Duke Runs Past SIU In The Second Half, 83-58
By Jerry Karpowicz
NEW YORK — Duke is getting there. Really, it is. You must have selective memory when the game is over.
You have to try to forget the 6-for-19 shooting – 19 field goal attempts in a half? – against Southern Illinois. That’s hard.
You have to attempt to get over the 16 turnovers during the first 20:17.
And erase the fact Gerald Henderson missed his only two field goal attempts and his lone free throw during the 20 minutes. It’s not the kind of bagel you want to have in New York.
This is probably oversimplification, but here is what you do: Accentuate the positive.
Recall the 12-for-23 shooting in the second half.
Think of the three turnovers during the final 19:43.
And more than anything, take into account Henderson’s 20 points after the break.
And for a bonus, throw in 40-for-47 free throw shooting, which included 25-for-28 marksmanship in the second half (24 in a row). Then there is this: Lance Thomas, 3-for-13 from the line coming in, was 6-for 6.
There is your 83-58 victory that put the 4-0 Blue Devils, ranked fifth by the coaches and 10th by the Associated Press, into tonight’s championship game of the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer. Michigan blew up the bracket when it ruined the anticipated Duke-UCLA matchup by bouncing the fourth-ranked Bruins, 55-52. That won’t help put more fannies in the seats than the 9,440 – some must have been dressed to look like seats – who showed up for the semifinals.
Thomas, a .551 shooter on freebies coming into the season, found the form as he extended his good start to his junior season. Thomas, who scored in double figures four times as a freshman and three times last season, has gone for 12 points, 5, 10 and 8.
“I feel like it was mental,” Thomas said of his problems at the line. “It was never mechanics on the shot, or anything of that nature. It was just missing the first two, then you start to think, ‘What did I do wrong?’ You try to change the shot. I just put that in the back of my mind. I just threw myself into the game and shot them the right way.
“That’s just wanting to be a good player, wanting to make sure I can contribute in the best way I can. I can’t be leaving any point on the table like that. I put a lot of time into it.”
Was there input from the staff?
“In general, they said we all need to start making more free throws, and I took it more personal because I knew I probably had the biggest discrepancy in the statistics,” Thomas said.
He laughed.
“But I responded well, and I’m going to keep moving,” Thomas said.
Thomas’ free throws came at important times. His two during the first half brought Duke within 17-16. The second two gave the Blue Devils a 46-36 lead. The third pair bumped a five-point advantage to 50-43.
“He was not only just making them, but he had big free throws for us,” said Jon Scheyer, who had a quiet 13 points. “That was something that was a huge thing for us.”
Scheyer said the Blue Devils showed some mettle during a game in which Southern Illinois (2-1) was very aggressive. The Salukis’ Tony Boyle took it well past aggressive when he hammered Kyle Singler on made dunk – he would have gotten arrested for that type of behavior in the streets.
Boyle was called for an intentional foul. Singler made two free throws for a four-point play that gave Duke a 63-49 lead. Henderson’s 3-pointer – the third of four – made it a 17-point margin.
“For us, I thought that was the mature thing to do,” Scheyer said. “We get fouled, they’re playing real physical. For us, it worked out again on the free throw line.”
After shooting 17-for-21 (.810) from the line against Presbyterian, Duke was 25-for-49 (.510) against Georgia Southern. The Blue Devils were 28 of 32 (.875) in the Rhode Island game and 40-for-47 (.851) versus Southern Illinois. It is 110-for-149 (.738) for the season.
The less-than-stellar first half had Scheyer baffled.
“I don’t know what it was,” Scheyer said. “I can’t put my finger on it, but we weren’t playing the way we usually do. The second half we finally turned it around. The first half we were just out of rhythm. The second we just calmed down a little bit, made extra passes, and it worked out.”
Henderson said he did a better job of reacting to Southern Illinois’ defense.
“You’ve got to read where they’re going, and go the other way, basically,” Henderson said. “It just make things easier for yourself. I kind of did that, and my teammates found me and I was fortunate enough to hit some shots.”
Coach Mike Krzyzewski loved the teamwork it took for Henderson to get the shots.
“He made about four or five really good reads that got those three open threes that he knocked down along the baseline, which was huge,” Krzyzewski said.
“Our guys skip passed to him. We used the whole court and it was on ‘G’ to do that. It’s not something you call, he has to read that. Then the kid who passes it to him has to read it.”
THREE’S A CROWD
Krzyzewski had a humorous answer when asked whether he received any special satisfaction from winning in front of Bob Knight (ESPN analyst) and Dean Smith (halftime honoree).
“I love one of them and I admire and really like the other guy,” Krzyzewski said, drawing a lot of laughter in the cramped interview room. “You can pick and choose which. They would tell you the same thing I’m telling you. They don’t really give a darn who the hell’s in the stands. You’re focused on what you’re doing. I was trying to figure out how we were going to score.
“In saying that, it’s pretty that tow of the greatest coaches of all time were right there. I don’t undervalue that. It’s just, I can’t afford to think about that until now. But thank you for bringing it up. It’s very nice of you.”
It was victory 807 for Krzyzewski, fifth on the all-time victory list. He is 95 shy of all-time leader Knight and 72 behind No. 2 Smith.
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