Tag Archives: Ryan Kelly

Duke Basketball

Joyous Random Bits – Rivers, Duke stuns North Carolina at the buzzer

What an amazing and joyous victory it was for Duke last evening over arch rival North Carolina.  It was an explosion of joy for the Blue Devils faithful as Austin Rivers became an instant legend and his exploits will be shown for a long time to come.  Here are my random thoughts and chatter this morning, so strap in and read ahead -

Sir Austin Rivers shot will be remembered for a long time to come

Players can live a lifetime and not have a storybook finish to a game, but Duke freshman Austin Rivers knocked down a three point shot as the buzzer sounded over the outstretched arms of Tyler Zeller to give Duke a 85-84 win over North Carolina.   The shot was a dagger to the heart of North Carolina and Zeller who scored 23 points and grabbed 11 rebounds.  One fan exclaimed, "Cry me a Rivers," as the freshman sensation stunned and silenced the North Carolina crowd as the ball dropped perfectly through the net as the red light and buzzer went off.  In the backdrop, the Duke players rushed onto the court after Rivers as their parents kissed, hugged and high fiving behind the Duke bench.  Duke played with heart tonight, but Rivers was the heart of that heart.  It's a given that he'll be named the ACC Rookie of the Week for the seventh time this season and his performance will now have the media thinking All ACC.  Rivers knocked down an amazing 6 of 10 three pointers for a career-high 29 points, the highest point total by a Blue Devil this season and the highest by a ACC freshman. Rivers scored 16 points of his points in the second half.  His shot is being shown on ESPN Sports Center every five minutes and was of course the Play of the Day.  Do you think a few folks will be talking about Rivers around the water cooler tomorrow or on Sports Center tomorrow?  You betcha!  It was a really big shot in so many ways and it made for a happy fan base.  "Obviously this is my favorite win I've ever had in my entire life," Rivers said.

The Comeback

The Blue Devils were down 13 points before outscoring North Carolina 15-4 including the last 11 points of the game.  Duke hung in the game as the Tar Heels controlled almost all of the half and good things happened.  With  2:33 left in the game Duke outscored North Carolina 13-2 hitting 5 of 7 field goals including 2 of 5 from beyond the three point stripe.  The Duke defense cause two late turnovers while protecting the ball during the stretch and amazingly, the Tar Heels were never allowed a single shot in that time.  It was one of the most amazing comebacks in the rivalries history.

Back in the saddle again

Just when it looked like Duke would be tied for fourth in the ACC standings by there next game against Maryland, a victory over their arch rival put them in a three way tie for first.  After losses to Miami and Florida State at home, winning the conference seemed like a pipe dream but it suddenly looks within reach again.  Duke also won their 20th game of the season against 4 losses and if they win Saturday in their new Nike uniforms, they'll surely move up in the rankings and ahead of North Carolina.

Ryan Kelly cool down the stretch

Ryan Kelly tallied 15 points, 10 of those coming in the second half. Kelly scored eight points in the final 7:05, showing great poise on a short-range jumper with 14 seconds that cut North Carolina’s lead to one point at 83-82.   Kelly had his three point shot tipped in for s deuce, missed another three and recovered for the aforementioned jumper in the corner.  He made just one of his three point shot, but that was a big one on a night when every play seemed big for the table as the game ended in a joyous celebration for Duke.

 Sweet Emotion

Emotion.  Without it you cannot win.  Rivers shot, all in one motion broke the hearts of the thousands of Tar Heel fans packed into the Dean Dome, leaving the North Carolina players and staff in disbelief while sending the Blue Devils into a frenzy of emotion.  This Duke team had lost two games at home and been sold short on having a chance in this game by everybody so it is no wonder that Coach Krzyzewski showed grand emotion as did his staff.  Krzzyzewski had another one of those leaps, like he did when Nolan Smith came off the court when Duke defeated North Carolina in the ACC Tournament a season ago which makes it two in a row now for Duke in the series.   As the buzzer sounded, Krzyzewski jumped into the air, one arm raised, Chris Collins doing the same beside him and Chris Spatola doing a high jump split as they watched their team rush the court after Rivers.  Kryzyzewski proceeds to go down the court knowing he'd just seen an amazing feat as Collins makes another jump with the number one finger held high. Then Collins skies again while the refs arms are still in the air for a made three.  By that time Wojo is into the mix.  Then Krzyzewski has one jump left in him and there goes Collins again like the Energizer Bunny as his boss looks over at his players celebrating as he then goes on to shake Coach Williams hand. Okay, you caught me.  I slowed the tape down on a shot of the bench after "the" shot.  But wasn't that fun? 

You want more don't you?

After Rivers knocks down the shot, he turns in that way I have seen many times on the AAU circuit, arms down, hands popped back as he runs back down to the other side of the court.  I can't imagine what was going through his mind.  Andre Dawkins was the first to get to him as Rivers jumped in his arms.  I can hear Nolan Smith say #pause right now after that statement but bare with me ... Then Seth Curry, Quinn Cook, Tyler Thornton, Ryan Kelly, Alex Murphy, Todd Zaforovski and Michel Gbinje followed by Miles Plumlee as the players knocked a smiling River to the floor.  Whew!  I got a little giddy there didn't I?

The Duke Campus erupted after Rivers shot led Duke to an amazing win.

More statistical tidbits

So Duke gets outscored in the paint by a 42-14 margin, but they dominate the outside scoring outscoring the Tar Heels 42 to 3 from beyond the stripe.  Duke wins the  points off turnovers by a 12-8 margin as well and win the battle of second chance points by a 17-12 margin.  Duke also held the North Carolina bench to a mere 6 points while getting 15 from their own.  And finally, Duke had it's larges lead of 8 points at the 15:06 mark in the 1st half while two ticks later art 15:08 in the 2nd half, UNC held their largest lead of 13 points.

Bob Harris gets some ESPN burn

I was so happy to see that ESPN was playing my pal, Duke play by play announcer Bob Harris calling the final seconds as Austin Rivers drove a stake in the his opponents heart.  It was another classic called by Harris who wants you to buy his book.  So do it already.

Did you know that ...

Duke has now won two of the last three meetings in the Dean Smith Center. When the first Duke-North Carolina meeting of the season occurs in Chapel Hill, Duke is 5-0 since Roy Williams took over as head coach at North Carolina. With the win, Duke improved to 15-0 when playing after a loss since February, 2009. North Carolina won the battle in the paint, scoring 42 points down low to Duke’s 12, but the Blue Devils won the perimeter matchup and scored 42 points on three-pointers to North Carolina’s three. Rivers hit a career-high six three-pointers for Duke while Seth Curry hit four.  Duke led for a total of 15:40 in the first half. Beginning at the 16:48 mark in the half, Duke did not relinquish its lead until the Tar Heels tied the game 39-39 with 1:19 remaining. The Tar Heels took a 43-40 lead into halftime, and Duke did not lead again until the end of the game after Rivers’ game-winning three-pointer.

ESPN Instant Classic and Play of the Day

You can cath this game again by looking at your local ESPN listings as it was given immediate Instant Classic status.  Austin Rivers shot is running pretty much everywhere you turn as well.  Watching the replay you would swear Duke doesn't have a chance in Hades according to the announcers but they were then stunned just like the  rest of us in one of the most amazing comeback wins in Duke history.  And of course, Hubert Davis, Stuart Scott and Jalen Rose shed a few tears behind the scenes as most talking heads ate a bit of crow sandwich.

 

 

Duke Basketball

A team victory for Duke

It was a sunny afternoon this past Wednesday on the Duke campus and at first glance it seemed business as usual, but parked in front of Cameron was a bus which would take the Duke Mens Basketball team to Blacksburg.  There would be no flight or luxuries past and even the traditional ice cream spread the evening before the game was gone, for this team was putting away all distractions, including the use of social media.

The Duke Blue Devils took a long bus ride to Blacksburg, Virginia after a tough couple of practices and a new found focus helped them to a 75-60 victory over Virginia Tech.  After allowing St. John's to make a comeback where a sizable lead was blown, the Blue Devils went into "Circle the Wagon," mode and whatever Krzyzewski did behind the scenes, prompted Duke to an easy team victory.

Once Duke adjusted to the way the game was being called, they took the crowd out of the game in the first half, working their way to a comfortable 10 point lead.   And from that point they never looked back on their way to an ACC win which would keep Duke in a three way tie for first place.

There were several signs in the air which went unnoticed by some in the media and fan base, that Duke was in a bit of a lock down mode.  Krzyzewski made no bones about that fact that he was not too pleased with the Blue Devils performances of late and that he more or less thought they'd become, pampered, fat and happy.  There was no media day this week where one could get player quotes and it would not surprise me if he didn't go as far as to lock his team out of their cozy facilities as he has done on rare occasion in seasons past.

Whatever was said or done, the Blue Devils seemed rejuvenated and in the process played with intensity from the opening tip until the end, committing a mere 7 turnovers and they constantly battled with intensity from opening tip until buzzers end.

Austin Rivers played perhaps his best overall game at Duke scoring 18 points to go with 5 rebounds, 5 assists and a steal.  Rivers went an efficient 7 0f 11 from the floor, 4 of 6 being beyond the three point stripe to lead the Blue Devils in scoring.

It was an ACC Rookie of the Week performance by Rivers whose production level proved extremely efficient.  But this was a team win in every way where numerous players contributed where Duke got 34 points from it's bench.  Of course, the Blue Devils had shaken their lineup up, but it was still the workman like togetherness that helped Duke to the easy win.

One of the players who came off the bench was Ryan Kelly who was replaced by Josh Hairston in a lineup change.  Kelly responded with 15 points and 4 rebounds while Hairston finished with 6 points and 3 rebounds in 15 minutes of play.

Seth Curry was another junior that came off the bench and he tallied 11 points including 6 of 6 from the free throw stripe.  In fact, the team knocked down 13 of 16 attempts and that was a key factor in the win making one think this was an area of emphasis of late.

Duke also outscored the Hokies by a 38-26 margin in the paint and Mason Plumlee had a lot to do with that adding 10 points, 6 rebounds and the only two blocks of the game for Duke.  His brother Miles, added 4 points and 5 boards in just 9 minutes of play.

And every other player for Duke added something as well.  For Andre Dawkins it was his big trey in the first half and his questionable technical foul seemed to fire up the Blue Devils even more.  Dawkins and Duke were so pumped up that Krzyzewski had to calm them during one timeout. 

Quinn Cook dished three dimes and added a couple of key buckets keeping the lead at a comfortable margin while the Hokies tried to stage several comeback efforts in nine minutes of burn.  And Tyler Thornton added his steadying influence which doesn't always translate to the box score.  Again, this was a team victory for the Blue Devils who sit a single win away from yet another 20 win season with the Mimi Hurricanes coming to town on Super Bowl Sunday.

The Blue Devils were never rattled in Blacksburg despite a very hostile and vocal home crowd and after taking a double digit lead as the 1st half ended, they never looked back.  I doubt Duke will be taking a bus on too many more trips other than next Wednesday's game in Chapel Hill with arch rival North Carolina, but maybe they've learned what it takes to compete at the level it will take the rest of the way this season and have gotten back to the kind of hard nosed Duke Basketball Coach Krzyzewski and the fans love to see.

Game Notes - (courtesy of Duke Sports Information)

Duke 75, Virginia Tech 60
Thursday 02/02/2012 - Duke Sports Information

Team Notes:
• Duke improved to 38-8 in the all-time series against Virginia Tech and has won 16 of the last 19 games. The Blue Devils are now 9-3 against the Hokies under head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
• After falling 64-60 to the Hokies in Cassell Coliseum last season, the Blue Devils came away with a 15-point victory in Blacksburg. Duke has lost to just one team – Wake Forest in 2004 & 2005, and again in 2008 & 2009 – on the road in back-to-back seasons since the 2003-04 season began.
• With sophomore forward Josh Hairston making his first career start tonight, Coach K has used seven different starting lineup combinations in the last nine games. Mason Plumlee is the only player to have started every game during that span. Plumlee has started 43 consecutive games.
• In a game that featured the ACC’s top two three-point shooters, Duke’s Ryan Kelly topped Virginia Tech’s Jarell Eddie by finishing 2-of-4 from the three-point line and 15 total points. Eddie went 0-of-5 from three-point range and scored just six points. Entering the game, Eddie led the ACC in three-point shooting percentage (minimum 50 attempts) with a .493 (37-of-75) mark, while Kelly ranked second with a .472 (25-of-53) percentage.
• The Blue Devils held Eddie without a three-point field goal for only the sixth time this season. Eddie had connected on a trey in 12 of the Hokies’ last 13 games.
• Virginia Tech, which ranks 45th nationally in scoring defense, is the seventh opponent that Duke has faced this season that ranks among the NCAA’s top-50 in that category. The Blue Devils have are 6-1 and have outscored each of those opponents’ defensive scoring averages in those games.
• With the score tied at 21-21, Duke embarked on a 17-7 scoring run over the final 7:13 of the first half to stake a 38-28 lead. Kelly scored seven points for Duke during that run, hitting a layup and a dunk on consecutive possessions and then knocking down a three-pointer to increase the lead to 32-23. The Blue Devils maintained a double-digit lead the rest of the way.
• Duke held Virginia Tech without a field goal over a 5:40 minute span from 8:15 to 2:35 in the first half.
• Duke continued its improved free throw shooting, finishing 13-of-16 from the line. The Blue Devils have shot 75.0 percent or better from the free throw line in six of their last eight games.
• Duke forced Virginia Tech into committing 13 turnovers while holding the Hokies to five assists. Duke amassed 12 assists and made only seven turnovers.
• With 33 rebounds to Virginia Tech’s 29, the Blue Devils outrebounded their fifth straight opponent. Duke holds a +3.3 rebounding margin per game.
• Duke improved to 9-2 when playing outside of Cameron Indoor Stadium this season.

Player Notes:

Seth Curry
• In a return to Blacksburg, where his father Dell starred for the Hokies from 1982-86 and went on to play 16 years in the NBA, Curry scored 11 points on two field goals and a perfect 6-of-6 performance from the free throw line.
• Extended his consecutive made free throw streak to 14. Curry ranks second in the ACC with a .887 free throw shooting percentage. That would rank sixth on Duke’s single-season leaderboard if he can reach the 100 made free throws threshold.
• Defensively, helped to hold Virginia Tech guard Jarell Eddie to just six points and an 0-of-5 performance from the three-point line.

Andre Dawkins
• Hit his only three-point attempt of the game. Dawkins leads Duke with 50 three-pointers on the year.

Josh Hairston
• Made his first career start and played 15 minutes.
• Scored six points on 3-of-6 shooting. Threw down his second dunk of the season on a second-half alley-oop from Austin Rivers.
• Also contributed three rebounds, including two on the offensive end. On the season, Hairston has more offensive boards (20) than defensive (13).

Ryan Kelly
• Scored in double figures for the 15th time this season and the fifth straight game. Kelly is averaging 15.0 points per game during that streak.
• Improved his team-leading three-point percentage to .474 by shooting 2-of-4 from three-point range. Kelly leads the ACC in three-point percentage (minimum 50 attempts), surpassing Virginia Tech guard Jarell Eddie whose shooting percentage fell to .463 (37-80) with an 0-for-5 performance tonight.

Mason Plumlee
• Made his 43rd consecutive start. Duke is 36-7 during that 43-game streak.
• Recorded two blocks, increasing his career total to 126. Plumlee ranks ninth on Duke’s all-time blocks list, trailing Josh McRoberts (2005-07) by two blocks for eighth place.
• Scored in double figures for the 15th time this season and the third straight game. Plumlee has scored at least 10 points in four of Duke’s six ACC games.

Austin Rivers
• Scored in double figures for the team-leading 18th time this season and led Duke in scoring for the team-leading ninth time.
• Knocked down a career-high four three-pointers, finishing 4-of-6 from three-point range. Rivers hit three of his treys in a row.
• Dished out a team-leading five assists while committing just two turnovers. Rivers has 13 assists over his last three games, averaging 4.3 helpers during that span.
• Had his most efficient shooting performance of the season, finishing 7-of-11 from the floor and 4-of-6 from the three-point line. The .636 shooting percentage from the floor was the highest mark of his career.
• Matched a career high with five rebounds. Rivers has grabbed at least three rebounds in five consecutive games.

Duke Basketball

St. John’s at Duke Game Notes

Game 21 • Coaches vs. Cancer Suits & Sneakers

[8 AP / 6 Coaches] Duke (17-3, 5-1 ACC) vs. St. John’s (9-11, 3-6 Big East)

Saturday, January 28, 2012 • 12:03 p.m. • ESPN

The Opening Tip

• Duke (17-3, 5-1 ACC) hosts St. John’s (9-11, 3-6 Big East) in its final non-conference tilt of the regular season on Saturday, Jan. 28 at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Tipoff is set for 12:03 p.m.

• Brent Musburger (play-by-play) and Dick Vitale (analyst) will call the game for ESPN.

• Duke is ranked No. 8 in the AP Poll and No. 6 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. St. John’s is unranked in both polls. The Blue Devils are 71-16 all-time when ranked eighth in the AP Poll.

• Duke is one of three teams (Baylor and Kansas are the others) in the NCAA to rank in the top 10 of the RPI, Strength of Schedule, AP and Coaches Polls.

• The Blue Devils had a 45-game home win streak snapped last Saturday and have not lost consecutive home contests since February of 2007. Duke has not lost more than one game at home in the last five seasons.

Duke-St. John’s Series

• Duke and St. John’s have met 20 times heading into Saturday’s game with the first meeting between the two schools coming on Feb. 4, 1938.

• The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 14-6, including a 5-1 mark at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

• Duke fell to St. John’s a year ago, but has won seven of the last eight contests in the series.

• Mike Krzyzewski is 14-3 at Duke against the Red Storm, including a 5-1 record in Durham.

• Duke has won five straight in the series at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils have a +23.0 scoring margin in that span.

• The Blue Devils have won 93 straight non-conference home games since falling to St. John’s, 83-82, on Feb. 26, 2000.

• Duke’s last two victories in the series have been by 10 points or less. The Blue Devils’ previous seven wins over St. John’s were all by double figures.

Numbers Game

l Duke has been ranked in the top 10 of the AP Poll for 86 straight weeks, the third-longest streak in NCAA history.

l Duke has won 93 straight non-conference home games, the longest current streak in the NCAA. The last home loss against a non-conference opponent for the Blue Devils was on Feb. 26, 2000 against St. John’s, 83-82.

l The Blue Devils have won 87 straight games at Cameron Indoor Stadium against unranked non-conference opponents.

l Duke is 59-2 at home since the start of the 2008-09 season.

l The Blue Devils are one of 12 teams in the NCAA with five or more players averaging 10 or more points per game. Duke has finished the year with five double-figure scorers six times under Mike Krzyzewski.

l Austin Rivers, a four-time ACC Rookie of the Week selection, is averaging a team-high 14.2 points per game. Johnny Dawkins was the last Blue Devil freshman to lead the team in scoring in 1983.

l Mason Plumlee collected his eighth double-double of the season (tied for most in the ACC) with 23 points and 12 rebounds in Wednesday’s win over Maryland. He has collected 12 or more rebounds in a game 12 times this season.

l Ryan Kelly is shooting 47.2 percent (25-of-53) from three-point range on the season, including 51.9 percent (14-of-27) over the last 11 games. He shot just 30.7 percent (27-of-88) in his first two seasons at Duke.

l Mason Plumlee and Miles Plumlee combine to average 15.7 rebounds per game. One of the Plumlees has led the team in rebounds in 18 of 20 games.

l Tyler Thornton leads the ACC in assist-to-turnover ratio (6.7:1) through six conference games. He has 20 assists with just three turnovers in the last six games for the Blue Devils.

l Mason Plumlee has improved his free throw shooting over the last four games, going 15-of-18 (.833) from the line during that span. He was shooting 39.8 percent (37-of-93) from the free throw line prior to that stretch. Plumlee averages 5.6 free throw attempts per game.

l Austin Rivers is averaging a team-high 15.7 ppg. at home this season. He is shooting 51.5 percent from the field, including 43.2 percent from three-point range, in 10 games at Cameron Indoor Stadium.

l Andre Dawkins is averaging 4.0 threes per game and 15.5 ppg. over the last four contests.

l Duke University is honoring the All-American Athletic Association on Saturday. This is their 40th year as ushers in Cameron, and since 1972, they have raised over $450,000 for local charities.

Duke Basketball

Plumlee leads Duke past Maryland

On a night when Duke hit just 3 of 15 from three point range, stellar free throw shooting and a huge effort from Mason Plumlee helped them gain a 74-61 win over Maryland.  The table was set for an upset and the Maryland crowd was as laying in wait in crazed droves but when you knock down 17 of 18 free throws on the road, you eventually silence them and that's just what the Blue Devils did.

Speaking of free throws, Mason Plumlee went 5 of 5 from the stripe and dominated the Terps in the paint, scoring 23 points to go with 12 rebounds, 4 assists and a late game block.  It was perhaps the juniors most efficient game as a Blue Devil and his performance helped Duke fo to 5-1 in the ACC and 17-3 overall.   His 23 points were his most in an ACC game and his second career 20 point game.

After being down early, Duke rode their post play and ultimately gained a 37-34 halftime lead and that momentum carried over into the second half where the Blue Devils eventually found a working margin.  That working margin came when they started getting scoring from their guards, namely, Austin Rivers.

The Duke guards of Curry, Dawkins, Rivers and Thornton had just 4 combined points at the half, but Rivers found the open lane for 8 2nd half points.  Thornton would later add some key points to help Duke hold onto a late lead and Curry and Dawkins both had off games combining for just 3 of 15 from the field.

The Blue Devils also received a good effort from junior, Ryan Kelly who went an efficient 5 of 7 from the field to go with 4 boards and 3 blocked shots.  Miles Plumlee added another 7 points and Josh Hairston 2 to round out the scoring for the Blue Devils.

The Blue Devils took advantage of their height and outrebounded Maryland by 5 and they went down low early and often adjusting to the defense designed to push them off the 3 point stripe.  In short, Duke took another teams best shot and came out with a huge road win in a most hostile environment.  And to make their win more impressive. Quinn Cook stayed home with a bruised knee and fellow freshman Michael Gbinije kept him company being sick himself.

The defense showed up as well for Duke, holding Maryland to 27 second half points after they cut off some of the passing lanes int he post.  They also held Maryland to 40% from the field and 61 points.

The Blue Devils are more than happy to come away with the win with just eight scholarship players available. And this is the kind of win that takes the some of the sting out of their upset loss at home to Florida State.  The Blue Devils head back to Durham where they'll play their last out of conference game against St. John's on Saturday in Cameron Indoor Stadium.  Duke improved to 111-61 in the all-time series against Maryland, which started in 1926. Duke has now won four straight in the series and 10 of the last 11 games

Team Notes:
• Mike Krzyzewski improved his career record against Maryland to 52-21. Coach K is 22-10 all-time in College Park, Md.
• Duke won its third straight ACC road game. Duke is 9-2 when playing away from Cameron Indoor Stadium.
• Duke has now won 13 consecutive games following a loss and is now 21-2 following a loss over the last five seasons. Duke has not lost back-to-back games since Feb. 11 & Feb. 15, 2009.
• Junior forward Mason Plumlee had the best game of his career, recording a double-double with 23 points and 12 rebounds while shooting 9-of-13 (.692) from the floor.
• Duke had one of its best free throw shooting performances in school history, finishing 17-of-18 from the line for a .944 percentage. That ties for the 10th highest mark in school history and the team’s highest mark since March 6, 201 (22-of-23, .957).
• Duke outscored Maryland 40-28 in the paint, thanks largely to the production of brothers Mason and Miles Plumlee. Those two dominated the paint early, combining for 18 points, and eight rebounds in the first half while sinking 7-of-9 shots.
• Duke played without freshman point guard Quinn Cook (illness) for the first time. Junior Seth Curry and sophomore Tyler Thornton split time at the point and combined for 15 points, four assists and two turnovers. Curry and Thornton combined to hit eight straight free throws over the final 1:17.
• Duke, which leads the ACC in three-pointers made (158) and three-point percentage (.400), made just three treys in the game. The 3-of-16 performance yielded a .188 three-point percentage, which was the lowest of the season.
• The Blue Devils held Maryland guard Terrell Stoglin, the ACC’s leading scorer with 21.2 points per game, to 16 points. Stoglin, who also ranked third in the ACC with a .410 three-point shooting percentage, went 0-of-4 from three-point range.
• Duke did not miss a free throw until 6:19 remained in the game.
• With just over two minutes into the second half, Duke pulled in three consecutive offensive rebounds on one possession and eventually converted the extra opportunities into a three-pointer by Ryan Kelly. Duke missed its first three three-point attempts during that scoring opportunity before Kelly finally knocked one down to put Duke ahead 42-38 with 17:34 remaining.
• Duke trailed 47-46 with 12:55 remaining in the game, but opened up a 10-2 run to claim its biggest lead of the night at the 8:52 mark. Duke went 5-of-7 from the floor during that run and got a three-point play from Mason Plumlee.

Player Notes:

Seth Curry
• Made his 33rd consecutive start. Duke is 27-6 during that 33-game start streak.
• Saw more time at the point with Quinn Cook out due to an illness. Curry scored eight points on two field goals and a 4-for-4 performance from the free throw line.

Andre Dawkins
• Hit a three-pointer for the sixth straight game. Dawkins leads Duke and ranks second in the ACC with a .409 three-point percentage (min. 90 att.).

Ryan Kelly
• Recorded three blocks in the first half, including rejections on back-to-back layup attempts by Maryland forward James Padgett. Padgett attempted his first layup two feet from the basket and was blocked by Kelly, but grabbed the rebound. He tried again and was blocked by Kelly for a second time, giving Duke the ball in the process.
• Scored in double figures for the 13th time this season with 14 points of 5-of-7 shooting. Kelly has scored in double figures in four of Duke’s six ACC games and is averaging a team-leading 13.7 points per game since Duke opened conference play.

Mason Plumlee
• Made his 41st consecutive start. Duke is 34-7 during that 41-game streak.
• Had his best offensive performance of the season, going 9-of-13 from the floor on the way to an ACC career-high 23 points. Plumlee scored 12 points in the first half and 11 in the second.
• Recorded his team-leading eighth double-double of the season, matching his 23 points with 12 rebounds. Plumlee is tied for the most double-doubles in the ACC alongside North Carolina’s John Henson.
• Continued his improved free throw shooting, going a perfect 5-of-5 from the line. Over his past four games, he is 15-of-18 (.833) from the FT line.
• Converted his sixth three-point play of the season and his third in the last three games. Plumlee also threw down three dunks.

Miles Plumlee
• Contributed seven points and four rebounds in 18 minutes of action. Plumlee has at least seven rebounds in seven games this season.
• Finished an efficient 3-of-4 from the floor to improve his team-leading shooting percentage to .671. Over halfway through the season, Plumlee is on pace to finish among Duke’s top three in that category if he can meet the 100 made field goals threshold. He currently has 53 made field goals this season.

Austin Rivers
• Scored in double figures for the team-leading 16th time this season.
• Took over in the second half, scoring eight of his 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting. Rivers attempted just one three-pointer in the second half, instead getting all of his production on driving layups and a runner.

Tyler Thornton
• Converted his second career three-point play with just over one minute remaining in the first half. Duke led 34-32 before Thornton sank a driving layup after contact and then knocked down the ensuing free throw.

Duke Basketball

BDN Post Game Report – Duke rocks Wake Forest to remain undefeated in the ACC

Duke was in control of the basketball game against Wake Forest from the opening tip as they coasted to a 91-73 victory.  Duke now sits alone atop the ACC at 4-0 but they will now prepare for a 3-1, hot Florida State team which invades Cameron in less than 48 hours.

The Andre Dawkins Show

The first half of the game belonged to Andre Dawkins who knocked down 21 points on 7 of 9 three pointers.  Dawkins earned the praise of Krzyzewski in his post game speech which just concluded. Dawkins failed to score in the second half.  Check out our interview with Andre per BDN Video.  Dawkins knocked down five straight three point shots and Dawkins has now scored 20 plus points in two consecutive games and this was his 9th double figure scoring game for the season.

Ryan Kelly scored a double-double

Kelly went 8 of 11 from the field on his way to a team high 20 points to go with 10 rebounds.  His consistent play was a huge factor for Duke as they maintained a working lead the entire game.  Kelly has scored 20 points in two of his teams ACC wins and he scored in double figures for the 11th time this season.

Austin Rivers comes off the bench for the first time

Rivers started the game on the bench as Krzyzewski said he was checking new combinations, but maybe he should remain the sixth man if he puts up numbers like 20 points.  Despite starting on the bench with 32 minutes of playing time, he basically still was a starter.  His 3 of 4 from the three point stripe matched a career high.  Austin has now scored in double figures 14 times this season and he leads the Blue Devils in scoring.

Just too much talent for Duke

The Blue Devils held Wake to zero three pointers in the first half and just 3 all game long.  They also held the Wake bench scoreless at the half.  Duke ended the game with a 43 to 8 points advantage, thanks to the aforementioned Kelly and Rivers.  Duke held an 18-9 second chance point advantage as well and while they were outscored in the paint, that was due to their outside shots falling where they knocked down 11 three pointers.  The Blue Devils also dished out 17 assists tonight.

This and that

Duke extended it's ACC home court streak to 45 games and 64 straight against unranked teams.  This was the first game since March of 2010 that Duke had three 20 point scorers in one game.  Duke is 51-9 when ranked #4 in the country.  Four Blue Devils scored in double figures for the 11th time this season.

Post game videos

Below are Austin Rivers, Andre Dawkins and Ryan Kelly post game comments per BDN Video.