertaining for me."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Filipowski averaged 15.1 points and 9 rebounds per game, both team-highs, in his 36 contests last year, all of which he started, en route to being named the ACC Rookie of the Year.
Center Kyle Filipowski of the Duke Blue Devils shoots a free throw against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Cassell Coliseum on January 23, 2023 in Blacksburg, Virginia. (Ryan Hunt/Getty Images)
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He and the Dukies won the ACC Tournament in March but lost in the Round of 32 as a five-seed in this past March Madness tournament to No. 4 Tennessee. Filipowski says if he played anywhere else, he probably would have entered the draft.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I just really loved it this past year," Filipowski said. "A dream of mine is to win a national championship. I really don't think there's any better place to do it. Going into the decision, I said to myself and a few other people, 'If I were to have gone somewhere else in college, I do not think I would have stayed for my sophomore year.' I probably would have ended up going to the draft. I just enjoyed being at Duke so much; it really made me want to stick around for one more year."
Center Kyle Filipowski of the Duke Blue Devils during the Virginia Tech Hokies game at Cassell Coliseum on Jan. 23, 2023, in Blacksburg. (Ryan Hunt/Getty Images)
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Filipowski was a five-star recruit out of Wilbraham & Monson Academy in Massachusetts. He was the ACC Tournament MVP as well as a member of the All-ACC Second Team.