Vernon Carey, Tre Jones help Duke muscle past Michigan State
Duke’s win over Michigan State in Vernon Carey’s recruitment helped the Blue Devils and hurt the Spartans once again on Tuesday night
The 6-10 freshman, who picked Duke despite making his final recruiting visit to Michigan State, heard boos from the Spartan fans when he entered the court for pregame warmups at the Breslin Center.
He stung the Michigan State fans even more once the game started as he scored 26 points with 11 rebounds, leading No. 10 Duke to an 87-75 win over the No. 11 Spartans in an ACC-Big Ten Challenge game.
Carey’s output spearheaded a solid night of offense for the Blue Devils (8-1), who shot 56.1 percent. Javin DeLaurier, Duke’s 6-10 senior reserve forward, added 10 points as the Blue Devils effectively worked their post-to-post offensive sets. Matthew Hurt, Duke’s 6-9 freshman, added 10 points as the Blue Devils tallied 42 points in the paint.
Sophomore point guard Tre Jones orchestrated things magnificently on both ends for the Blue Devils. Jones scored 20 points with 12 assists and three steals.
With Carey scoring 15 and Jones 11 in the first half, Duke built a 45-29 halftime lead.
Michigan State (5-3) pushed back in the early minutes of the second half, using a 9-1 run to slice Duke’s lead to 46-38 just 2:30 into the final period.
But Carey stemmed the tide. After a timeout, Duke worked the ball inside where he scored, drew a foul and hit a free throw.
Carey scored inside again with 15:58 left but missed the free throw. Duke’s Jack White grabbed the rebound and fired the ball out to Joey Baker, who drilled a 3-pointer. Just like that, Duke had reeled off eight points in a row to restore its 16-point lead at 54-38 with 15:55 to play.
Michigan State made one last run, pulling within 12 points at 63-51 with 12:26 left. But Duke reeled off seven consecutive points to lead 70-51.
And-1
Sophomore guard Joey Baker turned in his second consecutive strong shooting performance off the bench for the Blue Devils. After scoring 16 points last Friday night against Winthrop, the 6-7 Baker tallied 11 for Duke against Michigan State. He made his first five shots from the field, including a 3-pointer, and finished 5 of 6 from the field.
Lane violation
Michigan State’s poor 3-point shooting prevented it from keeping up with Duke. The Spartans hit only 4 of 16 3-point attempts for 25 percent.
ICYMI
Duke freshman guard Cassius Stanley missed his first game since suffering a hamstring injury in his left leg last Friday night in an 83-70 win over Winthrop at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Stanley made the trip to Michigan State with the Blue Devils. Though not in uniform, he was walking regularly without the use of crutches.
Making sense of the numbers
3: Consecutive games Duke has shot 50 percent or better from the field. The Blue Devils entered Tuesday night’s game shooting 45,7 percent as a team for the season.
7: Consecutive games with double-doubles for Duke’s Vernon Carey after his 26 points and 11 rebounds against Michigan State.
14: Duke points scored off Michigan State’s 14 turnovers. Twelve of those points came in the first half.
This story was originally published December 3, 2019 at 11:49 PM.