Quinn Cook played after not making the trip to Maryland for Wednesday's game because of illness. The freshman point guard has had a tough few weeks, with his knee bothering him in addition to getting sick. Cook played eight minutes against the Red Storm, scoring two points and dishing out two assists.
The ailments have negated the momentum Cook had earlier in January, when his strong play earned him a spot in the Blue Devils' starting lineup.
Austin Rivers is sometimes criticized for a shoot-first mentality, but the Duke freshman was effective passing against the Red Storm, handing out five assists.
Rivers was at the point for significant portions of the second half. During one stretch, Rivers got to the basket for two consecutive drives. Just before then, he penetrated and found teammates Seth Curry and Andre Dawkins for open 3-pointers on three consecutive drives. Neither player made their shots, but Rivers still made nice plays.
Rivers' career-high for assists is six, which he had against Presbyterian in Duke's second game of the season.
After the Duke Chronicle published an article this week detailing how Duke's students were not using all their tickets to games, the student section seemed full. Asked about the subject after the win, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski was more concerned about the lethargy of his team than anything the crowd did or did not do.
"I hate to say anything about the crowd," Krzyzewski said. "It was us this afternoon. We can be better. Everything can be better."
