Behind a 46-point second half, No. 9 Duke surged past NC State, 79-64, at PNC Arena on Monday night.
NC State could not have asked for a better start jumping out to a quick 7-0 run forcing a John Scheyer timeout before the first media break. Duke responded out of the timeout with an 11-2 run to take a 11-9 lead with just over 13 minutes left before the half.
Both teams proceeded to trade leads and baskets for the remainder of the half as both squads finished the first half on shooting streaks with Duke holding a 33-30 after twenty minutes played.
The hot shooting continued after the break as the score was tied at 39-39 after a Mohammed Diarra three pointer. Duke used a few stops on defense that led to a few open looks and their biggest lead at that point in the game leading 55-47 with just over 10 minutes left in the game. The Blue Devils continued to pull away going up by as many as 17 with two minutes left before cruising to the 79-64 final.
“One of the stories of the game is giving up 19 offensive rebounds which is never a good situation for you,” NC State coach Kevin Keatts said after the loss. “It’s weird when I look at this stat sheet because Duke got 12 more shots than us and typically that’s who we are. We turn people over and get more possession. It was a really good game.”
“It was a great win for us” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said. “It felt a little bit like déjà vu the first couple of minutes there, the way the game started off. I just thought we showed poise, which you have to show against these guys. A lot of toughness. The story of the game for me was – against them you have five turnovers against their pressure all game. Tyrese [Proctor], Jeremy [Roach], Jared [McCain], they did a terrific job handling the pressure. They only score four fast-break points, which is important. And then our bench – the job that, obviously Sean [Stewart], but TJ [Power] and Ryan [Young] in that first half.
NC State closes out the regular season Saturday at Pitt, while the Blue Devils host rival UNC Saturday night.