DURHAM -- Following Duke’s only loss of the season on Jan. 12 at Florida State, the Blue Devils resolved that they weren’t going to force seniors Nolan Smith and Kyle Singler to carry such a heavy load.
Fifteen nights later, the determination of players other than Smith and Singler to become more involved was obvious as the No. 3-ranked Blue Devils dismantled Boston College 84-68 on Thursday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Sophomore forward Ryan Kelly stretched his streak of consecutive field goal attempts made over four games to 18 – two short of Alaa Abdelnaby’s school record – before finally missing on his first shot of the second half. Kelly was 5-for-5 from the field in the first half and finished with 14 points.
Meanwhile, sophomore guard Seth Curry scored a season-high 20 points with a performance reminiscent of his 2008-09 season, when he led the nation’s freshmen in scoring at Liberty.
“We’ve got to have pride coming into the game,” Curry said. “At times we tried to put it on Nolan and Kyle and tried to have them carry us. But we’re not going to win and be a great team like that. We have to have five guys out there that are threats, that can put points on the board.”
With Curry and Kelly helping in the scoring column, sophomore center Mason Plumlee continued with his dominating play on the boards. Plumlee grabbed 12 rebounds for his fifth straight game of 10 rebounds or more.
As their teammates have raised their level of play since the loss at Florida State, Smith and Singler have continued to perform well. Smith, who leads the ACC in scoring and assists, was looking forward to meeting Boston College junior guard Reggie Jackson, who ranks second in the conference in both of those categories.
Smith had a huge game with 28 points and eight assists. Jackson, meanwhile, was held to a season-low seven points – 12 below his average – after he was held out of the game until the first media timeout.
Although Smith relished his personal performance, he is happy to see his teammates emerging. Since freshman point guard Kyrie Irving suffered a Dec. 4 toe injury that has him out indefinitely, Duke’s players have said they’re trying to figure out their roles.
They appear to be getting closer with each passing game.
“We’re definitely starting to figure things out,” Smith said. “We’re not where we want to be. I think there’s still a lot of time [to develop into] what we’re going to be come March. But guys are definitely knowing what their roles are and what they have to do to make this team better.”
Singler added 14 points as Duke (19-1, 6-1 ACC) won its fourth game in a row and its 31st consecutive home game. Corey Raji’s 18 points led Boston College (14-7, 4-3).
With the halfway point for Duke in the ACC just one game away, the Blue Devils are one game ahead of Florida State and two ahead of North Carolina in the win column in the conference standings.
All three teams – Duke, Florida State and North Carolina – have one conference loss.
Curry’s timely points helped fuel Duke’s against the Eagles. The Blue Devils led just 28-27 when Curry was fouled while attempting a 3-point shot with 3:12 remaining in the first half. He made all three free throws, then struck immediately with a 3-pointer to help stretch the lead to 41-32 at halftime.
A Curry 3-pointer in transition – one of his five threes in the game - stretched the lead to 54-41, and the Eagles couldn’t keep up.
“Even though he hasn’t shot the ball well until tonight in the ACC, his play has gotten better,” said Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. “He has moved his feet better. He has guarded the ball, brought the ball up. Off the ball, he’s moving his feet defensively. We’ve seen him grow.”
The team appears to be growing along with him.
