Balanced scoring attack helps Duke men’s basketball knock off Wofford
One man down and playing for the first time in two weeks, Duke used a complete team effort to shake off a slow start, defeating Wofford, 86-57, at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
The Blue Devils held a double-digit lead at the break, and watched that lead balloon to more than 20 once sophomore Joey Baker saw his second 3-pointer go through the net.
Baker’s second 3 in as many possessions pushed the Duke lead to 22 with 14:17 remaining.
The second 3 gave Baker 11 points and he finished with a career-high 22 points. The Fayetteville native connected on a career-high five made 3s. That kind of contribution, from a reserve who went 0-4 from the field in their last game, was exactly what the Blue Devils needed without floor leader Tre Jones.
“I think we are a well rounded team,” Baker said. “And capable of beating teams in a lot of different ways.”
Duke’s Vernon Carey Jr. contributed a double-double with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Matthew Hurt added 12.
“We played really well tonight,” Blue Devils coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “Outstanding defense, they shared the ball. We beat a really good team. Not only a team, but a program. We did a good job defensively against them and they are a tough team to defend.”
It was announced earlier in the day that Jones would miss the game with a foot injury. Duke said Jones was day-to-day. They didn’t need him much against the Terriers, who were coming off a win at North Carolina on Sunday.
Wofford was looking for its second straight win over a Top 25 team and got off to a pretty good start. The Terriers jumped out to a 7-3 lead, leaving the sparse crowd (students were on break) wondering if Wofford could knock off their second ACC opponent in a row.
But the Blue Devils closed the first half strong.
Hurt, who came off the bench, chipped in with four of his eight points in the first half. His second dunk in a matter of three minutes put Duke up three, still not a big enough lead to relax the fans in Cameron.
The Blue Devils finally found a groove, scoring six in a row, capping off the run with a steal and dunk by Wendell Moore. The Duke cushion was aided by a three-minute scoring drought by the Terriers.
The Blue Devils led by 13 at the break, thanks in part to every player contributing. All nine players who saw action in the first half scored at least two points. Carey and Hurt combined for 16 points, and Carey’s dunk over Chevez Goodwin put Duke up 13 with less than three minutes remaining. Joey Baker hit three free throws to extend the lead to 16, 39-23, but Wofford’s Tray Hollowell hit a 3 at the buzzer.
The 3-point shot is what kept the Terriers in the game in the first half. Wofford came in making 11.2 3-pointers a game and had four at the half, shooting 37 percent from long range in the opening 20 minutes.
Duke outscored the Terriers 13-4 in the first six minutes of the second half, getting six of those 13 from Baker. Krzyzewski played nine players in the first half and all nine scored.
Wofford’s best player, Chevez Goodwin, picked up his fourth foul early in the second half, and the Blue Devils were able to take advantage. Goodwin, 6-9, was also the Terriers best inside presence, so that opened the door for the 6-10 Carey, 6-9 Hurt and company on the boards.
Carey, who leads the ACC in field-goal percentage, shot 8-for-11 from the floor. He also grabbed 10 rebounds, recording his eighth double-double of the year, the most among freshmen in the NCAA.
AND ONE
Duke snapped Wofford’s winning streak in ACC gyms in the Triangle. The Terriers had become a nightmare for local ACC clubs, winning at N.C. State in 2014 and two games in Chapel Hill — one at the Dean Dome, one at Carmichael last Sunday. The Blue Devils are 7-0 all-time against Wofford.
PERSONAL FOUL
It’s that weird time of year for scheduling. Duke hadn’t played in 13 days before the Wofford game and now won’t play again until Dec. 28, a home game against Brown, before jumping back into ACC play.
“This has been a very unusual couple of weeks for us,” Krzyzewski said. “With all the test, we didn’t practice for six straight days during exams. For these kids to come back and play like they have it’s been really something.”
ICYMI
Duke sophomore guard Tre Jones missed the game with a mild foot sprain. Junior guard Jordan Goldwire started in his place. Jones was coming off a 15-point, four-assist game in a win over Virginia Tech on Dec. 6.
Krzyzewski said if it were an ACC game Jones would have played.
“He has a slight sprain,” Krzyzewski told the media. “It’s better with this break for him to get well. He’ll be back and he’ll play right away.”
Goldwire picked up his second foul midway through the first half, so the ball handling duties went to 6-6 freshman Wendell Moore Jr.
MAKING SENSE OF THE NUMBERS
12-19: Dec. 19 has been good to the Blue Devils. Duke is undefeated at home on this date, a perfect 11-0.
1,070: Duke has now gone 1,070 consecutive games with at least one made 3-pointer, the third longest streak in the nation.
This story was originally published December 19, 2019 at 9:05 PM.
