Duke basketball disposes of Boston College. Rivalry clash with UNC up next
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Duke beat Boston College 67-49 as Cameron Boozer led with 19 points and 12 rebounds.
- Blue Devils improved to 21-1 overall and 10-0 in the ACC ahead of UNC showdown Saturday.
- Duke defense and timely 3s from Isaiah Evans sustained an 11-win streak versus BC.
The ball went up Tuesday for Duke’s game against Boston College and the first minute was all about Cameron Boozer.
The freshman knocked down a 3-pointer. A few moments later, he had a steal and sped down court for a big slam.
Just like that, the No. 4 Blue Devils were off and running. It wouldn’t get any easier for the Eagles as Duke worked its way to a 67-49 victory at Cameron Indoor Stadium behind Boozer’s 19 points and 12 rebounds.
The Blue Devils led 13-0, then 18-6 and 42-27 at halftime after another Boozer slam in the final seconds. The Eagles finally found some offensive mojo, especially sophomore guard Fred Payne, a spunky type, but BC never applied any real game pressure on the Blue Devils.
Next stop: Chapel Hill. Duke will carry a 10-0 ACC record and 21-1 overall record into Saturday’s game against No. 14 North Carolina at the Smith Center.
“It’s great to get our 10th conference win. All of these are precious,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said.
There was no looking ahead Tuesday for the Blue Devils. They don’t operate that way, sticking to Scheyer’s mantra of every possession, every game, being prized, important.
“Each game presents different challenges,” Scheyer said.
And defense. At Duke, on this year’s team, an identity has been carved around aggressive, five-as-one defense.
On one play, Duke’s Isaiah Evans dove across the lane for a loose ball under the BC basket. He pushed the ball across the lane to Cameron Boozer, who got the ball out to Caleb Foster on the break.
Foster’s lob pass to Dame Sarr resulted in a darting high-rise slam by the freshman that had the arena rumbling.
“If you watch that possession, I thought it was the ultimate five guys moving on a string, together,” Scheyer said, “And that’s something we’ve worked really hard on.”
Payne, who led the Eagles (9-13, 2-7) with 14 points, did produce one of the game’s more dazzling plays. Catching the ball on the right wing, he sped in for a high-rise dunk of his own over Cameron Boozer and a few others in blue.
The Eagled used some three-quarter court pressure defensively to try and slow the Blue Devils in the second half, causing some indecision -- Duke missed 10 of 11 shots in one stretch. But it was not enough.
“We got a little too comfortable,” Duke’s Isaiah Evans said. “They’re a junkyard team and they’re not going to give up.”
An excuse-me, banked-in 3-pointer by Jason Asemota as the shot clock expired did pull BC within 58-45 with five minutes left, but Cameron Boozer quickly answered with an inside power move and basket.
Some observations from the game:
The beat goes on for Duke
This wasn’t one of the games where the game video will have a long shelf life. The Blue Devils put in their 40 minutes, won and moved on.
Make it another ACC win, Duke’s 32nd in the last 33 games. The Devils now have won 11 straight against the Eagles and 31 of 34 overall in the series, going 15-0 in Durham.
Get the idea? No one expected the Eagles to come into Cameron and win. But they did compete until the end.
It was a slog in the second half. Duke scored 25 points, their season low for a half, and shot 31.8% from the field, missing all seven of their 3-pointers.
“It’s not fun scoring 25 points in a half,” Scheyer said. “But if you’re going to score 25, hold them to less. So that’s good. I thought we were slow, just not sharp.
“Boston College is top five on defense in our league. I thought their physicality stood us up. They were very disruptive.”
Defending ‘Showtime Slim’
If there’s a fear factor for opposing coaches trying to defend Duke, it isn’t just Cam Boozer’s inside power or the way the Devils can pass and find the open man. They seem to take particular interest in how Evans looks early in the game.
Against Virginia Tech, he could not get the 3-ball to drop. He was 0-4 from the arc in the game, only the second time this season he has not had a made 3, finishing with 11 points.
But when the 3’s do fall … it can be quite a show, and fuels the Devils.
In the first half against Boston College, Evans drained a long 3-pointer. “Showtime Slim” then had the crowd howling as he quickly did a little wiggle waggle before running back on defense.
Later, another 3 fell. Slim “holstered up” after a 3 as he glanced over at the BC bench. He was feeling it. So was Duke. Evans did not have another 3 in the arsenal but those two were memorable.
Khamenia brings off-bench value
Duke freshman Nikolas Khamenia is the kind of player whose contributions don’t always show up on the stat sheet.
Case in point: the first half Tuesday. The 6-8 forward did not have a point or rebound but his defensive work on Payne, a 6-1 sophomore, could not be overlooked.
Khamenia is a fundamentally sound defensive player who quickly squares up on his man, moves his feet well and has good instincts.
And toughness. Payne gave Khamenia an elbow to the nose on one first-half drive, sending Khamenia to the bench soon after he had checked into the game.
“Unlucky. First 15 seconds,” Khamenia said, smiling. “I guess it’s just my luck. But usually it makes me play even better.”
Not for long. Khamenia soon was back on the court, ready for more. And sticking to Payne, who had his driving dunk after Foster gambled on a steal.
This story was originally published February 3, 2026 at 9:00 PM.
