Duke delivers its best game of the season with a dominant win over Clemson
Unranked and underappreciated due to a rare mediocre start to the season, Duke sent a message on Saturday that it plans to have more success the rest of the season than it had shown so far.
In their best performance of the season, the Blue Devils dominated Clemson by opening a 19-point halftime lead, extending it to as large as 35 in the second half and posting a 79-53 ACC basketball win at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
Winning its second game in a row following a three-game losing streak, Duke (7-5, 5-3 ACC) used a balanced offensive attack to blast the Tigers (10-5, 4-5 ACC).
Matthew Hurt led Duke with 13 points while Jeremy Roach came off the bench to score 12. Wendell Moore, DJ Steward and Mark Williams each had 11 points.
“Our work ethic has been crazy in practice so it’s not very surprising that we’re finally coming along and were playing together well,” Steward said.
Duke shot 45.9% and turned the ball over just nine times. That’s the second-fewest turnovers the Blue Devils have committed in a game this season. The Blue Devils were credited with a season-best 20 assists on their 28 made field goals.
“Our guys are unselfish kids,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said, “so they’re looking for one another.”
Clemson shot 35.1% from the field, including 5 of 21 on 3-pointers. The Tigers are now 4-64 against Duke in games played in Durham, having not won at Cameron Indoor Stadium since 1995.
“Our number one objective in the game was to keep Duke out of transition, “ Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “We think they are very good that way and we didn’t do any of that. Our turnovers gave them 25 points off turnovers. We gave them confidence and put us in a huge hole.”
Here are earlier updates:
Second-half update: Blue Devils rolling toward big win
Already leading 41-22 at halftime, Duke scored the first 11 points of the second half to open a 30-point lead over Clemson. The lead grew as large as 35 points and the Blue Devils lead 69-38 with 8 minutes to play.
Five Duke players scored in double figures to help the Blue Devils build the large lead. Starters Matthew Hurt (13 points), Wendell Moore (11 points) and DJ Steward (10 points) are there along with freshman reserves Mark Williams (11 points) and Jeremy Roach (10 points).
Clemson’s poor shooting (33% from the field) prevented the Tigers from mounting a comeback.
Halftime update: Blue Devils take big lead
With balanced scoring and strong defense, Duke built a 41-22 halftime lead over Clemson.
The Tigers hit just 3 of their first 17 shots from the field, allowing Duke to take a 22-8 lead on Jeremy Roach’s 3-pointer with 7:40 to play in the half.
Though Clemson put together a flurry of four consecutive made shots, the Blue Devils maintained their double-digit lead.
Baskets by Mark Williams and Jalen Johnson, followed by Wendell Moore’s 3-pointer, gave Duke a 7-0 run to end the half and a 19-point lead at intermission.
Matthew Hurt led Duke with eight first-half points, followed by Williams and Roach with seven apiece. Moore had six points for the Blue Devils, who shot 45.2% from the field while committing five turnovers.
Clemson finished the half at 29.6% (8 of 27), including 3 of 12 on 3-pointers. The Tigers turned the ball over eight times.
First half update: Duke off to strong start
Duke used the first 12 minutes of the game to take control while Clemson has struggled mightily to make shots.
While the Tigers made just 3 of their first 17 shots while committing six turnovers, Duke built a 19-8 lead behind balanced scoring.
Reserve freshman center Mark Williams scored five points while Matthew Hurt had four. Jalen Johnson scored three points, producing a highlight reel dunk while being fouled and adding the free throw.
Has Duke found a set starting lineup?
For the most part, yes. But the Blue Devils have one change for the Clemson game.
In games over the last week against Louisville and Georgia Tech, Duke used the same starting lineup in consecutive games for the first time this season. The Blue Devils started sophomores Matthew Hurt and Wendell Moore, along with freshmen Jalen Johnson, DJ Steward and Jeremy Roach while losing 70-65 at Louisville on Jan. 23 and beating Georgia Tech 75-68 on Tuesday.
Against Clemson, the Blue Devils are sticking with four of those five as Johnson, Hurt, Moore and Steward are in the lineup. But senior guard Jordan Goldwire has replaced Roach, who went scoreless with two turnovers while playing just 15 minutes in the Georgia Tech game. Goldwire came of the bench to take over his minutes, producing 11 points with seven assists and five rebounds in 35 minutes of play and earned the start against the Tigers.
This is the first time these five players have started a game this season, meaning coach Mike Krzyzewski is using his eighth different starting lineup in 12 games.
This story was originally published January 30, 2021 at 11:39 AM.