Vernon Carey powers No. 9 Duke past Pitt to prevent Panthers’ rally
Vernon Carey’s strong play inside lead No. 9 Duke to a tough win on Tuesday night.
A 6-10 freshman, Carey scored 26 points and grabbed 13 rebounds as the Blue Devils survived Pittsburgh’s second-half rally to beat the Panthers 79-67 in ACC basketball at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
“They really killed us inside, especially Vernon,” said Pitt coach Jeff Capel, the former Duke player and assistant who coached against the Blue Devils at Cameron for the first time. “Very difficult cover, very efficient, and they do a great job of getting him the basketball.”
No. 9 Duke (17-3, 7-2 ACC) led by as many as 18 points in the second half. Pitt (13-8, 4-6) climbed back within three points before Carey helped the Blue Devils pull away.
“We were tired and we weren’t as aggressive,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said, “and there’s a lot of game pressure on our kids and then the last four minutes they were magnificent, which says a lot about the character of our guys.”
Tre Jones scored 14 points while Jordan Goldwire finished with 13 and Cassius Stanley 11 for Duke.
Au’Diese Toney paced Pitt with 27 points.
After a late flurry of hot shooting allowed Duke to lead by 11 points at halftime, the Blue Devils extended their lead to 60-42 with 13:39 to play.
But a stroll to an easy win took a detour. The Blue Devils went cold from the field and Pitt put together an 11-2 run over a 4:55 stretch. With 6:47 left, Duke’s lead had shrunk to 66-61.
With 4:26 to play, Pitt’s Abdoul Karim Coulibaly drove past Carey and was awarded a basket on a goal-tending call leaving Duke with a 68-65 lead with 4:28 left.
Matthew Hurt’s two free throws put Duke up 70-65 with 4:14 to play. Carey’s defense forced Toney into a missed shot in the lane before Carey hit a baseline jumper with 3:16 left for a 72-65 Blue Devils lead.
“At a timeout,” Krzyzewski said, “we called a little punch action that we executed, got it to Vernon and then we executed. I think we had an 11-2 run. We really executed well.”
Stanley’s 3-pointer with 2:34 to play restored Duke’s double-digit lead at 75-65.
And-1
On Monday, Jones said during an interview with reporters that any problems Duke has had in games was solely of their making, saying ‘it all depends on us and how we come out and play.’ The Blue Devils backed that up with strong play from the start, jumping to a 9-2 lead. Pitt rallied to lead 16-15 but Duke caught fire on offense again to lead 45-34 at halftime.
ICYMI
Players from both teams honored late NBA star Kobe Bryant by wearing matching T-shirts during pre-game warmups. The shirts had No. 8 on the front and 24 on the back. Those were the numbers Bryant wore during his 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers. Bryant, his daughter and seven others were killed Sunday in a helicopter crash. A moment of silence, lasting 24.8 seconds, was held prior to the national anthem. The ceremony also honored former Duke athlete and ACC commissioner Gene Corrigan, who died last week.
Making sense of the numbers
5: Consecutive games where Duke’s starting lineup has included Carey, Jones, Goldwire, Hurt and Stanley
9: Double-doubles by Duke’s Carey this season. However Tuesday night was his first against an ACC opponent and his first since Dec. 19.
13: Points scored by Duke’s Goldwire, a career high for the junior guard.
This story was originally published January 28, 2020 at 11:23 PM.